Brake Tube

[thesoupnatzi]

Brake tube burst today due to rust. Vehicle spent first 12 years in Ohio so figured it would happen sooner or later. The leak is located on driver side under car in front of rear wheel. Couple of questions:

1. Is this a difficult fix to replace tube?
2. Part number?

It's currently sitting in a Walmart parking lot and need to decide if I should have it towed home (so I can fix myself) or to shop.

Any suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks.

 

[Sandroad]

I suspect you'd be better off towing to a shop. Brake lines can be be buried deep and once you get in there, you might find other lines and brackets rusted. A full brake bleeding will be needed post-repair and unless you know what you're doing that entails something of a learning curve. There are 7 different rear brake tubes and brackets listed on the toyodiy.com site and you would have to look at the diagram to figure out which one is the culprit this time.

 

[jemsec]

If one burst, replace them all. Unless you like to live on the edge. Small price to pay for confidence in your vehicle.

 

[thesoupnatzi]

If one burst, replace them all. Unless you like to live on the edge. Small price to pay for confidence in your vehicle.

Yes planning on replacing all tubes as I do not want to live on the edge. Any idea if this is difficult and where I can get more info on job? I have bleed brakes before (after replacing a front caliper) so somewhat familiar with bleeding process.

 

[Muddy Bean]

I'm gonna just throw out that I'm pretty sure when you ask about parts, you'll want to refer to them as brake lines versus tubes. Changing brake lines isn't necessarily difficult, but on a rusty truck, and without experience I personally would take it in to a shop if I were in your shoes today. Burst lines are a pretty big deal.

 

[RND1]

I will reiterate what others have said here - take it to a trusted indy shop or dealer. My neighbor who is a UPS mechanic (knows his stuff and has every tool under the sun) opted to have a shop do his rusted out brake lines on his Chevy truck. Cost about $1K.

 

[thesoupnatzi]

Welll at least I found where the leak is located. Sounds like the board members are leaning towards this being a non DIY job. Will call some shops unless someone else convinces me otherwise.

 

[Scottb4857]

All depends, if you're buying all new OEM lines so you don't have to make any, are good with and have the right tools, like the process of learning and figuring things out, and have plenty of time then could be a fun project and could save a bunch of money. If not, hand it over to the mechanic and let him do it. Like others have said, just make sure you do it right, it is your brakes after all and safety depends on them.