Paul Wilson does some eyeball engineering while mocking up Classic Performance Products’ Electric E-Booster Power Brake Kit under the hood of his 1952 Chevy pickup.
Regardless of how you feel about electric vehicles, they do offer some technological breakthroughs that can benefit those of us who still love our fossil-fueled classic trucks—namely electric power brake boosters. That same technology is available from Classic Performance Products (CPP) with their Electric E-Booster Power Brake Kits.
CPP’s new Electric E-Booster Power Brake Kit (PN UNIEBK-4-SB) is a self-contained unit that allows the latest technology to be adapted to virtually any vehicle.
Prior to the introduction of electric power brakes, the two most common types of boosters were vacuum and hydraulic. The disadvantage to vacuum power brakes is that high-performance engines with aggressive camshafts generally have low manifold vacuum at idle, which limits a vacuum booster’s effectiveness unless a vacuum pump is added. Hydraulic boosters require a power steering pump and hoses, which can add clutter to the engine compartment. By comparison CPP’s Electric E-Booster Power Brake Kit doesn’t require manifold vacuum and there are no hydraulic hoses needed. The E-Booster is a completely self-contained unit; it only requires connecting three wires from the included harness.
Included in CPP’s electric brake booster kit is a 1-1/8-inch bore, dual-chamber master cylinder with an attached proportioning valve for adjusting front to rear brake bias.
As for how CPP’s electric power brake system functions, it uses a Bosch electromechanical booster like those found on most EVs today. This state-of-the-art system uses a sensor to detect the amount of brake pedal movement, the sensor then sends a signal to the control unit that activates a 12V electric motor. Acting through a three-stage gear system, the motor increases the pressure applied to the master cylinder pushrod, thereby increasing the brake system’s hydraulic pressure. Thanks to sophisticated electronics, the control unit modulates the amount of boost applied to the master cylinder according to brake pedal pressure, so there is never too little or too much.
This electric brake booster assembly came with a universal four-bolt firewall mounting bracket that matched the CPP pedal assembly.
The E-Booster installation shown here was done on Paul Wilson’s 1952 Chevy pickup, also included was CPP’s firewall-mounted brake pedal assembly. The pedal is offset in relation to the booster, which was necessary due to the recessed firewall. While our booster came with a four-hole mounting bracket to match the brake pedal mounting flange, CPP offers booster brackets to fit a variety of Chevy and Ford pickups with factory firewall-mounted master cylinders.
Included in the brake booster kit is a reinforcement plate that goes on the inside of the firewall. In our case it wasn’t necessary as the swing pedal assembly served the same purpose.
CPP’s E-Booster system makes it possible to incorporate the latest power brake technology in any classic truck. Proven after many millions of miles in OEM applications, electric power brakes are reliable and provide outstanding performance with excellent pedal feel under all braking conditions. An electric power brake system from CPP is a great way to put a stop to any truck.
Also included in the kit is a hardware package with the necessary mounting hardware and a pedal clevis.There are two electrical plugs on the booster assembly; the larger one is on the driver side below the master cylinder.On the passenger side of the booster is a second, smaller plug; both connect to the included wiring harnessOther than plugging the harness into the booster there are only three wires to connect: a 40-amp fused circuit for power, 5-amp “key on” power, and a ground.We used a CPP 1947-53 Chevy truck brake pedal assembly (PN 4753FBB); it attaches to the firewall and has two supports that bolt to the dashboard.With the pedal assembly clamped to the dashboard rail, the four attachment holes were marked on the firewall.The CPP pedal assembly offsets the booster to the driver side, which works perfectly with the recessed firewall. The vertical bracket is for a stoplight switch.After bolting the pedal assembly to the firewall the hole necessary for the booster pushrod was marked and cut.As the bolt pattern for the brake booster and the pedal assembly are the same, only one set of mounting holes in the firewall is required.Note how the pedal assembly fits tightly against the recessed firewall. By bolting to the firewall and the dashboard there is no possibility of the pedal assembly flexing in use.Included with the master cylinder/booster assembly are fittings and tubing to bleed the master cylinder in place.The CPP electric booster kit can be used with any brake system, in this case C4 Corvette calipers and rotors are used up front.CPP’s electric booster, master cylinder, and proportioning valve combination is ideal with four-wheel disc brakes; this truck also has C4 components in the rear.In place, the brake pedal arm fits closely to the right side of the steering column and provides for full master cylinder travel.With the brake pedal located, the throttle pedal was positioned to make the movement from one to the other comfortable. Buddy couldn’t care less as his tennis ball was missing.At this point all that is left to do is plug in the wiring harness. Once installed the CPP brake system is bled like any other.
