Using the traction assist as a brake bleeder, A first?

I was driving friends home from a latenight party since i was the designated driver going over wet roads with plenty of leaves. I was aproaching a stop sign when I felt the ABS cycling as it tried to stop on those wet leaves and the brake light came on with a softer pedal. I figured I had lost a rubber brake line due to great ABS pressure on old lines, nope cuz when I was looking under the car as a friend cycled the brake I could see the fluid misting from right above the gas tank on the drivers side. So now I have to replace a good length of rusted brake lines. To get home I used the lower drives while slowing down with my crappy ebrake which works mechanically but does little more than slowly bring the car to a creep, wont hold in drive idling. I did a little searching online for a repalcement brake line but att the have is the rubber hose. Anyone know where to get the rears and where my disconect points will be? I have a 94 with ABS

You'll probably better off getting some brake line from your local auto parts store the same size, bend it (carefully) and rent a flare tool and do it your self that way.

If you need to make a sharp bend, I find if you buy that coil wrap you put on the line helps to prevent the line from collapsing on you.

FKR had the same problem at the shootout, line rotted through above the tank. Had to fix it when we got home. We had a line flaring kit, but didnt end up using it. What we did was cut the line a foot after the ABS block in the drivers side fenderwell (cut line along the framerail), and cut the other side of the line 6 inches before the line turns into the rubber brake hose (by the passenger rear caliper, remove the wheel). I bought 20ft of hard brake line, bent it by hand into shape, ran it over the tank, got it into position to cut to length. Finally, get two brake line unions, tighten them to the original lines, bleed the brakes with good, synthetic fluid, and you're done. Total cost: $30.00 and it literally took me 45 mins at most. Having a lift is key to this repair, but it can be done on jackstands, it WILL take much longer to route the line over the tank. Good luck!

-Mike

Flareless line unions are Ilegal in NY for brakes

Yep,I was told at the auto parts store that they did have them still but they could not sell me them as I also had a bottle of brake fluid in my hand. So i had to rent the flare tool set and more small expensive connectors.

I purchased a premade brake line (I sent them the length and fittings needed on each size) from these guys
http://www.cunifer.com/

They sell the copper/nickel brake line tubing which works well, is more flexible than steel, or stainless steel, and flares easier.

Send the specs on a Monday, had the line with fittings and flares made in hand by the weekend.

Rpdboss said:

Yep,I was told at the auto parts store that they did have them still but they could not sell me them as I also had a bottle of brake fluid in my hand. So i had to rent the flare tool set and more small expensive connectors.

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Should've gone to another auto parts store and not had a bottle of brake fluid in your hand.. You would of been golden

Boy I made a dumb move today

I got those great compression line unions So I went out and worked in the snow covered driveway, cut the old crappy line out and began installing the new stuff. When I went to splice my work to the original ends by the firewall I had a brain fart.. Which line goes to which rear brake. Pretty important with ABS and traction assist. So I need your help.
From under the car near the drivers side cat, which side does the line closest to the passenger side go? Going to have to look around the gas tank on the drivers side near the axels where they go thier seprate ways.

Turned to my local junk yard, but no help

The 94 lx i've been pullin parts from as its simmilar to the sc with 4 disk brakes and abs is now crushed. The other older thunderbirds have crappy brake line work done to them and lines broken. I'm going to go to the dealer today if nobody has any answers.

Ford came through for me..

I called a friendly dealer explaining my mishap, and they said might be able to help. After a few hours of looking they called back saying they had found a few diagrams of the HCU and printed them out for me free of charge. Since it was 4:45pm I couldnt make it there in time to pick it up. So another trip for tommaro. I'll make a digital copy for later refference on SCCOA.

Compression unions are not appropriate for brake lines. They will fail. You really should do it proper with double or bubble flare connections.

I agree with Mike. There is quite a bit of pressure in those brake lines.

Using the Traction Assist as a brake bleeder tool

If I have read right from the thexton brake bleeder instructions and shop manuals is that the rears need the tool and the front can be done manually. Now that I had my new lines from both rear calipers to the proportioning valve inside the rear of the drivers side front wheel well it was time to bleed. At first I opened my speed bleeder for the passenger rear, pumped, then drivers side, pumped. pedal felt semi hard so I knew I still had air in them despite new fluid coming out the ends. So I fired up the SC which was still on 4 jackstands with rear wheel off, shifted from park to drive 1 and let it idle so that the wheels/axels turned, which when off the ground tend not to spin at the same rate. Having a 94 auto with traction assist the abs computer senses the a wheel loosing "traction" so it applies the brake to the faster of the two. There it is, pump cycling and valaves cycling as it does as dance to bring both weels to a balance which wont happen up in the air. If left like this too long the abs light comes on and the pump stops as it has gotten too hot. THis was working just fine for me save the leaky connection by the battery to the abs pump. Thats a small fix for a warmer tommaro....

Rpdboss said:

Yep,I was told at the auto parts store that they did have them still but they could not sell me them as I also had a bottle of brake fluid in my hand. So i had to rent the flare tool set and more small expensive connectors.

Click to expand...

It is a Federal law that you cannot use compression fittings on brake lines unless they are installed after the proportioning valve. I personaly would not use them period (like others have said) due to the high pressure of the brake system.

It's not the pressure that makes the compression fitting suspect. Compression fittings work fine in high pressure situations. The concern with them in a brake line or fuel line is that compression fittings require exacting installation, and very specific protection against vibration. Due to the inherent stress in such a coupling, excess vibration can lead to a leak, or a cracked fitting.

Since such failures usually happen only when under stress, the one time you need the brakes, could be the one time they fail. Compression fittings on brake lines will fail your car on any state safety inspection (if they see them).

Flare fittings provide some measure of insurance against failure due to vibration. Eaton/Aeroquip in their industrial line also has some nice re-usable fittings that don't require double flares and are used in hydraulic hard lines.