Archived Leaking Hydroboost / Master

[PCrable]

Help!



My truck just developend a pretty big leak of fluid. It appears to be power steering fluid from the hydroboost behind the master cylinder. At first, I thought it might have been a brake fluid leak, but the brake fluid level was only a little low and the power steering fluid was so low it didn't read anymore.



I already did some searches and have seen from others that a hydroboost can cost as much as $650 from a dealer. Other parts places may have ones from A1 Cardone, but others say to avoid them due to poor quality.



A post from a few years ago said Sam Peterson had a rebuild kit that was for a Chevy that was probably 80-90% the same as the Dodge one.



Any thoughts about getting one from a junk yard ?



BTW, my truck is a 4WD with 4 wheel ABS if it matters any.



Help!



Thanks,

--Phil

 

[AndyMan]

If you do a search here, there's a pretty good site for buying them. The only place besides the dealer that I know of off the top of my head is Summit Racing. I think it's about $100 cheaper than what you posted from the dealer IIRC.



If I can find the other site here on the board, I'll update my post.

 

[Dave M]

I got my hydroboost unit from hydratech at www.hydroboost.com for about $275 and am very happy I did. Go to their web site for good info on how hydrboost works. The unit they give you is NEW not rebuilt but you must ship them your old unit so they can re-use the firewall bracket and a few external parts. That means your truck is down while you ship your old unit to them and they ship the new one back.



I am very pleased with their product and you can email or call with stupid questions and they are very helpfull. I talked to Paul Clark. I believe they will tell you to use synthetic fluid and they will tell you how to bleed the system. Not a hard job at all. First time for me too.



Dave

 

[PCrable]

Thanks to everyone for their input. Dave M you have been a great help!



I did some additional digging and here's what I found:



You can get a hydroboost from http://www.partsamerica.com/Default.aspx (they're also Checker Auto around here). This unit is part # 527354 for $249. 99 and is a remanufactured unit made by A1 Cardone. I've seen from other places this is not a very good unit and to avoid it.



I called Paul Clark at www.hydroboost.com or http://www.hydratechbraking.com/ and as Dave M describes, Paul can get you fixed up for about $275 + S&H. The bad part about this is that Bosch no longer manufactures the direct OEM replacements. In order to get you a unit to fit your truck, you need to send them your unit, and they will take the manufacturer specific parts from your unit and put them on a brand new system. They can normally turn this around in a single business day and then get it shipped back out to you for about another $15 or so. On the plus side, you are getting a brand new core unit.



Paul said another option for me to consider is a rebuilt unit. The advantage of this is that you don't have to pull yours out and ship it and then wait for the turnaround. He said that most rebuilding shops he thinks do poor work but he did come across one shop he highly recommends: http://precisionrebuilders.com/ . Paul said to talk to Tim Henderson who works in their tech support department. I called Tim and he had 2 units that would fit a '99 with ABS in stock (part number 2772681) for $190 plus a $120 core charge and S&H. Tim seemed very knowledgeable on the subject and asked all the right questions.



Tim then recommended I could buy the hydroboost from them via Drivetrain Industries (http://www.drivetrainindustries.com/) . Drivetrain is apparently a big truck repair company and they have a local office in Colorado Springs. I could have them place the order for the unit, bring in my old unit and then get the new one without having to pay a core charge. I called the local office and they ordered the unit for $183. 70.



Now I'm just waiting for the unit to come in and then I'll try to do the swap as others have done without removing the brake lines.



Thanks to everyone for all the help 



--Phil

 

[DrDiesel]

Thanks to everyone for their input. Dave M you have been a great help!



I did some additional digging and here’s what I found:



You can get a hydroboost from http://www.partsamerica.com/Default.aspx (they’re also Checker Auto around here). This unit is part # 527354 for $249. 99 and is a remanufactured unit made by A1 Cardone. I’ve seen from other places this is not a very good unit and to avoid it.



I called Paul Clark at www.hydroboost.com or http://www.hydratechbraking.com/ and as Dave M describes, Paul can get you fixed up for about $275 + S&H. The bad part about this is that Bosch no longer manufactures the direct OEM replacements. In order to get you a unit to fit your truck, you need to send them your unit, and they will take the manufacturer specific parts from your unit and put them on a brand new system. They can normally turn this around in a single business day and then get it shipped back out to you for about another $15 or so. On the plus side, you are getting a brand new core unit.



Paul said another option for me to consider is a rebuilt unit. The advantage of this is that you don’t have to pull yours out and ship it and then wait for the turnaround. He said that most rebuilding shops he thinks do poor work but he did come across one shop he highly recommends: http://precisionrebuilders.com/ . Paul said to talk to Tim Henderson who works in their tech support department. I called Tim and he had 2 units that would fit a ’99 with ABS in stock (part number 2772681) for $190 plus a $120 core charge and S&H. Tim seemed very knowledgeable on the subject and asked all the right questions.



Tim then recommended I could buy the hydroboost from them via Drivetrain Industries (http://www.drivetrainindustries.com/) . Drivetrain is apparently a big truck repair company and they have a local office in Colorado Springs. I could have them place the order for the unit, bring in my old unit and then get the new one without having to pay a core charge. I called the local office and they ordered the unit for $183. 70.



Now I’m just waiting for the unit to come in and then I’ll try to do the swap as others have done without removing the brake lines.



Thanks to everyone for all the help 



--Phil

Great info. Thanks for posting your research for the rest of us... .

 

[AOsipower]

Same problem with my truck... replaced the power steering pump and the leak stopped