Help me name this part!!

[Berman]

God this is embarassing to have to ask. While I know a lot about engines and transmissions, I have never had to mess with the brakes on my own cars other than changing pads.

So here's my question. When you pop the hood, the huge metal ball shaped thing on the driver side firewall. What is it? There's a vacuum line going from intake manifold to it, (a thick line) and the connector from the vacuum line to the bell is broken. What's the name of the bell shaped thing (the powermaster unit hooks into it unless I'm really remembering wrong) so I don't have to sound this dumb when I go to get the part.

Feel free to laugh at my expense but help! I can't call Poston or Kirban and ask them that, I'd die.

 

[rastaz]

Sounds like you are referring to the Powermaster accumulator...

 

[TurboBob]

Ummmmmm

It sounds like the car has a vaccuum conversion done to the brakes.

In which case the part you are referring to is a check valve. But, since it
is not a standard part for the car (assuming vaccuum) you would need
to cross-ref a part from a (gawd) Monte Carlo or something like that.

I'm sure that someone can link in a pic of the Power Monster vs. Vaccuum........

Bob

 

[John Larkin]

Your car apparently has had the brakes converted to vacuum. Not a bad thing; the ball shaped thing is the power brake vacuum booster. The broken fitting is likely the check valve for the system. You can get one from either a junkyard or on one of those little HELP! cards at the parts store cheap.

 

[TurboBob]

I win....

 

[John Larkin]

But do you know what the do-hickey is next to the thingamabob?

 

[TurboBob]

Thingama'Bob' is my cousin,

Do'Hickey' is his girlfriend...........







TurboBob
(Ok, so where's THIS thread going........)

 

[HEROTIME]

I think your taking about the "Flux Capacitor"!!
Dont mess with it!!!
Frank

 

[Berman]

Originally posted by HEROTIME
I think your taking about the "Flux Capacitor"!!
Dont mess with it!!!
Frank

Really? Do you know where I can get some synthetic blinker fluid, or titanium piston return springs?

 

[Berman]

Originally posted by John Larkin
Your car apparently has had the brakes converted to vacuum. Not a bad thing; the ball shaped thing is the power brake vacuum booster. The broken fitting is likely the check valve for the system. You can get one from either a junkyard or on one of those little HELP! cards at the parts store cheap.

I don't think so; I think I'm not describing it properly. I wouldn't still have the powermaster unit there if it had been converted, or so you would think anyway. And my car looks like every other GN under the hood. Maybe I'm describing the master cylinder? Quite embarassing to be so clueless.. just never bothered to learn brakes.

 

[Steve Wood]

There are no vacuum lines going from the intake to the Powermaster. If this is a vacuum line, indeed, then you have a vaccum brake set up.

The master cylinder is the unit that the plastic brake fluid sits atop. If it is a powermaster, the cover of the reservoir will have some warning about not adding fluid until the unit is depressurized, I think...been a long time since I had a powermaster on a car.

 

[TurboBob]

It was your description of the big bell thingy with the thick vaccuum hose going to the
intake manifold that threw me......

I guess I'm gonna need more of a description.

Or a picture.

TurboBob

http://www.gnttype.org/techarea/brakes/powermaster.jpg

http://www.gnttype.org/techarea/brakes/accumulator.html

 

[rastaz]

Ha, that's funny....
I re-read the first post and now I'm thinking he's talking about a Vacuum booster. Maybe its a hybrid system

 

[BJM]

A better description for the vacuum booster if it is one is that its shaped like a discus.

 

[arista5]

can you take a picture and post it?

 

[arista5]

does it look anything like this

This I added a Comp Cam's Vacuum Reserve can to my Vacuum brakes, could someone have converted it to vacuum and have a different type of reserve?

(you can see half the car all the way to the right)

 

[Berman]

Originally posted by arista5
can you take a picture and post it?

Yeah I guess I'll grab my friend's camera and post the pic..

 

[Berman]

Ok. So I looked at the powermaster pics and my car. It was definately converted to vacuum brakes, I can see the vacuum reserve (Accumulator?) mounted in the driver front of the car.

Argh.