What determines hydroboost compatibility?

[foul_owl]

First of all, is it hydroboost or hydraboost? I have one on my 81 Eldorado Biarritz 5.7L diesel, and I am trying to determine what generic GM parts will fit on this car. Places that I have called have no idea of course

I have access to a machine shop with a mill, lathe, drill press, arc welder, etc so things can be fabricated if needed.

Thanks!

[curtis73]

The hydroboost only replaces the vacuum brake booster. All of the brake parts from the master cylinder to the brake pads are the same as the gas model.

[foul_owl]

Oh yeah, I meant like can I use like a generic hydroboost or one from a different model car, possibly fabricating brackets as needed? What needs to fit together?

[curtis73]

I would say no... at least not without a ton of research. The pressures required to operate the hydroboost as well as how much assist they provide can vary greatly. You might end up with a stiff pedal or one that gets sucked to the floor.

A good example - power steering pump pressure (which provides the energy for the HB) can be as little as 800-900 psi for rack and pinions, or as high as 2700-2800 psi for traditional steering boxes. Then on top of that, depending on something as simple as the pivot points for the brake pedal, the HB can be designed to produce a lot of force or a little depending on how the engineers made the car's braking geometry.