Brake help, requested ...GTV6

["Darren Leung" <destin8@domain.elided>]

Hi all,For those of you who don't know me, I'm still quite wet behind the
ears with my 83 GTV6.  Okay, okay, still quite novice to most
wrench-turning stuff.  But I hope to learn somewhat on this pretty
well-maintained car.So on to my plea for help...Just this night, I picked
up my car from a month of storage, started it up without a hitch, drove
it around without a hitch for about 20 minutes.  The brakes were working
a little bit weak at first, but eventually back to normal pressure. 
After the drive around time, the pedal began to sink in more and more to
the floor with each distinct application, until the point where I needed
to pump the pedal to get stopping power.I pulled into a station to see if
fluid was leaking, not seeing any, nor any loose hoses (granted, this is
not exactly a thorough exam) I justified that if I drove cautiously
enough and pumped the pedal as judiciously as possible, I could make it
home safely.  Having stopped in downtown Mattapan, Mass. addmitedly
helped my decision.  I made it back okay.*Note* at this point, if you
wish to flame me for irresponsible behaviour, please do so directly to
me, and I will dutifully post your flames accurately and in concise
format for all to see all at once, rather than waste human bandwidth with
lots of repetitious stuff.  If I'm an idiot by concensus, don't worry,
I'll let everyone know. The only additional observations: (1) the brake
fluid had become rather brown; (2) pumping the pedal did not produce any
bubbling in the reservoir; (3) pumping the pedal faster generated very
transitory braking, versus none for slow pumping; (4) after achieving
good braking force, I could hold the pedal down without it sinking in;
(5) using the clutch did not affect the brakes once the brakes were firm,
but did seem to increase the necessary pump action to achieve firmness;
(6) the clutch operated apparently normally; (7) the PO successfully
rebuilt the rear calipers and the handbrake works, although it is rarely,
if ever, set;(8) the handbrake still provides consistent braking force. I'm
not knowledgeable about most things, but it seems logical to me that(a)
brake lines are relatively free of air, so(b) there must be some sort of
leak in the brake booster,(c) but a booster leak should affect the
clutch, right? So, can someone please suggest what my issue is? It seems
like a standard problem, so forgive me if it's straightforward.  Plus,
somehow I managed not to bring my Cardisc with me (this was actually a
trip intended to retrieve said car from MA to VA, and yet I forget to
bring the disc). Thanks in advance,Darren'83 GTV6

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