Servo

I have noticed a leak of brake fluid dripping from the servo area. It doesn't seem to be coming from the brake pipe unions so I assume it must be leaking from the servo itself.

Here are my options -
1, to take the servo off and get it re conditioned. ( I did consider doing this myself with a refurb kit but have heard that it is a real pain in the %$*! job and unless done correctly can lead to problems) AH spares want nearly £300 for a reconditioned unit!
2, buy a new unit to fit.

A guy on ebay sells a a brand new modern equivalent for £89. Thats more like it.

Has anyone fitted one of the newer servos? If so what do I need to modify to get it to fit? I know the fixing bracket needs a little mod?

Jeepster said:

.. have heard that it is a real pain in the %$*! job and unless done correctly can lead to problems...

Click to expand...

Where did you 'hear' this? Rebuilding a Girling servo is not a difficult job, and if you take the time to understand how they work--there's an excellent write-up in the shop manual--you can do it yourself. If you want to install a non-original replacement that's your prerogative, but the Girlings work fine and are imminently rebuildable.

Usually, when these fail they suck brake fluid into the vacuum cylinder. I wouldn't rule out a leak at a fitting.

What job not done correctly doesn't lead to problems?

Hi Jeepster,
I do not recognize that valve .However I suggest staying away from that particular one.Look around some of the other UK stockist and see it they do not have a unit that can be fitted to the existing brackets with only minor modification. Some people are successful at rebuilding the original booster but most are not. I would also check around there in the UK for a re builder.--

----Keoke--

I fitted one of these servos last year. Direct replacement for original and from what I have heard they are from the same manufacturer that supplies all the other suppliers.It also has the advantage that it supplies more boost than the old model.Highly recvommended in my opinion.
Andy

Good to-know-- :thumbsup:--- :thumbsup:

Hi Jeepster,

The original servo on my BJ8 was bad when I removed it for rebuild, but then the car had sat for 20 years or so. No surprise. Upon disassembly of the unit, a few of the bores were corroded (there are 5 in the unit, one is very small). I had just refurbished a Lotus Europa, which came with 2 servos that I had removed and bypassed the system to eliminate them, so I disassembled them looking for a good rebuild candidate. Both of them were also corroded. I then asked a friend to donate two of his, and I finally found one that was rebuildable. I bought a kit, and proceeded to rebuild the unit, which was a bear. I checked, and rechecked everything and it was successful, to my relief. When I talked to Dave Bean (Lotus guy in San Andreas who sells parts, engineers race mods, etc....many years experience) he said about 50% of the rebuilds don't take on these things.
The Lockeed replacement seems to be a great price. I recall they were selling for about $400 not too long ago. I believe all you need to do is to make a bracket to fit it. I also understand that when these things go bad, you often get white smoke in the exhaust, and a loss in brake power since the fluid will leak past the seals into the diaphram, and into the intake manifold...when you run out of fluid, no brakes.

Good luck,

Jerry Rude
Roseburg OR

I should probably repost what I wrote a year ago:
******************************
Hello,

I have just completed a small winter project:
(too cold to work in the garage to finish my BN2 :-( ).


Assembly and descriptions are 1/3 way down the page:
https://volvo1800pictures.com/sweden/Volvo_1800_dokumentation_main_page_en.php

Detailed description, assembly & testing procedure is here:
https://volvo1800pictures.com/document/Se...disc_brakes.pdf


I have made a similar 'test station' as described in document above - the functionality is roughly equivalent to the original Girling/Volvo one:
https://picasaweb.google.com/Volvo1800S/GirlingServoTesting#


If you are planning to rebuild it, I would recommend resleaving the pressure cylinder in the alu body (I use a company called Past Parts in UK to do it).
Also, make sure your vacuum is tight & change all the bolts - especially change the UNF bolts that hold canister to alu body to longer ones to be able to tighten it better..

However you do it, it's worth testing before you mount it.

If you have any questions, shoot

Tadek

I just don't get it. I've been driving big Healey's for over 40 years. All 6 cylinder cars - 100-6s and 3000s. I had one BJ8 and I disliked the braking on that one the most. The servo always made some sort of groan or suction type of sound and there was always a slight delay. I hated it (and the curve windshield & vent windows) so I sold that car. I race an early 3000 with 4 wheel disc brakes - two 5/8" bore master cylinders and no servo. And I have no problem pushing down the brake pedal and the car stops on a dime. But then, I do have strong legs and I am only 67 years old. A stock Healey, with all fluids, weighs less than 2500 lbs. That's about 300 lbs less than a Miata. Why would anyone need a servo in the first place, let alone spend hundreds of dollars to fix a bad servo?

When the seals in my original Servo began to leak my silicon brake fluid into the air chamber in the early ‘90s, I replaced it with a Lockheed unit. Although the Lockheed worked well, it provided less boost that the original and was not to my liking. I rebuilt and installed the original servo after using the Lockheed for one season and the original has worked well for the past 2 decades and the Lockheed remains on the shelf just in case.

As I remember, the rebuild was a reasonable effort and, after cleaning, I retained most of the air chamber components but rebuilt the servo’s master cylinder. I also renewed the air chamber wall lubricant. As I understand, most have had difficult with replacing the air plunger seal in the air chamber as the supplied replacement does not fit properly and must be cut down.

Although I am not a fan of the Lockheed unit, it does work reasonably well and is not as pricy as the original. Try bypassing the servo to see if you need it at all. As Rich indicated, you may be pleasantly surprised.

Good luck,
Ray (64BJ8P1)

Jeepster said:

I have noticed a leak of brake fluid dripping from the servo area. It doesn't seem to be coming from the brake pipe unions so I assume it must be leaking from the servo itself.

Here are my options -
1, to take the servo off and get it re conditioned. ( I did consider doing this myself with a refurb kit but have heard that it is a real pain in the %$*! job and unless done correctly can lead to problems) AH spares want nearly £300 for a reconditioned unit!
2, buy a new unit to fit.

A guy on ebay sells a a brand new modern equivalent for £89. Thats more like it.

Has anyone fitted one of the newer servos? If so what do I need to modify to get it to fit? I know the fixing bracket needs a little mod?

Click to expand...

I had Power Brake Exchange in Calif. rebuild my servo due high recommendations of Healey owners who claim a high success rate and satisfaction. I understand that they will not sell individual seals and kits and have even had seals remanufactured that are no longer available. I'm doing a frame-up on my car so I'm a little ways off from actually testing the rebuilt servo. I think I paid about $300 for the rebuild.

I have a replacement servo. it works fine, but does not apply as high a rate of assist as the original. Today there are more people who can rebuild the original. As I recall, the secret to a good rebuild was the lubricant film on the walls of the vacuum unit. If the original stuff was still in good shape, you have a very good chance of a successful rebuild. But if it was worn off, you needed to apply something to the walls.

I rebuilt the servo on my BJ8, wasn't that bad I thought but it never worked properly. Would always lock the brakes up. I bypassed it and have used the car with no problems, can't tell any difference really. I have bought a replacement but not installed yet. One of those rainy day projects I guess.

Marv

Its about time I updated this thread with my progress so far. -

I did buy a replacement lockheed type servo for about £130. This looked fine until it came time to fit. The Lockheed type servo will not fit on the original Girling servo brackets so I had to decide how to make it fit. AH spares in the UK sell a bracket that will allow the new unit to fit to the original brackets so I ordered one and attempted to fit. This bracket turns the servo through 90 degrees and it proved to be a very tight fit in the space between the engine and inner wings. It also was so close to the oil filter that I feared I would never be able to unscrew it without removing the servo ( I have a modern screw on type filter) The final straw was when I tried to install the brake lines. Obviously the originals would not fit to the repositioned servo so I had to make new ones. The threaded hole on the servo that accepts the brake pipe was so close to the new bracket that it made fitment of the pipe impossible. Even when I tried to fit the pipe with the servo off the car and then refit servo and pipe in one go, it proved impossible due to space limitations. Bear in mind I do not have a car lift and was doing this with the car on stands.
I eventually decided this was a bad job and removed all the new parts. I have since depatched my original faulty Girling servo to Past Parts, here in the UK for them to rebuild it. They have quoted £200 and a 10 day turn around. I can then refit on the original brackets, with the original pipes and the car should look more original too.

I will update when the unit returns.

My reconditioned servo arrived this morning. £189 plus vat and carriage from Past Parts here in the UK. Looks like they did a fantastic job as the case was shot blasted and power coated as well as the internals reconditioned.
I fitted the servo this afternoon onto the original brackets with the original brake pipes, and all seems well. Just need a spare leg to help me bleed the brakes and it would be ready for a test drive. (looks like I might have to wait until April when the roads start to dry up as we get a lot of rain here in Wales)

https://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz270/welshjeepster/DSCN0686.jpg

Forget to add -

wish I had gone down this route originally and not wasted my time with modern replacements.