I noticed my 15 year old brake hoses are starting to crack and need to replace them. I called my local dealership and to buy new rubber hoses from them would cost $262. That seems a bit high for four rubber hoses and some fittings. Seems I should be able to find something else a little less expensive, or go to braided steel for that price. Can someone point me in the right direction for where to find aftermarket brake hoses? Any recommendations as to rubber, silicone, or braided steel? This car is just a daily driver so I don't need to go crazy and am just going to put ye olde DOT 3 fluid back in the system.

 

I've replaced brake hoses with aftermarket ones without any issues. Call around (NAPA, CARQUEST, AUTOZONE, ect). They might have to order them, most places can get them overnight without any additional charge. Replace and bleed...should be good to go. Just my personal experience.

 

I've got the concept down for bleeding, and the dealership recommended a gravity bleed, but how do I pull off the old lines without making a terrible mess or getting a ton of air in the system?

 

You can drain as much of brake fluid as possible to minimize release when you replace brake hose jumpers. W/ vacuum bleeder you can pull most fluid out of system before starting. Some leakage onto car/ground is almost inevitable. Work over a large piece of cardboard box to avoid staining driveway or garage floor.

I tried gravity bleeding and found it would not work for me. You might die of old age before bleeding would be finished. Traditional pump brake pedal/bleed/close procedure or vacuum pump bleeder are more practical IMO.

good luck

 

It's going to drip, drip and drip. So have your drain pan. Nothing really special, I will suggest having the bleeder on the caliper open as you install. start at the "top", dipping starts to fill the hose, then connect to the caliper once you have good flow/drip coming from that end. Of course keep an eye on the master cyl to be sure it doesn't go dry. Yes I use gravity, hope you have time.

Edit: I see Texas posted as I was typing. And as you can see there are different methods for almost everything.

 

And another suggestion...

Get yourself a turkey-baster & never put it back in the kitchen. Use it to suck old fluid out of the reservoir before doing this.

The reservoir has a little air vent, so the fluid in the reservoir probably has more moisture than the fluid in the lines or the calipers. You don't need to put ALL that fluid down through the system. So suck it out, fill with fresh, & THEN bleed.

 

Thanks for the tip, Jim. I've got my "shop" turkey baster from doing the turret oil in the shifter on my '95 Miata. Makes total sense about evacuating the reservoir and then filling with fresh fluid. I've discovered some stainless steel brake hoses from a company called Techna-Fit. I can get a complete set for $115 and have read a couple dozen reviews on several different forums that seem to be about 98% positive. Does anyone on this forum have experience with this product?