Booster & Master Cylinder Brake System Upgrade - Power To The Floor - CHP Step By Step

Using spare cardboard, we created a template to measure our new third hole. Once it was situated, we drilled through using a 1/2-inch drill bit.

Using spare cardboard, we created a template to measure our new third hole. Once it was situated, we drilled through using a 1/2-inch drill bit.

We threaded the factory fork onto the new brake booster with the nut. You may find that the factory fork is a tad too long to fit onto the brake pedal. Knowing that the problem could surface, we found one ahead of time and had a slightly shorter version on hand as a precaution.

With the brake booster in place, we tightened up the hardware using a 17mm socket with an extension to reach the nuts. Once those were tight, we installed the pin that holds the rod to the brake pedal.

Before we could bolt on the new master cylinder, we had to install the spacer into the back of the cylinder. This spacer is vital and designed to extend the brake pedal for proper operation.

We then attached the master cylinder to the brake booster and fastened it down with the supplied washers and nuts with a 9/16-inch wrench.

Since the brake booster runs off vacuum created by the engine, it's necessary to attach the supplied lines. Using pipe sealer, we threaded in the brass fitting into the back of the manifold and cut the heavy-duty line to size and attached it to the booster.

The Pirate Jack kit comes with a proportioning valve kit as well as prebent lines, fittings, and even the bracket to install it. Unfortunately, the engine bay in box Novas is small and we weren't able to utilize the bracket or lines onto the driver side of the master cylinder. Instead, we had to bend our own lines in order to fit the opposite side. To finish, we tightened each fitting with 9/16- and 1/2-inch wrenches.

Anytime the brake lines are removed from the master cylinder, you'll need to bleed the entire brake system. We simply filled the master cylinder with DOT 3-approved brake fluid and went through the process. We finished by looking for any leaks and checking pedal feel, and we were good to go.