88 Carrera brake lines

[witt]

I am in the process of changing the brake fluid on my 1988 Carrera Cabriolet. As advised on this forum I am also going to change the four brake hoses.
Question: is it advisable to also change the short solid lines ? They look OK and may be even made of copper? Are the original ones made to last? They look different than the once I just fabricated for my "project" MG Midget. I don't want to replace good original stuff with crappy after market lines..
Any advise would be most welcome.

CHEERS !
Witt !

[Oh Haha]

Most replace just the flex lines.

[sugarwood]

So, there are 4 flex lines that can be replaced?
This sounds like a reasonable project to add to the list.
Looks like they're about $15 each
I'd need flare nut wrenches, right?

[Uwon]

no need to flare if you buy the right ones. Personally steel braided all around.
Johan

[Oh Haha]

Yes, 4 lines for the 4 wheels.

You don't NEED flare nut wrenches but I have always used that style on brake components. You don't want to round off a nut/bolt.

Its been a while since I rebuilt my brakes but I did go with the SS flex lines. The job was very easy but you will want to properly bleed the brake system once you are done.

This would be a good time to replace your fluid and flush the complete system.

[sugarwood]

Got links to the SS lines you bought?

[Smoove1010]

I replaced my flex lines with the DOT approved SS braided lines from Pelican. The hard lines all looked intact with little to no corrosion.

In my case the hard line fittings were stuck solid to the hard lines themselves, making it impossible for the fitting to turn freely. My solution was to cut the flex line to allow disconnection from both ends. I bought new hard lines to replace those that are attached to the calipers. I installed the new hoses on the car side first so I could rotate the flex line onto the car-side hard line to tighten it up. Since the caliper-side hard lines were new, those fittings could be tightened up as designed.

To replace the caliper-side hard-lines, I used the readily available straight hard lines from the local FLAPS and bent them into the proper shape with a tubing bender. These cars use the European bubble flare lines.

Naturally, if the fittings on the hard lines turn independent of the line, you don't need to go through this drill. Are you doing a complete brake job/caliper rebuild? Don't forget to flush!

Good luck!
GK