My trans am decided tonite it no longer needs to assist me with stopping my car. It no longer has power brakes, and I kinda need them. It happened after I put the car in reverse and noticed that it was very hard to stop. Car also seemed to shudder when revving or shifting, like the torque converter was about to go, but this happened before the brakes went. There is no brake light on in my dash. Vacuum line seems alright, but this happened at midnight and I couldnt see well. Master cylinder level is fine, but the fluid looks blackish.

Also, I drove approx 5 miles with no power brakes, is this bad, what should I look for to be damaged after this? Thanks guys.

 

Well black fluid means that it hasn't been changed in a while
should be flushed every 24 months or so...
Black would mean "never"...

But that is not likely the reason for you power assist to go south...
Make sure the vacuum line is attached...
Inspect it carefully. From the sound of things, it may be original...
look for cracks and such around or near the ends...

Remove, replace, as necessary...

No real harm in driving around without vacuum assist other
than to folks around you :-)

Sounds like your going to learn a bit about brakes...

 

Vacuum line seems alright. Just what i was afraid of. OFf to get a new power brake booster. It's gonna be a fun afternoon.