Puzzled on my brakes

[novi408]

It sounds like it is your booster. You may have a vacuum leak internal to the booster which would cause a decreased output or possibly no power assist at all from the booster which would explain the hard pedal. You can pull the booster out without pulling the dash. On my '88, I can get at 2-3 of the nuts with a ratchet, but one of them is a PIA to get at even with a stubby wrench. One way to check if you can and have a gauge, is apply a vacuum to the booster and then remove the vacuum source and see if the vacuum level decreases. In a good booster, there should be no significant decrease over several minutes. You would have to have your vacuum gauge between the check valve and the booster. Hope this helps.