> I agree that OE parts are a good bet and that they can usually be bought
> cheaper from places other than the local dealer.
Same. you very rarely go wrong with OE in this situation.
> But I'm going to disagree pretty strongly on the SS brake lines
> recommendation. SS lines have the following problems, for me:
>
> * Not as durable as OE. They're more prone to kinking and are likely to
> get crap stuck in the braid that then wears away at the inner lining.
A good quality line will have an outer plastic covering to to prevent dirt
getting into the braids, and help keep it clean looking too. Just checked and
-3 AN Teflon has a 2" bend radius, so it seems like it would be hard to
seriously kink a line unless you really f'd up the install and didn't put any
thought into wheel movement up/down left/right. I'm sure many an "enthusiast"
has done this.
> * Varying quality. This comes in the form of fitment issues for your
> particular application, assembly issues, rusting issues, etc.
Again, don't skimp on cheap parts for your brakes. There are good names out
there that I would trust. I would also stay away from any lines that are
*not* DOT approved.
> * PITA. If you have to replace the brake lines anyway then this goes
> away, but generally speaking people are doing this as an upgrade.
> Changing brake lines "just because" is annoying.
Found this article somewhat helpful, as it seems there is a small advantage to
using braided lines, however they don't take into account heat building up in
the fluid or line itself, or it's effect on pedal travel for the driver...
sort of begs for a real world test... (great site by the way, I've spent the
last year or so slowly picking over their archives...)
http://autospeed.com/cms/A_2679/article.html
> improvement from brake lines. OE lines are well engineered, work well, >
and by now have been that way for a long time.
>
> Anyway, the biggest one of all of those for me is the varying quality
> stuff. Its not hard to find stories / pictures of SS lines that have
> failed catastrophically in a performance / well maintained setting. I
> don't recall EVER hearing of an OE brake line that's failed in the same
> scenario. Which, to me, isn't all that surprising. OE's have a LOT to
> lose if they poorly engineer brake lines. Extremely small performance
> parts manufacturers (usually with explict "not for highway use"
> disclaimers) don't have anything like the same motivation.
I've not looked extensively, but I'd be curious to hear about any stories of
failures (my guess is they are all poor quality lines, or improper
installations to blame). I've had braided lines on all my cars, which have
all done duty as autocrossers and track day cars for some part of their life.
No issues I've had, seen or heard of.
Also looking for evidence of OEMs using braided lines on their product lines,
though I'm guess probably only the high performance cars might get them, if
anything.
> But as always, YMMV.
>
> Mark
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