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Brake line leaking over/near subframe

chicagochuck

chicagochuck

New member
Yesterday while driving my 2001 prix 159,000 miles. I stopped at a light and the pedal engaged and went down to the floor luckily I was bale to stop. I figured it was a hose or that what I had hoped. My brake light immediately came on and I was losing brake fluid. I can hear squirting noise when I push the brake. Its still somewhat carefully drivable, so I was able to get it home.

I have no experience in changing brake lines. I know it isn't too complicated just dealing with rust. I got under the car today and it looks like the leak is probably coming from near the firewall above the sub-frame. I don't see how anyone could maneuver to fix a brake line in that crowed space. Any suggestion's how much something like this may cost etc before I take it to the shop.
 


It's not crowded to work with the brake line because you'd replace it right from the abs module which you can reach from the top, and run a new line down to wherever there's a good section of line. Of course you'd need line and a flaring tool. Expect to pay $150 for one line at a shop.
 
my 2001 blew passenger front line. it runs along bottom of firewall and bends over the exhaust. I ghetto rigged it and ran a new line across the top of the firewall and then put a small hole in the shock tower , painted the hole and then put a grommet in it and fed the line through.

You need a bubble flaring tool. good luck finding one locally. In a pinch you can use the first step of a double flaring tool to get something that looks similar to a bubble flare but I wouldn't recommend doing it. Otherwise buy 2 pieces of premade line at autozone with the proper bubble flares on them. cut one end off each line so you can use the factory bubble flares on the abs/ hose connection and then make a double flare where the two lines meet with a union. ( you can easily find double flare tool at autozone).

You may have to replace the brake hose if you cant get the line off of it.
 
Bubble flaring tools can be rented at all the stores near me. And its not hard to flare either. But given you seem to be new to it, taking it to a shop would probably be your best bet
 
Yeah brake line work is iffy. Sometimes replacing a line is really easy and I enjoy doing it (using the hydraulic tool) and sometimes my boss who's been doing it longer than I've been alive swears up a storm. All depends what you have to work around. My last two times have been really easy.
 


Yeah I'm thinking about giving it a try, when I find out exactly where its leaking it'll give me a better understanding.
 
You have 4 lines to leak, nothing to understand, replace that biotch! get some nicopp line, flares like playdough.
 
yeah that is weird my autozone only rents out double flaring tools. ( I even called my local mom and pop shop that has been converted to a carquest and they didn't have bubble) Napa could get one the fastest but I was looking for right here right now.

use the green coated stuff autozone sells. Easy to bend ( I think they call it poly armor). So easy you don't even need a bending tool and can make tight bends by hand without kinks.


Its really not that hard. if you calculate just right you might get away with just having to make one flare to repair the line ( if its the front passenger) . Maybe you would get lucky and find two lengths of premade that come out to the exact length you need or close. I don't know as I don't do it that way I buy the roll of line and cut off what I need. If its the driver side its like only 1.5 feet of line that you could replace easily with a premade one off the shelf.

on the other hand if its a back line you could be looking at a lot of work or it could be an easy splice.

just make sure if you splice lines together with unions that you buy the right kind of union. Don't get a double flare union for bubble flare lines. The guys at autozone aren't too knowledgeable when it comes to lines and often aren't much help.

Also make sure to bring the flare nuts with you from the old lines so you can figure out what thread they are ( open a union package and try to fit the nut to it). I cant for the life of me remember. I know the line is 3/16 and I know the nuts are metric. I think m12 x 1.0 but don't quote me on that.

If you end up using one of those bar type flaring tools follow the instructions but when you go to tighten the line in the hole of the bar clamp you want to tighten down the nut on the bar closest to the line first so when you tighten the other side it acts like a lever and gets a real good clamp so the line doesn't slip.

and last but not least important tip is make sure you put your nuts on before making your flares and also make sure the flare nuts are at the proper end of the line before making your bends!
 
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Thanks for the great info guys. NICE!!!! @ITHurtz... I'm going to Flintstone it all the way. lol

But I think I have found the leak, the line that goes over the downpipe and partially wrapped in heat shield. I found this picture and drew in a arrow of where its leaking. :(


 


Its kinda easy to pull out, I think I did it in 2 pieces, or 3. Install isnt to bad, just have to go under the car to route it from the abs, over the exhaust then stick it through the wheel well. Check ur other lines while your at it, my rear busted in sept/oct 2013 right above the rear sub frame which I had zero access to. $150 in supplies minus the price of the flaring tool and I have brand new brake lines at all 4 corners. FYI 50' will cover 3 lines, the back passenger is just way to long.
 
Chicagochuck that's exactly where mine rotted. If you needed access to the area just below that point for the ones going to the rear you can disconnect the power steering rack and drop the subframe a few inches.
 
I found a good flaring tool at Sears ~$60, it'll do single, double and bubble depending on how you use it.
Pick up the bulk pack (usually 5-10 pieces) of each fitting/union that you'll need. It's a ton more economical, trust me..you'll use them once you have the tool.
Line.. well... NiCopp is the easiest, nicest and best line I have found to use. The pricing is the killer. Use coupon codes and beg the counter guy to be nice to you. You'll thank yourself for the extra that you spent when you realize how nice it bends and that it'll never rust.
 
So the line is going directly to the abs unit? What size line is that? 3/16?
Run the line all the way to connect to the abs unit...
And would i bubble flare, single flare or Maybe the dealership has the whole line pre-bent, but that may be even more dificult to change

....... Sorry for the rookie questions.
 
Dealers can get prebent lines. I think the pricing is coming down. Someone recently told me all the lines for my pickup were around $80-$120.

As for the type of bubble/single/double flare. Look at what you take off to determine what is needed. It is also good to practice a little before you start. The way I figured out which fittings I needed was to take out my piece and bring it to the parts store. That's the best way to match up.
 


Cut the line at the nuts 1 at brake hose and the other at ABS unit then use a socket to get the nuts out. Better chance of not rounding off the nuts. Plus if you mangle up the brake hose or fitting then you can just go ahead and replace the hose while your at it.
 
If i remember correctly dont mangle the bracket for brake hose it will start to twist if nut is corroded in there aand new brake hose does not come with that bracket.
 
My work around for the brake hose bracket/nut is to put vice grips on the hose right where it touches the bracket. Then either wrench or another set on the nut for the metal brake line. Buying the 5-10 pack of fittings means you'll never need to reuse old fittings.

PS.. when you flare the line and have to cut it off because you forgot the fitting... just know, we all do that.
 
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