Brake line replacement

Kidd-7

New Member
Joined
Dec 7, 2021
Messages
10
Location
Raleigh, NC
I've been working on my 92 YJ 2.5L off and on while time permits. I noticed the passenger side front brake line has some rust I'm not OK with, I've found pre-bent lines and hoses on inline tube.

My question to folks that have replaced brake lines before is can I replace that front line w/o removing the radiator?

Currently the radiator is out because of some engine work and I was not planning on tackling the brake work just yet, but if I'd have to remove the radiator I'll just switch gears and do the brake lines now.

Thanks for any insight.
 
I personally only replace the part on break line that is bad. I buy a piece of line long enough for the repair and 2 compression fittings and put it in. If it needs to be bent I bend it, much cheaper than buying pre bent lines and easier to install.
 
I did the classic tube kit years ago. It was ok, not a fun install. I'm pretty certain I ended up removing both fenders to do it. That was less work for me than draining the radiator, buying coolant, etc. Obviously I could reuse coolant but I didn't have a bucket handy and really was just not an ideal time to go tearing into the radiator, plus I'm pretty sure I would have needed the grille out regardless. Pulling the fenders was the smart move and worked fine.
 
On my 88 yj w 2.5" lift the brake line to passenger side caliper runs underneath and in front of the radiator. I took out old pipe and bent the new one to fit. If connectors on the frame to flex pipe are rusted i used map gass to heat up the fitting to break the connector. Took less than 1hr start to finish. Good luck.
 
Thanks for all the info so far. Part of the future plans are to replace the brake fluid also. I figure if I replace all the lines I can disconnect them at the proportioning valve and flush the fluid from there. Are there caps that I can use to plug the proportioning valve so that the master cylinder doesn't run dry while replacing the lines?

I'm going to get back under there and inspect all the brake lines better and maybe even get a 2nd opinion before pulling the trigger on this, I don't like throwing money and parts at problems that don't need to be fixed.
 
The rubber flex lines are usually the biggest problems. On mine, the unions connecting the rubber line to the hard lines were all frozen together so I ended up saving hours and knuckles and just cut them all off and replaced everything. I bought the hard brake line in a roll at Advance Auto. It can be easily shaped by hand to fit but I needed to add a flare at each end.