Several years ago, I was considering switching over to a dual reservoir system on my GMC 2-1/2 ton. I too, can appreciate the advantage of not having a single leak take out the entire system. I have experienced partial system failure on dual reservoir equipped cars twice in my lifetime, and while whatever is left tends to be marginal at best, its still a better than nothing.

After running some of the basic calculations, the main part I kept coming up short on was total volume. With tandem rear axles, and a total of 6 wheel cylinders, I couldn't find a solution that would readily package, and still accommodate my system. I considered the Hydroboost system, but was not crazy about trying to add the pump and related lines.

So, I got a rebuilt Hydrovac from NAPA, replaced all lines and hoses, and SS sleeved & rebuilt all the cylinders. Every time I take the truck out, one of the first things I do is press the brake pedal as hard as I can. I would much rather have something fail in the garage than on the highway.


If anyone is planning on going down the road of re-engineering their brake system, here are a couple of resources that might be of interest:

The first is an SAE presentation by a Chrysler engineer. It is a little old, as it does not include much on modern systems with ABS (which I doubt we really care about anyway), but it has a lot of good information on the fundamentals of brake system engineering.

Brake Engineering Fundamentals

I also found this book to be pretty interesting. I borrowed an older version from one of the chassis engineers I used to work with. I don't remember everything in there, but it did cover stuff like adding line flex into the total volume calculations, thermal considerations, valving, etc. etc.

Brake Design

Foodtrucker, your installation looks really nice! Did you convert the front brakes over to disc at the same time?

Best Regards...