Dangerous Brake Condition
Thread Starter
|
Freshman User
Joined: Jun 2000
Posts: 27
Likes: 0
Dangerous Brake Condition
While replacing the radius arm bushings on my 87 F150 2wd the right front brake hose fell apart and began draining the master cyl. The ferrule where the rubber hose section is crimped to the rigid metal tubing had corroded to the extent that the line just fell apart. There is an extra piece of rubber hose covering the ferrule which acts as a stiffener or chafing protector. This piece of hose hides the corrosion from view so you do not realize there is a problem there until it is too late. This piece of hose is about 4 in long and fits snugly around the ferrule on the bottom end while the upper end is a rather loose fit around the rubber part of the pressure hose. This allows water and road chemicals to collect in the void and keep the metal ferrule wet for extended periods of time. If you have one of these trucks I recommend you check the front hoses immediately. If you see that the lower end of this hose looks swollen or bell shaped it is from corrosion bloom and any pressure on it can cause it to snap off. I do not know how many model years are made like this but I would think quite a few.:-staun
Junior User
Joined: Dec 2001
Posts: 89
Likes: 0
Dangerous Brake Condition
sfal, here in PA. we have an annual State Inspection which this is part of the Inspection, it is not allowed to have cracked brake hoses on a vehicle in PA after a State Inspection. A good way to also check this brake hose is to get a hold of the hose and bend it over, do you see any cracks on the exterior of the hose, if you do, replace it, now if you had a hose break off, I would have to say your brake hose was not only cracked on the rubber exterior, but the moisture also got to the nylon webbing around the interior brake hose and rotted it to its fullest extent, The metal holder and furrel are like you say a good place to capture and retain moisture, the other part to this brake hose bit is that when the brake hose does retain this moisture it also closes off the fluid passage (which is only an 1/8" inside diameter) to the caliper so you can get a pull to the left or right when braking. Just a few more thoughts. Electric1
Thread Starter
|
Freshman User
Joined: Jun 2000
Posts: 27
Likes: 0
Dangerous Brake Condition
The rubber part of this hose was in excellent condition with no cracks visible. It was the metal part that was hidden by the hose protector that rotted away. I have seen a few hoses that closed off on the inside. They were all caused by a metal clamp attached near the middle of the hose. The clamp had a hole for a small bolt to locate the hose out of the way of brush or road debris, tire chafing, etc. Any way the clamp would be squeezed onto the rubber and over a period of time will close the fluid passage off underneath the clamp. If you cut one of these hoses up in 1 inch sections you can readily see the problem. In fact if you have a hose doing this, you can pry the clamp open a bit with a screwdriver and the restriction problem will disappear.It is still best to replace the hose though.
