Well my Vac pump is going out. I only get 1 1/2 pumps at a time on the pedal till there is no assist and the brake light comes on till the vacuume builds up. So I'm swapping everything out for a Hydroboost setup. I went to CQ today and picked up a hydroboost unit. Lucked out and there was a brand new Ford unit in the box instead of a reman even came with the push rod and spring for the master cyl side even though the paper work in the box said it didn't.
Ordered the two pressure hoses they were out of them. I'm not going to replace my P/S pump I'm just going to "T" the return lines together. Called Cardone and verified with their tech guys there should be no adverse effects. Not sure if I'm gonna install any aditional cooler or not. Any thoughts on this? My master is good so I'm going to try and install the hydro without breaking my lines loose to avoid bleeding time.
Oh I got the parts for a 1997 F-Series Superduty those were the only ones with hydroboosts. Anyone have any experience doing one of these that might know of anything I've forgoten or over looked? Any suggestions would be appreciated. I'm hoping for a smoooooth install. Also anyone know of an idler that goes in place of the stock Vacuume pump?

Thanks
Brian

 

im gonna do it when mine goes. i think a shorter belt is whats getting used i had the measurement somewhere ill try to find it tommorow

as far as i know ya should be good to go. i dont remember the SD having additional coolingso im sure you should be fine there. and on the "t" the returns back should be fine as far as i know. its so much better with hydro, if you ever get to putting discs and having the hydro its awesome.

 

i know you wanna keep your current stock pump, but if you get up a wild hair i would sugges replacing it! i HATE these pumps, they just dont hold up like the old canned hams. i replaced 2 of these stockers and then went to a sag pump and have been nothing but happy. if you wanted to get trick and got an off the shelf sag pump do what i did, i drilled a hole in the back of the res and brazed a fitting for dual return. i am using it for a second cooler.

it doesnt take much to put an extra cooler in and i would NEVER go and buy a brand new one from AutoZoo or the stealerahip. everytime i go to the j-yard around here i find a factory one (about 8"x13") sittin in front of the radiator for about $10 maybe $15 a piece. heck i grab the rubber hose and clamps to. its a bolt on kit! you can go to advance and buy the external cooler mount kit. too easy and cheap insurance not too! plus it ups the fluid capacity by just a lil! and bleeding the steering system is easy! pick one tire up off the ground and saw the wheel back and forth adding fluid as needed!

i'd just leave the vac pump there, maybe take it off and gut it so it just acts as an idler. i know i've done that a few times with smog pumps

-cutts-

 

oh i did forget you do need to buy a superduty vac pump unless ya want your hvac on defrost vent all the time.

i cant find the measurement for the belt i dont know what i did with it.

id put the shorter belt on and throw the pump in the trash, just one more bearing to fail later.

 

yea .. that's next the electric vac pump. My belt driven pump still puts out enough ( 10" barely ) to work the flaps so I'm gonna leave it for now.

Hopefully it'll all go well this Saturday and I'll have all the pics and maybe a how to or something.

 

Ok I'm done with the swap. I was worried my weekend and house would be shot with the tornados but thankfully they missed us here. The tornado missed my parents house by 300 yds. Too close.

But back to the mod. It was well worth it and fairly easy. This sucker will stop on a dime and give you back nine cents now.

Here is a link to a how to I wrote for it. Hope this helps.
Hydroboost How-To

 

well ... I tried to post a follow up but it's not showing up... keep getting this.

Thank you for posting! If your post does not show up then either: a) The post is in a moderated section. b) The content of your post must be approved by a moderator before it appears. DO NOT REPOST IF YOUR POST IS MODERATED. MULTIPLE POSTS IN AN ATTEMPT TO GET AROUND IT WILL RESULT IN ALL THE POSTS BEING REMOVED. If you opted to post a poll, you will now be allowed to do so.


Maybe it'll show up sometime... lol.

 

awesome man! yea it makes a HUGE difference! did you have a hard time getting the right fittings and such?

is the only thing on the truck run by vac the brake booster?

yea, good ole FTE! if you have a web site link in your post and FTE doesnt like it it wont get posted EVEN if it is to help someone! its a pain, but there are ways around it!

-cutts-

 

Yea I'm really happy with it so far. No problems and no leaks.



awesome man! yea it makes a HUGE difference! did you have a hard time getting the right fittings and such? No trouble with the fittings just got all the hoses for a 1997 F-Series that's all I needed.

is the only thing on the truck run by vac the brake booster? I still have the vacuum pump no the truck. It's still got enough to run the vents. I'll ditch it when it finally craps out and get an electric one out of a Superduty.

 

Ok-clue me in.....
Can someone give me a little background on this endeavor in 40 words or less?
I am curious.

 

what about your power steering pump? you running a stocker? or did you go with a sag pump from an older truck?

glad you got it in and it works, it is an awesome mod!

-cutts-

 

Master : basically you switch out your vacuum booster setup out for a hydroboost unit. These units seem to perform better and also last longer. The vacuum pumps are notorious for going out and have a shorter life span.


Fishman :
Yes I'm still running the factory pump that came on this truck. It's got over 180k on it but no issues. I did some tests today heavy breaking and steering at the same time with no issues.

 

Brians97F250Crew: Do you want to get rid of / sell your old brake booster? I have a 1995 F250 PSD and my vacuum booster is starting to go. I'd like to do the hydroboost swap but its well below zero here and with these temperatures a vacuum booster works good enough.

 

jnye6625 ..... if you need it I'd more than happy to help ya out. Shoot me an IM or email.

 

Ah-I see now.
I replaced my stock vacuum pump last spring, but will absolutely check back here when it starts to go!