booster BS !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
 

The 4th booster in 12 (!) months just failed. this is PURE BS ! The last booster (NAPA) was installed in Durango , CO. just 36 days ago , failure in the San Juan Mts. that stranded me for 4 days and FU ! my trip. since I am forced to pay labor due to health issues , each failure has cost me $600. got my money back on last unit ( NOT LABOR ) AND will get money back on this booster (am ex NAPA store mgr.) but will eat the labor most likely. What truly PISSES ME OFF is there is ZERO PM that can be done to prevent these Pain in Azz failures. the next, AND FRICKING LAST booster will be metal body. this the LAST straw , 96 CE LT4 is for sale car has had an ASTOUNDING amount of money spent on pro repairs and pm (10 k plus, all documented) in the last 18 months( 99k miles on Beautiful CA car) PM me if interested, will try to post pics soon. MUSTANG or XKR will be next. the 96 is my 5th Vette and will absolutely be the LAST. ALL the rant did not help much.................I'M fricking done............ I have 40 years experience in the auto parts biz , and have NEVER , EVER seen a POS as unreliable as this plastic crap.

The NAPA unit is a reman. Where did you get the other one's from ? Were they reman's also ?

Even the AC Delco from cough choke Rock Auto is a reman.

THE booster prior to the NAPA unit was straight from the local Chevy dealer . my Vette specialty shop claims that ALL plastic boosters are from the same source no matter what box they come out of, ALL the markings are the same. I doubt they will install a "wrong " year metal unit due to legal issues. also , the Chevy dealer in DURANGO,CO was ZERO help, told me 3 days to even look at the car and I am telling them "the booster failed"( I am an expert) and that I was a traveler broken down on hwy 550. frick those A holes, they know who they are.

I know you are not a happy camper, but could you elaborate on what caused the failures? Was it all the same thing or are the boosters quitting for multiple reasons? I had a similar experience with the old Austin/Morris/Leyland Mini in the UK. Brake master cylinders failed due to an internal leak/casting flaw and the dealer attitude resulted in my ditching the Mini for a Volvo (and no more brake issues). I currently have a 1996 CE LT-4 and don't want to do the brake thing again!

i have had c4's since 1987 and still have a 96 and never had an issue with a brake booster. and they all have had the original booster from gm.

no idea as to the cause of failure . brakes worked on Friday, failed while driving today. that is exactly what drives me nuts. NO warning prior to failure or means of PM. This is my third failure while driving and should be a NTSB safety issue.

Sometimes you win.....

Like stated before What's failing, Is it an Internal failure or is it doing the crack/split from the Booster Vacuum Port. If it is the Split, that is caused by the Holes on the Master not lining up with the studs on the Booster and the installer dragging them together with the bolts. They should slide together to Flush by hand if they don't you just take a rat tail or dremle and remove a little bit from Master and tightened Equally to about 15ftlb
https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.cor...8bd2b9706c.jpg
cracked booster

You have got to hate it when the pedal goes to the floor or goes ridged, brakes don't work and THEN the brake failure warning light comes on... like you don't already know that!

With a description like this who wouldn't want this car and be happy pay top dollar?

I'm curious too. Since you're an ex-NAPA store manager and an expert, you should be able to tell us why these boosters failed. There's a lot of people here who would like to keep this from happening to them, too!

Are you accepting offers on the car? Where are you located?

(I have a metal booster and excellent brakes on my "antique" '84.)

:cool:

I'm wondering if it's really the master cylinder and not the booster? "The brakes worked on Friday, then they didn't work today" then someone else stating when the MC oring leaks it causes booster failure.

m/c has never been changed . 90 % of brake system has less than 8k miles.

The booster on my 92 failed a little over a year ago, based on the markings it was the original, or at least built before the car.
I purchased an AC Delco through Amazon, since then no issues.

Mr. Viking , when I look in the mirror I see an old man with deep pockets , terminal bone cancer, that just want's the car to stay fixed so I can use it . Pray Tell , what other option do I have ?

Hi johno, I recommend that you state your location. There are many good techs on this forum, maybe one will be near you. Or maybe one will know of a very good shop near you. With a good tech that knows this history and a quality part or parts this should be one and done. Do not go to a good tech and tell him to change tthis part. Instead tell him this history then let him decide what to repair and where to source the parts. Good luck!

There is something else causing this to happen. One bad unit I could go with, but not this many. Even with a failed booster, you should not lose your brakes. That would be a lawsuit in a can if that is how the systems were designed. Harder to push, yes, totally lose, no.

A good mechanic needs to find the root cause. Not keep throwing parts and charging you money.

If his health keeps him from working on it he has to be able to trust the me cans to tell him what the problem is, I get it.
X2 on something else taking out your booster, has to be. Lots of replacement parts suck but those are beyond Charlie Brown odds!
best of luck!