autozone powermaster
- Thread starter buzzman
- Start date
I bought one(only needed the ball and switch):wink: It has a lifetime warranty. Sooooo when I need a new acc. ball I put it back on the New/never installed PM and return to the zone. Is that wrong? The new unit "looks" really nice and new. I'll probably install it this fall.
I would remove the powermaster unit and store it away,to be put back on when the car is sold or whatever reason,and install the vacuum brake system.
That is what i did after having the powermaster go out on me a couple of times when i least expected it to happen,but i got lucky and didn't crash or hurt anyone or myself.
Just to depend on a fuse or a switch for my brakes to work just didn't seem like a good idea anylonger, atleast with the vacuum brake setup you can still stop the car.
Blown&Injected
Active Member
- Joined
- May 31, 2001
With the vacuum brake system if the brake booster / master cylinder / check valve fails you will be able to stop the car.
with the powermaster when it fails the pedal will not move at all from my experiences anyway.
turbodave231
Moderator
- Joined
- May 24, 2001
When the Powermaster pump stops working, you lose power assist only. The master cylinder still acts like a manual brake system. The pedal will be hard to push, but not impossible to stop.
I had 2 PM failures before I converted to vacuum. When the PM fails it is NOT like a vacuum assist faulure. I thought I was going to break my seat and bend my steering wheel when I tried to STAND on the rock formerly known as a brake pedal.
I'd go with a suggestion made already - convert to vacuum and keep a new PM unit in a box. The change to vacuum is not a permanent change and you can re-install the PM whenever you want if you feel you need to maintain the originality. Frankly, I'd be more concerned with the originality of the front clip more than the originality of the brake system.
Scott
I'd go with a suggestion made already - convert to vacuum and keep a new PM unit in a box. The change to vacuum is not a permanent change and you can re-install the PM whenever you want if you feel you need to maintain the originality. Frankly, I'd be more concerned with the originality of the front clip more than the originality of the brake system.
Scott
BlackBandit
God loves Buicks!
- Joined
- Mar 29, 2003
I'll second that. For whatever reason I've been "lucky" enough to have both systems fail a couple of times. Two PM's on the Buick (the second was an a1 cardone unit. The same one they sell at autozone I believe) and a couple vacuums assisted setups on other cars. (VW's and my Monte Carlo) The Vacuum assist setups don't give you much when they fail which basically means you get allot more than the powermaster gives you. All the pm's gave me was a stool to stand on that didn't really slow me down at all. If I was you I'd go vacuum and throw the PM on a shelf just in case you want to sell the car. As far as resale goes I know I'd take a low mile gn with vacuum brakes and a clean body over a low mile gn with a PM and a smashed front end any day. That's my .02 cents. james
