Omfg, on top of my neon not running, I was out messing with it a few minutes ago and pressed the brake pedal, not even that hard and poof! I heard a pop and it dropped straight to the floor. I got out and checked and there was a puddle of brake fluid sitting in front of the rear drivers side tire, got under there and looked and there was a 8" section of rust on the line. Anyone know how hard this one is to replace? Maybe it knew and this is the reason it wont run... I wish!

 

OMG I am an idiot. I got into the car and pumped the brakes a few times, but I am sooooo stupid, I forgot I took off the passenger side drum (not the side with the broken brake line) and poof, there went my brake cylinder.[:@][:@][:@][:@][:@]

 

My car doesnt run =/. If it makes you feel any better im spending thousands (that i dont have) to replace my engine, transmission, and clutch.

 

brake lines are pretty easy to replace, provided you can unbolt the fittings from where they go. new steel lines are available from local parts stores in an assortment of lengths, with fittings and flares aleady on. the lines are steel, and (i think ? ) the flares are double flares, which require a sort of special double flare tool. its not the normal single flare like is used in low pressure copper lines. just measure what you need and buy that size. if you have any bends you might want to buy a simple tubing bender. it will prevent kinking . probably cheap ($15-20).

 

Yes, I know they are easy, in theory. They never go as easy as they should. This one is gonna be a major pita because it runs up above the gas tank, so I think I am gonna re-route it. Im pretty sure they are just regular flares too. Ive helped with brakelines alot in the past, but never by myself. From what I saw on advanceautoparts.com, you could get 5' sections pre-flared. Now, what do I do about connecting the new to the old? It was in perfect condition mid-car up and so I cut it, I am assuming you just flare the old line with a fitting then screw them together, but how do you get a clean cut on brakelines, what do you use? When I use side-cuts it bends it closed. I went through the drums today and rebuilt the wheel cylinder and placed new springs and shoes in them too. At least my ebrake works well I am starting to question some of the stuff dodge uses, my uncle had this happen on his 96 ram 1500 with only 90,000 miles, except he was comming up on a train. My neon only has 89,000 miles and that line looks like its 30 years old its so rusted! The rest of the car looks brand new underneath, its just that one brakeline.

 

A tubing cutter and you need a copper butt connector. You can get these at lowes

 

use a tubing cutter. if you have plenty of room you can use the bigger plumbing style. if space is tight use the mini-cutter. both have a sharp wheel and you just go round and round and crank it down a little on each round.

the easiest way to attach two unflared lines together is to use a double compression fitting. you can probably also find a single fitting in male or female. the compression fittings use a little brass bead that crushes around the line. just ask the parts guys.

 

Lol thanks guys, I kinda just found out everything you guys told me on my own, I was out playing with the old line and used my plumbing tube cutter and it worked great, and I found a 3/16 brass compression fitting in my misc. hardware, but my problem is the compression ring does not want to fit over the old brake line, its just a hair too small. Ill buy one at the parts store and see if it is any better. Also, how far should a brake line be from exhaust? Like I said the one that broke is routed up and behind the gas tank so I would like to re-route it to save me some time and trouble. Thanks guys!

 

i'd try to stay 6 or 8 inches away from the exhaust.
try cleaning the steel line with some med grit sandpaper. the compression rings only come in a few standard sizes, so your line probably just has some surface rust that has swelled it up a little.