Just recently the brakes failed on my wife's caravan while she was driving, thank God she managed to swerve out of the way of a truck and a tree. Dodge should be sued as there is a known problem of the braided brake section off the master cylinder corroding due to dissimilar metals.

SO, I am trying to fix this as I have put too much money into this thing as it is. So my question is can I replace the braided stainless steel sections with standard brake line? At this point we want to get the car ready to sell, car is 13 years old.

Can this be done without getting a kink in the line? I know the lines were redesigned at one point.

 

thats an incredible coincidence. my 98 also just lost brake pressure, that's why I came to this forum just now. damn near gave my mother a heart attack as she was driving it with a full load of kids.....MY kids to be exact. of course it happens when you're slowing down, the pressure in the lines is just to much at one point. I don't think it exploded, as the brake fluid level is still in the normal range, I think it just rusted open up enough to let in air, leaking just a bit, hense the sponge brake pedal. took a look underneath and a brake line is wet for a ways. you'd figure brake lines would be made to last forever, instead they make styrofoam last forever for one darn cup of coffee! my problem has to do with the front lines, back brakes still work, but brake pedal has to be all the way to the floor. I drove it back home 18 miles like that, was funny because when I step on the brake, the front of the vehicle would sway left/right like a boat because the front brakes would not build up pressure. I'll be ripping the thing apart and let you know what I think. but first I'll be investigating recalls and parts. I will not take it to a shop, I'll take my time and do it right myself.

 

most dodge dealers will not give you part numbers for fear of you looking them up yourself, but mine did. I also found some more part numbers for different models from another dodge forum which will remain nameless, but thanks to them. anyhow, my 1998 dodge caravan without abs or traction control primary part number is 4683310ab, the secondary is 4683309ab. this was verified by me with my dodge parts dude. the following is info I grabbed from another forum:
Primary Line without ABS #4683310AB
Secondary Line without ABS #4683309AB

Primary Line with ABS #4683675
Secondary Line with ABS #4683674

Primary Line with ABS & Traction Control # 4683691
Secondary Line with ABS & Traction Control # 4683690

local dodge wants $20 each and can have it by tomorrow, online you can find a bit cheaper but maybe will pay more for shipping and time. I'll search a bit but best bet is the local guy in case there are any problems. good luck.

 

got the 2 flexible brake lines from local dodge dealer, one was 18 bucks, the other 19 and change. took about 1.5 hours to change them and bleed brakes. will need to replace also the lines that run from that distribution thing (forgot the name) to the front brakes as they are in terrible condition. I only bled the front brakes. very easy to do. was pleased at how easy they unscrewed from master cylinder and distribution thing. used open box wrench, didn't need to get the brake line tool, just sprayed pb blaster on the connections once a day for 2 days before changing them. anyone know where to get part numbers for dodge?

 

part numbers for what?

 

dodge part numbers...like for anything. dealers are reluctant to give out part numbers. would make searching for best prices and parts easier. I have a pdf of a factory service manual for another vehicle which listed part numbers in almost every topic, would like the same for caravans.

 

Mopar hasn't had parts information on cd for a very long time. All parts info is online. Master Tech and myself have no issue with giving out part numbers for whatever you need. I guess I'm not aware of any part number conspiricy.

 

yup these guys are great,

I know I have asked Tizzy1 for more then my fair share of part numbers and advice

and even when I called my local dealer last year about a front drive shaft for my jeep, they had no problem giving me the part number for it, I just had to ask

 

Tizzy is right. I don't have a problem with sharing mopar part numbers. When you say flexable lines, are you asking about the lines going to the calibers? The master cylinders don't have flexable lines that I know of. I would like to know why you would drive 18 miles with brake failing? With your kids and mother in the van. I would have pulled over and either called someone for help. Or if the rental car place was open, rent a car and have the other one towed to the house or a shop. how did your investigation go on the recall or TSB's? I did not see a pm asking for part numbers or what type of part, other flexable line. Tizzy is also right again that the parts list is no longer on a CD or a micro-fish ( thats before CD's) Its all online just for dealer use only. Has far as the other dealers, there may have been a reason, why they wouldn't give you the part numbers.

 

well, on that day, mom was able to stop...eventually. she was right at the parking lot of their destination and parked right there and called me.
I drove to where my family was with another vehicle, and I took the caravan home. kids and mom came home with the other. My intention was to downshift and use the emergency brake to stop. too complex for mom, but I was totally ok with it. I didn't need to do that either, though. I tested it in the parking lot and there was enough brake power after pushing the pedal to the floor to stop. No need to wait or pay for a tow. I know you guys are really helpful with part numbers, all are thankful here I'm sure. I was looking to see if there is a readily available download somewhere online to get that info myself, would make it real quick and simple to look up where to buy parts instead of posting, you guys can't be there for everyone all of the time obviously. we all have our own lives outside of forums! ebay searches are much faster with part numbers. I see now that they are only available to dealers...oh well. the two flexible lines in question were from the master cylinder to the junction box thing. Called several dodge dealers and they told me they cannot give out part numbers, by several I mean like 5 dealers on the east coast. My local dealer parts guy was nice enough to give them to me but he's probably not allowed to. Only one of mine was damaged, but I bought and replaced both since I would be working in that area. the van still had brakes, but the pedal travelled all the way to the floor and had about a third of the stopping power. I thought the brake distribution was split one line for the front and the other for the rear, turns out one line from the master cylinder affects left rear and right front while the other line from the master cylinder leads to right rear and left front. thanks for your help guys.