Discovery 1996 TDI-Unreliable Brake Failure

[Wings]

Car gets very little use, being mainly used for carrying ladders, lawn mower, gardening and decorating equipment around to my rental properties. Used less than 3k mileage a year, and within 2 years new brake servo, brake pads etc. ABS light has recently stayed on, but no breaking problems, that is until last week when following a convoy of traffic, and was called upon to brake at short notice. On applying brake pedal, pedal near to floor without brakes appearing to work, applied the pedal a second time, when pedal was hard to press.

Garage that carried out the above works, suggests ABS (did the ABS light being on point to this) with a second hand price for one being approx. £400.

Apart from the age of the vehicle, and it's breaking spares value etc. of between £3-500, together with a recondition ABS being readily available for £195, I am wondering if the diagnostics of the ABS fault is the right one.

I understood the ABS is mainly useful in snow, icy conditions to stop the wheels locking, and that removing, disconnecting the ABS had no adverse effect to the braking system of the vehicle, when used in normal weather and road conditions.

[anonymous-user]

Empty the vehicle, get up to about 50mph then do a really hard emergency stop so nearly the entire weight goes over the front axle, chuck in a bit of evasive steering, then come back and say the ABS is only any use in snow.
You talk about "an ABS" and a "reconditioned ABS" but which bit? It's made up of several very different components.