It just has to misbehave

[Piledriver]

If you have (failed at) sucking through the rubber flex line, it has failed.

They are cheap. Buy one for each corner. They die like that.

[Ol'fogasaurus]

I just got through replacing the second rear brake soft line like Pile' said. Last year it was the right side then this year it was the left; MC reservoir dry this time but last year it was mostly full. Again, last year the MC was pretty full but the turning brake on the right side would not actuate the brakes which meant the foot pedal did not either (another benefit of having turning brakes assuming you pay attention that is). Both lines looked OK from the outside but had swollen shut on the inside and were very brittle and could easily have broken from suspension travel.

After replacing the line this year I got looking at the stenciled numbers on the soft lines and they were from '91 which is about when I put the turning brakes on and roughly when the drums were 86'd and I put discs on. Time goes by when your having fun! They are critical parts that we all take for granted and don't check often enough.

Lee

[ajdenette]

if the right side bleeds fine then the problem with the left side is between the rear tee and the left rear wheel cylinder not the line running front to back.

[Piledriver]

Replace all those softlines yet?

Thanks for making me look, my RR was loosening up.
I had noticed a funny noise this week, and the RR brakes sounded like something was cyclically scraping, and tugging on the parking brake a bit while moving told me there was a lot of runout.
Inspection showed no damage yet, amazingly... I spun the nut off with my fingers.

3/4" ratchet and 4' cheater pipe with my lard ass standing on it... torqued. I probably used the impact on it last time through, dumbass.

Hmph... Just realized that with the rear discs set up... the rear wheel and disc are constrained by the caliper, cannot be passed by my rear wheel and hub if I lose the nut.(although I'm certain it would let me know)

[Ol'fogasaurus]

Wow, even the best can oops!

[foreverska]

Local oreily's had lines... I bought their stock, one rear and two fronts. The "rear" one had the wrong endings on it. One of the fronts had the right endings and was right length but that would imply the other two are both fronts. The are completely different lengths and different endings from each other. So I gotta go fight with them about that. When I looked at the old hose it was marked 69, the year the car was made... surely it's not OE but if that's right it was long overdue. It now bleeds.

[Piledriver]

If YOU have not replaced all the rubber bits (brake master feed, brake flexlines, AND all rubber fuel lines) ...
...the only safe thing to do is to assume they all came over on the car from Germany and are all ready to break at the worst possible moment...

It would appear in your case that was not just a matter of being paranoid.

That and the rest of the brakes and look at the bearings/gear oil etc are usually the very first things I do when I get a new to me vehicle.

O'Reillys will do you right, it may just take a few tries, they have ~no control over what gets stuffed in the boxes.

If in doubt mail order works, there are reputable vendors out there who actually have a clue.

[foreverska]

Well the one has endings like a rear hose (M/F) its just 6" longer than stock. That might honestly be alright but it is definitely built long enough to be a front.

The other one is F/F and it's about the length of a rear which isn't the right hose for anything.

It trust Oreilys will do me right, I spend enough there. lol I am getting a very good brake feel though even just replacing the one. It's almost a shame to crack open the lines again to do my right rear brake kit (w/ slave cyl) and the rest of the tubes.