I am in the process of replacing the rear brake hard lines of my '06 R53. I wound up stripping the bolt going into the union underneath the car. I don't think I have enough room to cut the pipe and re-flare. So, it would appear that I will need to run new brake pipe up to the ABS unit.

Has anyone here done this before? I'm trying to find a good way to remove and re-route new pipe, but don't see a good path from the engine bay to under the car. Wondering if the pastic covering the ABS unit can be easily removed, and if it will give me the access I need.

 

 

So I was looking at a couple auto part store websites and couldn't find any that had the compression fittings for hydraulic lines like brake lines. So, maybe it is not so common or an accepted practice?

 

Thanks for the replies. I looked and looked for some sort of guide for replacing brake pipes and couldn't find anything. If I am able to complete this repair successfully, I'll write something up.

I know which video you're talking about, @RudeJoe. I'm not going to link it because I don't want any more inbound links to it. If you pause the video where he shows the compression fitting, you'll see right on the box that they are not supposed to be used for brake pipes. I didn't really trust his stuff before, but after that I have blocked all of this stuff on youtube. I wonder how many people have endangered their lives due to his bad advice.

The brake pipes on our MINIs have a double flare ending. To replace them, you can either buy the pipe in bulk and do your own flares, or do what I did and buy it pre-flared from BMW. It was more expensive the OEM route, but considering I was quoted $1500 for the job, I can justify that extra expense. This link goes into a bit more detail on that. https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...ification.html. When you buy the OEM pipe, you will need to bend the pipes.

When I took the MINI in for an estimate, I was told they'd need to drop the fuel tank. That is just not true. All I needed to pull out to give me proper access was the fuel canister alongside the fuel tank. It was a pain to remove, but certainly easier than the entire fuel tank.

I've removed those pipe fittings many times before using flare wrenches, and haven't stripped ever until now. As you can see in the picture, the union is rusty, and I'm sure has over time fused itself to the fittings. I read somewhere BMW uses the same unions, and this issue is not all that uncommon.

You can see from the pic I had was able to remove the one fitting successfully. It's just the last stupid fitting that caused me all sorts of issues. If I were you I'd spray penetrating oil on it every day for a couple days prior to doing the job. It should loosen everything up hopefully allowing for a much easier job.

Hopefully someone can let me know if the plastic surrounding the abs unit can be easily removed. I'm just hoping to get enough access to the pipe to remove it. If not, I guess it'll be time for me to just start ripping stuff apart.

 

Did you ever get the lines replaced? I'm getting close to starting on my son's. He's been driving my R52 and doesn't mind not having his (R50).

I'm wondering how hard it is to get the old lines out and new lines in? I have the car up on jack stands- about 20" high - so no lift to really get some working room. I'm hoping that there will be enough room to get them out and replace. They really get buried up in front of the rear wheels.

 

I actually just finished it up this weekend! Haven't been able to take it for a test drive because I'm doing the fuel filter, timing chain, boost gauge, etc. at the same time. The car really needs to get out of my garage!

It wasn't insanely difficult getting the old pipe out and the new stuff in. Like I said earlier the biggest pain was the pipe I had to run to the ABS unit, and I can't imagine it's that common of a problem. I had to wait over two weeks for that part.

I think you should be good with 20", although I use these to get as much safe height as possible https://www.pelicanparts.com/cgi-bin...ion=jack+stand (Part #TOL-10498-1). They're awesome jack stands, and worth every penny for the peace of mind when you're under the car.

I didn't have to remove the fuel tank thankfully, but I did remove the fuel canister next to it. The thing was a huge pain to get out, so use plenty of lubricant to help get it out. Here are some pics and more description of the job https://www.reddit.com/r/MINI/commen...dxq/?context=3.

 

After using cinderblocks, 2x4, 4x4, etc in place of jack stands in my youth I decided to finally buy some jack stands when we got my son's project car two years ago. I bought those same stands and I do like them. $$$. Not quite as easy to adjust as conventional stands that are available everywhere but they sure feel sturdy.

I looked through your posts and photos. Thanks for posting.

I was going to build the lines but ultimately decided to buy OEM Mini parts. I had to order a couple other things. Hopefully they will get here for the long weekend. If you think of any other tips, post them here. Thanks

 

Well, I finally started wrenching on my son's brake lines...

I got one of the front nuts loose but started rounding off the others- the other front one (looks to be the same one you had problems with- the one with the larger diameter thread), and the passenger side rear. I didn't try the driver's rear yet as I didn't want three failures in one evening.

I was using flare nut wrenches but the nuts just wouldn't budge.

I sprayed PB Blaster on the connections a couple times over the past couple weeks.

Any suggestions for dealing with rounded heads on these nuts?

Thanks

 

Did some research and found the recommendation to cut the brake line at the nut and then use a 6 point socket to get the flare nut off. Makes sense and may be my next attempt.

 

The 6 point socket idea is a good one, I wound up doing that. I'm guessing it will work for you. I don't think I was patient enough so I wound up stripping it anyway. After I completely stipped the nut, I tried taking a vice grip and still couldn't get it. Mine was completely seized, hoping yours isn't.

 

I just did the repair on my R52 and used the kit, PB blast things ahead of time and they should come loose. If you need the fitting on the front we have those also. Mine was fine with the PB blaster on them.


https://www.ecstuning.com/Mini-2005-...Braking/Lines/

The two different size Intermediate Pieces is it for both sides.

 

Working on this now with my son. Having a heck of a time trying to get the passenger side brake line out. Where the line travel up and around the outside of the gas tank is the problem. We took some of the gas(?) lines down by lossening the brackets that support them but they are still in the way. Same with the parking brake cables. Obviously we could cut the old brake line to get it out but we are trying to take it out intact to help bend the new and so we know how to feed the new one in.

What did you guys do about the parking brake cable and the 3 Fuel(?) lines that run up the middle of the passenger side?



Thanks!

 

The passenger side was tricky. What I wound up doing is the bend towards the passenger side, and then bent the rest by the wheel well when it was mostly routed in the car. It didn't seem like I'd have enough room if I pre-bent the whole thing.


Did you wind up taking the fuel canister out?

 

My son's car is an 02 r50 and doesn't have a canister that I could see. The big hang up for us was/is the three fuel lines that travel on the under side of the car toward the engine compartment. Only one had a disconnect on it. Those lines prevented us from just dropping the brake line down out of its mounting clips.

I did disconnect the parking brake cables from inside behind the hand brake lever and pulled them out of the way. With those out of the way I was able to remove the line without too much bending though it did break in one place and bent significantly in another. I think mostly because it is so leak from rust.

We'll get back on it this weekend and bend the new line up and try to get it back in there.

Still debating on the drivers side. Its rusty also but not leaking. We're in the same boat as you were on that one connector. I'm afraid we won't get it off even with a six point socket and have to replace the line all the way up. On the other hand we've got everything ready to do it so to go back at a later date would require a bunch more work.

 

If you wind up needing to replace the line going to the ABS unit it isn't as bad as I thought it would be. I'll take a pic when I go home for lunch and show you the results.

 

I just posted about brake lines. I had to do mine. From the ABS to the rear.

 

Flare tool
https://www.ecstuning.com/b-bav-auto.../b8800083~bav/

 

One more thing. I know its not advisable to add unions, but without taking half the car apart i split the brake line into more manageable pieces. I also used the original as a template.
I removed the exhaust, heat shield, etc. if i had to do it again i would use some aluminum wire to create a template.

Make sure you deburr and flatten every tube cut.

Hope this helps.
DR