Brake Line Failure
Driving back from Chico, the traffic was heavy. I stepped on the brake and it went all the way to the floor. Hummm! That’s not good. I managed to limp home and stop with the emergency brake. Turns out there are three brake lines running forward from the master cylinder to an ABC device under the driver’s side headlight. Each of these three main brake lines has a short section of braided steel over rubber as a shock absorber in case of a head-on collision. Good idea, except they all lay on top of each other. 120,000 miles of rubbing caused the top main line to abrade the stainless steel jacket and the rubber inside, unable to withstand the brake fluid pressure, ruptured, gushing like a severed artery.
It was kind of embarrassing to have The Turtle V towed to Ken Imler Diesel Performance (over one hour away) where all three lines were replaced and it was frustrating to see this strange potentially catastrophic problem occur out of the clear blue sky. We can only be thankful that it happened here instead of somewhere in Kazakhstan. Another week delay while parts were special ordered.
Each of the three main brake lines coming from the master cylinder has a short section of braided steel over rubber as a shock absorber in case of a head-on collision.
It was kind of embarrassing to have The Turtle V towed to Ken Imler Diesel Performance where all three lines were replaced.
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