Re: brake assist

["Eric Renneisen" <renneie@hlthsrc.com>]

>Having started the car, and driven up the drive and come to halt, I
>notice that there is very little brake assist. Once off the drive,
and
>at the top of my road, about 100 yards later, there is full assist.
>
>I presume some pressure is being lost overnight/over a period of
time,
>and the engine has to be driven for a period to restore full servo
>effect....does this sound right?

Sounds like a bad "bomb" (hydraulic pressure accumulator). If it
doesn't 
hold pressure, it will take a little while for the hydraulic pump to 
repressurize it. Check out 
http://www.geocities.com/MotorCity/Speedway/3229/brakprob.htm
for a diagnostic procedure for the bomb and brake servo.

>Is there something I can have done quickly which might put off the
>inevitable?

If the bomb fails the common tests, you can try flushing and refilling

the Pentosin hydraulic fluid. Sometimes this will clear the check
valve 
and solve the problem. However, if your car still has the original
bomb, 
it's probably dead. They only seem to last about 7 years. A new bomb
is 
expensive, but the job is simple, if messy.

Eric Renneisen
'90 CQ 20V  -  my 'racing-iron'  ;^)
Chattanooga, TN