Cepat.. .. hasn't the hard brake line already failed? .. if you ruin more of a broken brake line, what does it matter?
no worries the line to be removed was trash of course. I managed to loosen all the clips. Unscrew the fittings at each end and I pulled it out from the bottom. It instantly broke at the leaking point under the charred plastic sleeve that was at the clip closest to the header. I plan to form the 90 degree bend at the three way (four way?) distribution block near the front of the engine then snake the line up again from the bottom, tighten the fitting at the block and fit the cu ni hose into the clips as I go. There’s a pig tail shaped 270 degree loop at the caliper hose I plan to form in situ. I had to remove the front spare tire support to get that part of the line out. Here’s some pics. I noticed at the block maybe a double bubble flare and at the rubber hose a single flare?or is that the type of double flare where it’s pushed back into itself? The threads on the line fitting at the block are a bit buggered. I’ll have to replace that fitting. It’s longer than the bunch of standard fittings in the usual pack of fittings from Amazon. Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
Some good news and more questions. I got that brake hard line replaced with a copper nickel line. Took a while to get the correct fitting at the front junction. The original fitting got buggered. Its a weird one, DIN bubble flare with a 3//8x24 thread pitch not metric. I suppose its a Citroen/Maseratit think. Anyway no more leak or smoke. The moniker Exxon Valdez shall be stricken from the record. Will come up with another nick name. But first...The vid is the test drive. Car runs very smooth, however, brakes pull very hard to the right. I only bled the main system and the rear brake calipers so I decided to bleed the front. Taking off the left front tire the back of the tire had a streak of stickier than tar LHM running down from the center to the tread. It was not liquid. It was more stiff than honey and more sticky too. Couldn't really see a big leak anywhere but when I tried to bleed that caliper, it was very very hard to get any oil to come out the nipple. Its like the caliper is seized up and clogged up. I suppose a caliper rebuild is in the works, but I might outsource that as beyond my skill set. One more issue. With the front end jacked up the right front wheel does wobble a bit. No clunking. Do those front wheel bearings wear out so that they need to be tightened? I may just order both front wheel bearings and get that out of the way. I may try to outsource that front end work. Have to find someone in Orlando who knows citroen at least.
Keep pluckin' along. You've have a museum monster on your hands and everything in that hydraulic system needs checking. Did you replace the brake line on the other side? You should. Just because it's not leaking now doesn't mean it's not a risk. Every brake line on the sub-frame needs to be be replaced.
Ok, need some more help/advice. I still see a puddle of LHM forming under the area of the main accumulator/pressure regulator. From my reciepts these were rebuilt two years ago. I see a drop of oil hanging off the bottom of the main accumulator whenever I look there. When I redid the rubber hoses from the LHM tank, I used a standard hose for the return from the pressure regulator. The OEM hose is a wild Citroen rubber hose which is a different inner diameter at each end. I did finally receive that hose from Eurospares and I can replace that where I put a standard hose but I'm not sure something that simple is making such a big leak. That is a low pressure return hose after all. Its really hard to work on those accumulators. Very little room in there. I'm wondering how the main accumulator attaches to the pressure regulator? Is it just screwed on? Should I try to give it a clockwise turn and see if I can get it tighter? I'll reveiw the thread on the green bits again to see if theres any insight there. Thanks again.
The main accumulator screws on just like an oil filter. The threads are very small. I take a chisel and a hammer and give it a good whack to break it loose. It then comes off easily. Make sure all the pressure is gone before taking if off. There is a seal on top of the accumulator. The main accumulator normally gets replaced, not rebuilt. They are not too expensive. Ivan
Thanks again Ivan. Is it possible to unscrew the accumulator from the pressure regulator while its mounted in the car? Should I source and replace that seal? Does a bad main accumulator just stop working or does it leak LHM? Thanks and sorry to pile more questions on. I found your front caliper rebuild article and I may attempt this repair myself. MIE has all parts in stock.
The main accumulator unscrews rather easily but it's also easy to get the sealing O-ring cockeyed and then it will leak. It can easily be done insitu. I f'ed up mine ... it leaked and sprayed on the exhaust manifold and caused a small smudged pot like fire. The smaller accumulators are a total PITA. I utilized hydraulic thread seal, a liquid from Loctite, that made for a good seal.
Image Unavailable, Please Login So as the puddle reforms (but much smaller than the leaking hard brake line puddle) I decided to jack up the car and take a look. Theres a drop of oil hanging off the main accumulator, but following that up, I see it originates at the rubber hose fitting, not necessarily at the junction between accumulator and pressure regulator. Like I said I used a standard hose with each end same size when I replaced this hose but eventually the correct hose with different inside diameters each end showed up so i think I will put that on, including the silly rubber sleeves that go over the ends just like Citroen designed and see if that fixes this damn leaking once and for all. Also, took the door panel off to see why the key would not lock/unlock the door and found that a small rubber grommet/bushing was missing off of the pivoting rod that connects the key mechanism with the lock knob mechanism and the lock itself. Will try to replace that grommet/bushing as best I can. Lastly the braided cable that connects the inside door handle to the lock was frayed down to the last 4 tiny wires so i was about to get trapped inside the car any minute, most likely as I was trying to exit cooly in front of several onlookers no doubt. I think thats a quick fix with a throttle cable repair kit and will post if that works.
Found the clamp on the rubber hose at the top of the pressure regulator was loose enough I could easily pop that hose off. So instead of swapping out the hose I just tightened the clamp down hard. Test drive then parked. Will look under the car in the AM. Change out the door latch cable. Easy peasy. Everything works now. Lock knob and key. Interesting pic. The red under where the door glove box came off is the original color. The decorative panel seems faded. The rest just seems filthy. But that’s after using a drill brush and P&S interior cleaner so I guess that means it’s patina not filth. I may yet redye the interior with 1603 red. I have a brand new swatch so can match the factory color exactly. Image Unavailable, Please Login
Finally some good news! This morning took a look under the Bora and its dry. No need for more kitty litter. I'm hoping I can move on from LHM issues now and work on the other issues. I am going to buy new tires, these are 10 years old. 71Satisfaction recommended Pirelli CN12's. I did find an article online showing that they really do blow away the Michelin XWX's performance wise. Perhaps a little on the loud side but thats a minor criteria in a car this loud to begin with. Theres really no comparison, study is found here: https://www.tire-reviews.com/Article/2024-Classic-Car-Tire-Test.htm
Congrats! Not that I'm looking to load more work on you but have replaced all of the brake line involving those folding tabs and vinyl slip over pieces? Also, when the main hose from the LHM system on the body frame begins to drip from stress due to being bent so much at the crimp from stress think about getting one manufactured with a SS braid covered Teflon lined hose and add a screw on angle adapter. That works great.
I only replaced the leaking line. If I spot another problem on the other side I will deal with it but in order of what seems to be important next is rebuilding the seized front caliper then the front wheel bearings that let the wheels jiggle when the car is jacked up.
Rebuilt the left front caliper with the MIE kit and instructions from the car nut website (thanks again Ivan). Still need to change the right front tie rod end. Then can bleed the rebuilt caliper and see if the car still pulls on braking. Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
You can also get minor pulling when nitrogen builds up in the LHM from leaking bladders in the accumulators. They do leak you know, right from the very moment you install them. I used to find this quite annoying when driving very hard on roads like Skyline Blvd. South of SF. Careful bleeding from time to time fixes this up. If your fluid is up to snuff and the calipers as well you don't need to throw out the LHM. The nitrogen compresses and thus you don't get a pure hydraulic effect. I used to do it regularly.
Understood, but also that left front caliper was like impossible to bleed for some reason. No LHM flow when I opened the bleeder. And it pulled HARD to the right not just a little. I have receipts for all three accumulators from 2022 so I think most likely they are good but who knows? Also I don't see the front hydraulic hoses to the calipers available at MIE. Is there another source for these? Prior owner replaced just one hose on each side maybe those were leaking but I'd like to replace the other two on each side plus the rears. rubber is fine vs. SS braided.
Get new ones , SS braid cover with Teflon liners made up. Any decent hydraulic hose shop can make these up. these. Tell them they're part of a hydraulic system, don't mention automotive braking. If the OEM ones are still available they're probably way too old anyway. The SS braid will not expand under pressure.
I'll see if theres a shop locally that can make those up, unless MIE replies that they have them even though not listed online.
I had mine made up at a hydraulic shop the Oakland airport when I lived out there. Shops like that also have a variety of fittings and adapters if you need them.
No need to get custom made hoses. Hose (16 inches long), banjo bolts = 10 x 1.25 x 28 mm (banjo ID = 11 mm) at brake caliper, and the chassis-side thread is 3/8-24 (-AN3). New Fragola Performance Systems brake hoses, banjo bolts, and bulkhead adapters fit perfectly, front and back: Fragola Performance Systems 16” banjo brake line w/ black covering (# 332016), banjo bolt and washers (# 650152), STRAIGHT BULKHEAD 832 -3 AN (3/8-24 male to male union) (# 583203).
Correct. Same front and back except for the fact that only 1 hose/caliper is needed in back (6 total). Best, Art
Going back to 1768 I mentioned the caliper couldn’t be bled. No fluid flow when loosening the bleed nipple so I rebuilt it but following the instructions I found online I did not crack the caliper open and replace the tiny o rings that connect the two halves together. And I find the caliper is still not bleedable. So I will pull it all apart and go ahead and crack the calipers open and changed those small seals. any other suggestions as to what the issue might be? The other calipers bleed normally. Thanks.
