Brought the Durango in for the foam shield on the booster...tech forgot to reattach the vacuum to the booster...no brakes....yikes...almost crashed into three new cars...anyway he plugged it back in by hand....my question is do the breaks need to be bled or am I okay?

 

Your ok that was the booster pump which is an air vacuum from the engine and not the hydraulic lines going to the calipers / brakes.

 

How did the tech not notice that when he pulled it out of his bay and parked it ??

 

It was in the bay when I got there. They also replaced my wheels and wanted me to inspect them before it left the bay. A separate tech drove it out of the bay and came inch's from smashing the cars parked in front of the bay....this dealer has an extremely small lot. Needless to say I'm pissed. That seems like an extreme oversight.

 

Ok, I was wondering why in the world they would let a customer pull a car out of a bay...lol

 

The tech should have bled them already. The do have to remove the mater cylinder.

Many techs try to skimp as much as possible, one to maximize their paycheck, two to stock up on supplies. Often a job calls for brake fluid or what have you and if they can do the job without using the materials, they then keep it for themselves. And please don't come here saying that doesn't happen. I worked at the Dodge dealers parts department for a few years and saw it all the time. The mechanics hoarded crap like prisoners cigarettes.

Back on topic. My Durango after the booster replacement needed to be bled. They were horrendous. The tech tried to say he did it. However once I brought it back and watched him and another tech test it, the brakes were bled and all was good.

Chris

 

Procedure for installing the seal on booster doesnt require removal of brake lines
Procedure states gently pull master cylinder forward to clear brake booster

 

Ahh I misread, thanks sir!!

My comments regarding changing the booster itself still stands.

Chris

 

Just to be clear. You had brakes but the brakes were not working with the booster. You need a lot more force on the pedal to achieve the same braking power but it they still work.

I had that funny moment when a weasel (sorry don't know the english term for it) bite a hole in the line. I live on a 20% steep hill and I have a 120° curve with a stop. You can imagine that the first 2 seconds I was shocked but was able to stop the heavy rig without any issues. You just need more muscle to stop it ;-) I could imagine that the average 1,5m female will not be able to stop it like a pro but still will work....