Brake Hoses and Pipes

therealnerd2 · 29 Aug 2011 at 15:13

I recently bought a '95 fiesta, with MOT advisories for both wishbones, both front brake hoses and corroded brake pipes on all four corners. Having had a dig around, the wishbones have some issues with the bushes which I can see, but the hoses look perfect and the pipes look only slightly rusted.

Could someone more experienced in repairs than me cast their eyes over these photos and point out what the MOTers might be looking for?

http://www.flickr.com/photos/66932014@N06/sets/72157627545414898/

The only slight issue I can see with the hoses is IMG_1212.

Thanks guys!

dalin80 · 29 Aug 2011 at 15:18

Cant see any major issue there but then again it is only advisories which are the testers way of telling you to keep an eye on something before it becomes a problem.

malfunkshun · 29 Aug 2011 at 15:25

They issued the advisories because the brake pipes and hoses have started to corrode but are not yet cause for failing the test, same with the wisebones. The rubber hoses are about £15-20 per corner and the wishbones about £25 each. Brake lines arent usually expensive, mostly labour costs. If you can do the work yourself even better. Take the advisory as what it is, advice and look at doing/getting the work done.

mattyfez · 29 Aug 2011 at 15:27

Yeh, you can see some deteriation in some of the pics, as above, it will eventually need sorting but wont cost the earth. The joys of ford ownership tbh

therealnerd2 · 29 Aug 2011 at 18:06

Cool thanks for the advice guys. The car will come up for it's MOT soon, and I'm just wanting to check what work actually needs doing, or if I should do some of the work in advance. Is the conclusion that I should just do the wishbones then take it to the MOT? I don't want some dodgy tester seeing last years advisories and trying to rip me off by doing all the brake pipes...

mattyfez · 29 Aug 2011 at 18:55

I would say thats pretty much bang on. If you have a few spare quid then get the wishbones done as they do look a little iffy.

Most of the rubber sections of the brake system look quite new, but I can see some cracks on some of the pics, some of the metal lines look (its hard to judge the structual integrity form a pic) like they may need some work in a year or so, depending on conditions, IMG 1227 in particular.

But as said, there is nothing there that makes me think OMG!!!!

therealnerd2 · 29 Aug 2011 at 19:24

mattyfez said:
I would say thats pretty much bang on. If you have a few spare quid then get the wishbones done as they do look a little iffy.

Most of the rubber sections of the brake system look quite new, but I can see some cracks on some of the pics, some of the metal lines look (its hard to judge the structual integrity form a pic) like they may need some work in a year or so, depending on conditions, IMG 1227 in particular.

But as said, there is nothing there that makes me think OMG!!!!

Cool thanks for the advice. What tips can you give to actually judge the structual integrity of the pipe? Poke it a bit with a screwdriver?

mattyfez · 29 Aug 2011 at 19:30

I would probably give them a clean up, rather than poke them, to get rid of any 'crud' and expose any deep spots of corrosion that may turn into holes in the future.

Zack101 · 29 Aug 2011 at 20:16

As said before it’s hard to judge brake pipes from a pic but nothing there looks too bad. The bush's look normal for a Ford I wouldn't worry about those at all, what the tester will be looking for is movement in the bush's.

If you bend the flexi brake pipes back you will see how deep the cracks are, if you can see the cords they will fail and need to be replaced.

The metal pipes are more a matter of judgement, as matteyfez has said just scrape off any corrosion with the edge of a screwdriver or sandpaper and see how deep the pits are if they aren't too bad cover them in grease to stop them getting worse.