The Automotive Thread

[MA_PE]

Well i did it.  She has a few minor issues, but this is by far the coolest thing i have ever owned.

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Congrats!  Good luck with it.

 

[enrique_nola]

That thing sounds sweet!!

 

[blybrook PE]

Great sound, even on a cold start. That'll be a fun car to cruise around town in! Congrats!

 

[Road Guy]

 

[Exengineer]

Congratulations to General Motors for wrecking another car brand.  This time it's Holden in Australia.  Add that to Pontiac, Oldsmobile, Saturn and Saab.  Great record.  Keep up the good work.  

 

[mudpuppy]

I was plowing snow last week in my Jeep and blew a brake line.  Almost took out my neighbor's mailbox, but managed to steer to avoid it--just ended up with a big scratch down the side of the Jeep.

The line broke inside the front-right wheel well, and from there it goes through the fender and snakes through the engine compartment.  I don't think I can replace the whole line myself.  The line is only corroded in the wheel well, and looks fine in the engine compartment.  I've seen parts to splice the lines with compression fittings, but that seems really risky on a hydraulic line?

If I bought a flaring tool set, would it be possible to flare the end of the existing line without removing the whole thing from the engine compartment, so I could splice in a new portion from there to the caliper?  And if so, anyone have recommendations for a flaring tool and a bending tool?  And is this even worth all the effort and expense on my part or should I take it to the shop?  There's a shop about 2 miles down the road I think I can get to with minimal brakes, rather than having it towed.

 

[Supe]

You can rent the tool from Autozone for free with a deposit (they should have both double flare and bubble flare tools depending on what you have).  Same for the bender.  Even the cheap cast aluminum ones work fine, they're all I use, even on the race car (the bender that is).  Cheapest tubing cutter you can find will also work (mine's from Harbor Freight, but you can also use a dremel or hacksaw and debur if you really have to).  Not sure about Autozone, but I know for sure that Napa has premade lengths of brake line with the flares already on both sides in multiple lengths, so just just screw that into your flex line, bend where you want it, and then use that to eye up where you need to cut for your new fittings on the engine bay side.  It will take you longer to get the old line unscrewed than to do the flare.  If they have the copper-nickel premade lines, use those.  They won't rust, and they're so soft and are SO EASY to form.  Whole repair shouldn't cost you $25 including the brake fluid to bleed when you're done.

Do not use compression fittings, and do not attempt to drive with rear brakes only.  

 

[Orchid PE]

Out of curiosity, was it a JK?

 

[mudpuppy]

This is a '97 XJ (Cherokee)

Sounds like something I may be able to tackle.  Probably a lot cheaper than a shop.

Last time I busted a brake line I did drive it to the shop with only rear brakes, but it was less than a mile away and speed limits of 25 mph.  Since I've moved--there's very little traffic, but it is a 55 mph road.

 

[Supe]

This is a '97 XJ (Cherokee)

Sounds like something I may be able to tackle.  Probably a lot cheaper than a shop.

Last time I busted a brake line I did drive it to the shop with only rear brakes, but it was less than a mile away and speed limits of 25 mph.  Since I've moved--there's very little traffic, but it is a 55 mph road.

Driving it any more than you have to will just dump fluid and make the master cyl. that much harder to bleed later.  Cheaper/easier to just do it yourself.  Your insurance company will thank you.

 

[Orchid PE]

This is a '97 XJ (Cherokee)

Sounds like something I may be able to tackle.  Probably a lot cheaper than a shop.

Last time I busted a brake line I did drive it to the shop with only rear brakes, but it was less than a mile away and speed limits of 25 mph.  Since I've moved--there's very little traffic, but it is a 55 mph road.

A buddy of mine broke a line on his TJ while out on a trail one day.

We ended up just clamping the line and bleeding the system. He had pressure to make it back out of the trail and then made it home.

 

[Road Guy]

You know if we could band together and recreate the XJ and sell we would all be doing rather well!  The longevity  of that vehicle is unreal.

 

[Road Guy]

Went to get my tires rotated on the Jeep at Discount tire - was funny watching the kid walk out to the jeep, get in, sit for a few minutes and then go back and find someone who can drive a stick shift to pull it into the bay.

I mean I know discount tire isnt really an auto shop but can you even be a quasi mechanic and not be able to drive a manual?

 

[mudpuppy]

Yesterday was abnormally nice for March in Michigan--sunny and 60 degrees.  So I started working on the blown brake line in the Jeep.  Things went unusually well (I managed to get the old brake line off and remove the vacuum canister that was in the way without breaking any rusted bolts, etc.) until I went to flare the old line I cut and discovered the bolt on the flaring yoke I borrowed from Adavance Auto was completely stripped and wouldn't put any pressure onto the die.  So now I wait for a new tool I ordered from Amazon and in the mean time the weather will go back into the 30s and who knows when I'll be working on it again.

 

[Road Guy]

I just wanted to get out of house so I took the old Tahoe (2002) for a drive, my younger kid drives it a his daily driver, but it was having a hard time catching gear (automatic) revving very high over 55 mph?   Sort of felt like when my boat motor would have bad fuel, but my gut says tranny?  It does have 250K something miles..

 

[Flyer_PE]

I just wanted to get out of house so I took the old Tahoe (2002) for a drive, my younger kid drives it a his daily driver, but it was having a hard time catching gear (automatic) revving very high over 55 mph?   Sort of felt like when my boat motor would have bad fuel, but my gut says tranny?  It does have 250K something miles..

I had a car with a TH-400 (GM 3-Speed Automatic) that did the pretty much the same thing.  The best description I can give is that it felt like it was falling out of high (3rd) gear at normal highway speeds.  It wasn't leaking any fluid at all.  The problem turned out to be a bad seal inside the transmission.

 

[Supe]

Have you checked fluid level?  Does it just free rev between shifts in multiple gears, or do you actually feel it shift and then it continues to rev?  Or is it only on the 2-3 shift?

 

[Master slacker]

I'm guessing you're experiencing side fumbling due to one or more of the six hydrocoptic marzlevanes not being fitted properly to the ambifacient lunar waneshaft.  Not too problematic, but you may want to have it checked out.

 

[Road Guy]

It’s more of a free rev and will eventually shift?

I haven’t checked fluid but will today on my smoke break at home

 

[blybrook PE]

Also smell the fluid. If it smells burnt, there’s some slippage going on.