Chrysler Repair: brakes require excess effort/red warning & abs lights on, fluid reservoirs, dodge dynasty

Question
92 dodge dynasty FWD, ABS warning light on, red brake light on, rebuilt front and back calipers and flushed system, all hoses appear clear. Brake pedal still requires excessive pressure to stop car and car barely stops. Don't know what else could be the problem? There is some kind of small motor/pump that is making a noise as soon as the key is turned on, removed ABS fuse and noise stops, but all warning lights stay on, and problem stopping remains. HELP...about to drive off cliff!!

Answer
Hi Trish,
The most likely cause for very poor stopping ability is that the power brake canister is not being evacuated by the vacuum hose that comes from the intake manifold of the engine. So begin by inspecting that large vacuum hose and its metal fitting/clamps at both ends to see if any are loose, or pinched shut or leaking vacuum, any one of which would cause the power brake unit to not function in giving the expected boost to the effort applied by foot.
The ABS is secondary at this point until you get the regular brakes to work and besides the system is fail safe as far as ABS is concerned, it just won't do the anti-lock routine until you figure out its separate problem. The humming is the normal sound of the ABS so it is not surprising that the sound stopped when you pulled its fuse.
As for the red warning light: That could be due to the parking brake not being fully released or the switch that senses the position of the brake being mal-adjusted, the fluid level in one or the other brake fluid reservoirs being low and if those are OK, then there is a somewhat detailed test to perform to differentiate the possible causes of the light having to do with the master cylinder or a leak somewhere in the system, or air still in the system. It would be easier for me to xerox and postal mail you the test page for how to do the differential diagnosis about the warning light.
But check the vacuum hose and brake reservoirs, let me know what you find, and give me a postal mailing address and I'll mail you a copy tomorrow. If you can get the booster going that would at least make it safer to drive and ideally you can also solve the red warning light issue.
Then lets tackle the ABS issue after that.
Roland