Write-Up: Brake Line Repair

do your self a favor. ditch the bubble flares. you don't need them.although they are nice. buy several unions.along with the tits that come with, a couple feet of 3/16 line.if your lucky they come with the tits preinstalled.all you have to do is cut to length.or buy the shortest length do get the job done.and fab up your double inverted flare. easier.cheaper. just as effective. a tip though,when you place the 3/16 anvil atop the double flaring tool to measure line height in relation to the tool,place the line so that it is sitting ever so slightly below the anvil. perfect and smooth every time.if you see the anvil starting to tilt.STOP, cut anew the line and start over. otherwise you'll be shopping for more than 1 anvil.

Well I have brakes again. The do still need bled but for the first time they hold pressure.

I was able to use an adapter with a little "tit" so to speak that the inverted flare would mate with and a bubble flare on the other end. Replaced the line all the way from the caliper to the junction box.

Hi, Looking to find pre-bent (factory type) brake pipe (lines) for a 95 SC.
gm dealer guy is going to look for me but isn't hopeful. Anyone know of a source?
I really don't want to have to bend/fit all of them..esp at the abs pump.

Sorry if this has been asked before..if so please point me that way. Thanks!

whatever80 wrote:

I really don't want to have to bend/fit all of them..esp at the abs pump.

It's really not that bad of a job and you would probably save some cash that way. You have to get the old line off anyways and there's no better template to use.

If you're deadset on not bending lines yourself you could take the original line to a shade tree mechanic and have him match it. He probably won't charge you to much to do it.

My dad had stainless lines made for my 95 about 5 years ago. I dont think the price was at all unreasonable. Ill ask him the name of the place and see if he will chime in.

EDIT: this place is local so I would guess this is where mine are from.

LINK
$180 + Shipping for all new lines that will outlast the car sounds like a bargain to me!

Incase anyone has trouble with the link, it is Classic Tubing in Lancaster, NY.

Dave is correct on the link he posted. His car was the template for these lines. We are very lucky to have Classic Tubing right in our back yard. They do a great job. Check out their website.

bigdave wrote:

Dave is correct on the link he posted. His car was the template for these lines. We are very lucky to have Classic Tubing right in our back yard. They do a great job. Check out their website.

I would **so** have bought those lines if they were available when I overhauled my brake system!!

...that said, it was not that hard to do, just kinda time consuming -- the car was on a lift.

Albertj

Are the brake lines the same across all years?

98riv wrote:

Are the brake lines the same across all years?

AFAIK. And I suspect the other G-body GM cars' lines fit more or less as well.

th3fr4nchi5e wrote:

My dad had stainless lines made for my 95 about 5 years ago. I dont think the price was at all unreasonable. Ill ask him the name of the place and see if he will chime in.

EDIT: this place is local so I would guess this is where mine are from.

=1995&product_type_1_Make=Buick&product_type_1_Model=Riviera&product_type_1_Category=&submit=Search&vmcchk=1&Itemid=53]LINK
$180 + Shipping for all new lines that will outlast the car sounds like a bargain to me!

Incase anyone has trouble with the link, it is Classic Tubing in Lancaster, NY.

Do you have any pictures of the brake lines? Any fitment issues? Looks like the price jumped up since you posted the link.

It still shows the '95 SS lines at $180/set. Not sure why so much more expensive for the '97-99's but there must be some differences in design. Unfortunately, have never taken any pictures but they fit just as OEM lines would.

th3fr4nchi5e wrote:

It still shows the '95 SS lines at $180/set. Not sure why so much more expensive for the '97-99's but there must be some differences in design. Unfortunately, have never taken any pictures but they fit just as OEM lines would.

I can't believe there would be that much difference between the two for the price difference. Any ideas abaddon?

98riv wrote:

I can't believe there would be that much difference between the two for the price difference.  Any ideas abaddon?

No clue. We don't get really '95 anything in the shop, let alone a Riv (of any year).
I can admit though, that you guys have caught my interest, and I feel like I need to find out. I'll see what I can dig up....

This may be a long shot but does anyone know if the brake lines are the same on the car regardless if it has traction control or not? The kit on Classic Tube is only for cars without traction control. The picture of the lines look similar but wasn't sure if the routing was different, etc.

Link for kit without traction control.
https://www.summitracing.com/parts/cst-bu1068-oe/all

I found some schematics and from what I can tell it appears the only difference are the lines that run from the master cylinder to the abs pump.  It is hard to tell without having them in front of me but they look the same.  Even the 95 looks the same depending on if it has traction control or not. Can anyone confirm?

No Traction Control:


Traction Control:

You should be able to confirm by checking the part numbers off your schematics. I bet they differ.

albertj wrote:

You should be able to confirm by checking the part numbers off your schematics.  I bet they differ.

I couldn't find the part numbers of the brake lines unfortunately.

https://www.wholesalegmpartsonline.com/showAssembly.aspx?ukey_assembly=381148&ukey_make=1022&ukey_model=14451&modelYear=1998&ukey_category=19393&ukey_driveLine=11461&ukey_trimLevel=25269

98riv wrote:

albertj wrote:

You should be able to confirm by checking the part numbers off your schematics.  I bet they differ.

I couldn't find the part numbers of the brake lines unfortunately.

https://www.wholesalegmpartsonline.com/showAssembly.aspx?ukey_assembly=381148&ukey_make=1022&ukey_model=14451&modelYear=1998&ukey_category=19393&ukey_driveLine=11461&ukey_trimLevel=25269

IIRC GMPartsDirect.com puts the part numbers out for you, at least on the invoice.

I may be able to get to a 'fiche with the numbers.

Albertj

I called Classic Tube again today and was told they do offer a brake line kit for a 1997 - 1999 Riviera with traction control. I placed the order and will keep this thread updated.

98riv wrote:

I called Classic Tube again today and was told they do offer a brake line kit for a 1997 - 1999 Riviera with traction control.  I placed the order and will keep this thread updated.

BUMP

If anyone needs to order a brake line kit for a 1997 - 1999 Riviera with traction control you will need to order BU1070.  The steel lines cost $269.99 plus shipping and stainless steel was $299.99.  You will receive all of the hard lines including the lines from the master cylinder to the ABS module.  As of right now they don't have this part listed on their website so you will have to call.  Shipping ran around $30.

Check their facebook page as they had been running a promotion for free shipping or % off occasionally in the past.  I missed the free shipping as the initial person I talked to didn't mention they made a kit for traction control vehicles.

I installed all of the hard lines except for the ones that ran from the master cylinder to the ABS module as I didn't want to get air in the ABS pump.  Here are a few suggestions that may help if anyone wants to change their hard lines.

• Depending on the age of your rubber brake lines now would be a good time to change them.  Mine were original to the car and the front ones had cracks in the rubber near the connection to the hard lines.

• Spray all of the fittings with penetrating oil as many days as possible before you attempt to remove any fittings.  I still ended up cutting the lines in the rear near the fitting to remove them.

• Use good quality line nut wrenches.  It doesn't take much effort to strip the fittings if you aren't careful.

• Take as much care to keep the old lines in the same shape as they came off the car.  You will want to use the old lines as a template for the new lines.  When they ship the lines they will bend them in a spot to get them to fit in the box.  The two long lines were marked where they bent them but they didn't mark some of the smaller lines.  This makes it easier to line them back in their correct spot.  Even though they come pre bent to match the old lines, be prepared to take some time to tweak their location for rubbing, etc.

• I had to bleed the lines multiple times over several days to get all of the air out of the lines.  Since the whole system is open it seemed to be harder to get all of the air out.

• Use this write up to create a power bleeder.  https://rivperformance.editboard.com/t2481-write-up-make-a-brake-bleeder#27061

• Watch this video on a helpful tip on how to prevent brake fluid from leaking out of the master cylinder while you have the lines out.  https://youtu.be/5hwJWSe2huc?t=146  Make sure you don't go all of the way to the floor on an old master cylinder as you could ruin the seals.  If this happened you will have to replace it.

• Even with the above tip it will be messy so be prepared to wipe up any spills as the brake fluid is caustic.

• I was able to reuse the brake proportioning valves but you may want to buy new ones if yours are pretty rusted.

• You will have to take the front wheel well liners out, the air dam and a few miscellaneous brackets to pull out and install the new lines.  Other than that it was somewhat easy to get to the lines.

• If you buy stainless steel lines it will be harder to get them to seal.  One thing you can do is to tighten and loosen the fitting several times.  You'll notice that you will be able to tighten the fitting more each time.

• Be careful with the plastic clips that hold the brake lines in place.  They are easy to break due to their older age.

• Give yourself plenty of time to do this job.