Date:         Sun, 29 Apr 2012 15:22:45 -0400
Reply-To:     Kim Brennan <kimbrennan@MAC.COM>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Kim Brennan <kimbrennan@MAC.COM>
Subject:      Working on the brake lines....
Content-type: text/plain; CHARSET=US-ASCII

Hmm, sort of sounds like that should be a song title.

So, as so often seems to be the case on a Syncro, in order to work on my busted brake line, I have to remove the side plate and other miscellaneous syncro specific stuff, just to get in there. Coolant lines and shifter are somewhat in the way too. Lovely. Oh, and the passenger side transmission mount.

So I'm taking a semi-break and pop the old line out of a couple of its retaining clips. The brake line starts dripping more brake fluid (obviously  it hadn't completely evacuated the line of fluid in the past.) I grab my old (shortened) SVX oil pan to catch the poisonous stuff. As I'm looking at the drip I see something very odd. The clip ABOVE the line is dripping fluid. Very quickly (aka a continuous drip, not a one time thing.) This is at first mysterious. I don't see any fluid feeding it from further towards the front (I'm parked on a slope with the front up hill.) I investigate further....the break in the brake line is squirting fluid UP! Wow, that was a surprise. I get a good laugh out of that situation. (of course I'll have to wait for the rest of the fluid to drain out and then move my work area. I really don't want to be rolling around in that stuff.