Update on 144 brake problem

My Volvo mechanic threw in the towel after replacing the
brake booster with one of his own (not tested) and failed
to fix the problem. He is a big disappointment after doing
an excellent job of fixing a universal joint problem a few
years ago.

We took back the car and I located a brake repair service
in Portland Oregon. I removed the unit and shipped it off
for repair. They received it last Thursday and in a quick
check found it did not hold a vacuum. They will rebuild it
and ship it back to me for a reasonable cost.

I am also disappointed in the Volvo company reply to my
query about brake boosters on a 144 1969 Volvo. They told
me from the N.A. office that this car did not have a
repairable brake booster. The people in Portland contradicted
that by saying there were some units in that year that were
indeed repairable. Evidently, Bendix made the original units
and sold it to Volvo through an intermediary company. If I
had listened to the official volvo answer, I would have given
up on the car. There are a fair number of these Bendix units
around, so if my unit had turned out to be unrepairable, they
could have replaced it with one that was.

I should be getting the repaired brake booster back next week,
and I will report on how workable it turns out.

Sherwin

 

Good to hear. Two comments: first, universal joints aren't hard to
fix - I worked on them in high school, so that isn't a good indicator of
a mechanic's skill. Second, as a fairly small car manufacturer, Volvo
relied a lot on other companies for parts, and probably didn't keep up
on all the permutations, or at any rate the people there *now* don't
know about them.

 

[ ... ]

It would be helpful if you can post some information on how to
identify which are repairable and which are not. I may need
one for my '72 145 one of these days.


Gary

 

He did. Something about one locking tab vs two on the shell, and
whether or not it has a full metal band around it. Read back in the thread.

 

I thought I mentioned it already, but a repairable unit has
crimps on one side only. The non-repairable version has
crimps circling both sides of the unit. It also has a metal
band around it.

These people in Portland say that this is a problem with several
cars besides Volvo, like Mercedes and Jaguar. In most cases, they
can find an equivalent unit, probably made by Bendix, as were the
ones on the Volvos.

My unit arrived this evening from UPS. I will mount it tomorrow
and give the results. The people in Portland checked it on their
tester, before shipping, so I have confidence it will work.

Sherwin

 

It may be a simple repair, but not always easy to recognize the
symptoms. In this case it was a shuddering as the car was brought
to a stop. Our long time mechanic, who had worked on the Volvo
many times, thought it was the brakes, and replaced almost the
whole system. His partner was a better mechanic, who was one of
those rare individuals that knew how to tune the dual carbs on
our Volvo. Unfortunately, he was no longer around when we brought
the car in for diagnosis.

This 75 year old Swede must know something as his lot was full of
newer Volvos. He just didn't want to be bothered to chase down a
replacement unit, and instead threw in an untested replacement
lying around his shop that did not work.

I still think Volvo should do a better job of keeping records on
their parts installed. Remember, a Volvo is 'For Life', which
may work if you die an untimely early death. I'm not bitter, just
more cautious about what they tell me.

Sherwin

 

I think you're taking that slogan much too literally. When they say
Volvo for life, they are suggesting that one buys another Volvo when it
comes time to replace their old one, not that one Volvo will last a
lifetime!

 

Installed the repaired brake booster on the Volvo today.

It was a complete success. The brakes work as good as
ever.

I would recommend the rebuilders to anyone:

Power Brake Booster Exchange, Inc.
4335 S.E. 63rd Ave.
Portland OR 97206
503-238-8882

Now that the car is mechanically back in shape, I have
to concentrate on the body work. The body needs structural
reinforcement and some cosmetic work. I need to find
a welder ready to take this on.

Sherwin