2001 BRAKE Help-Advice
 

Hello community and thanks to hosting parties.

My 4 cyl with 81k+ miles was humming along and performing well with no issues until a cat crossed my patch, I immediately hit the brakes and when my problem started.

ISSUE? I seem to have lost power brakes(?).

If I press ONCE, its like im barely pressing it. Kind of like slow stopping.

Pump TWICE and I get enought pressure to stop but too long of a distance and of course not safe.

Its only when I pump THREE times that it "seems" to finally get full pressure but its not even gradual/linear. There is a 1/2 inch traveling distance near the end of the stroke that FINALLY gives me enought ummph to stop but then again you feel your body lean forward...thats how fast it stops in just that 1/2 inch of travel.

I hope this makes sense to someone.

Anyways, a friend told me possible a "plunger"(?) may be out of place due to the sudden braking incident and should be an easy fix as just rearrange back in place. At least thats how easy he made it sound.

No clue where this "plunger" is located nor how it should look like in its proper place.

Ive been searching for manuals online and found this great forum.

A also searched in here but could not find anything related. Sorry if I missed it.

Please advise and thanks in advance.

Pete

check for brake fluid leakage , a hard panic braking could cause a seal to fail or a brake hose to fail ,( like a wheel cylinder or the piston seal for the front calipers ,etc. )

exactly, I really think it is cause of brake fluid leakage... double check you might find something.

Additional information I forgot to mention...
 

Fluid in reservoir has not changed since incident (well over 3 months)

When brake is pressed, you can hear a hissing sounds coming from the brake booster(?). Perhaps where the "plunger" friend had mentioned could be located(?). I took it with a grain of salt at the time and took my chances due to economic reasons.

Car has ABS system. The ABS light does come on when you first turn the key (self check?) and once engine is running, it would turn off as expected. After the incident, it would stay on but after a few weeks, it return to normal operation (fingers crossed)

Been watching youtube videos and getting ready to "finally" attack this issue with tools and a little cash.

Once again, I appreciate **y'alls time to respond to my problems.

**Im in Florida now.:)