Stainless Braided Brake Lines?

I have heard about stainless brake lines which should add performance for relatively cheap. Has anyone done them on a 2wd 2003? I would love some information such as price, difficulty, and if it was really worth it as compared to new pads. Any help would be greatly appreciated!

 

I've got Goodridge lines on the front w/ Autozone premium ceramic pads. Works great, worth every penny!

 

Yep...all front/rear lines in SS and definitely thought it was worth it.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6LJiPDAr9f8

Placebo.

 

Not necessarily. It depends on what comes with the vehicle. Then, if it has rubber lines, the quality, construction, and age of them.

 

Cool, never knew that guy made a video on them. Thanks!

 

not sure about how good the brake lines are, I think the performance they provide is just about negligible but definitely give the pedal a better feel. My brake pedal used to sink right through to the floorboard and now has a good amount of pressure all the time. stainless steel clutch line definitely improves clutch feel and engagement. It makes the clutch a good bit more predictable, like its going to release at the same point every time, and its now even harder to stall this truck lol

 

This is more than likely a symptom of servicing your brakes and not improving the lines. It's been shown that steel brake lines don't improve anything except an overweight wallet and a need for placebo effect.

 

Not saying it isn't that... but I would argue that the difference would be in how long it retains this 'new' feeling. When I first picked up the truck it took a couple days to lose the new feeling in the pedals and start to get more sponginess. Will update next week but so far no return of sponginess in pedals.

 

@OCTaco

 

Pff. All depends on the quality of the lines from the factory. Thermal expansion, due to fluid heating, combined with the resiliency of the oem line, age of the line, and the pressure acted upon the line, can cause rubber lines to balloon. Varying between competitors' line and the lines themselves. That ballooning action is what creates inconsistant pedal pressure, which then translates to squishy pedal feel.

Adding in a line which resists expansion is what cures the above, and is what braided lines are for.

Some manufacturers start out with better quality materials and components than others.

 

You're replacing a small section of the brake line with a longer section that is still a small piece of the full system. I won't say anymore. I posted the video above. Placebo away, bro.

 

The hard lines don't flex. Only the soft lines. You're in a small box. Step out of it.

 

Sentence fragments aside, you can post your degree in engineering when you're ready.

 

I spent money on it bro, I can't be wrong. CLEARLY YOU'RE WRONG. Cause I would never waste money.

 

Hello All,


As you may all know, I've offered SS lines on TW for about six years now, and this question comes up often. I'll do my best to be as objective as I can in my response.


Are SS lines better than rubber lines? The short answer is yes. However, a better question to ask is, are SS lines better for your application?


There are several points to consider when deciding between SS lines and conventional rubber lines.


1. Off Road Use – How often do you use your truck off-road? If you primarily use your truck on paved roads then, consider sticking to rubber lines. If you’re an off-road fanatic, then SS lines are probably a better fit for you since they are less likely to tear or sever an SS line than a rubber hose.

2. Is your truck lifted? – If you have a lift over 3” it is advised that you replace your lines with extended ones. The cost difference between a quality extended rubber line and SS line is negligible, spend the extra money and get quality SS hoses.

3. How long do you expect to keep your truck? – There isn’t a designated change interval for rubber hoses, but most experts agree they should be changed out every 6-8 years where SS lines easily last 3x as long.

4. Do you tow, or live in a region with extreme weather? – Studies show that heat has an adverse effect on rubber hoses. SS lines are less susceptible to the issues arising from heat. If you notice your braking ability deteriorating on hot days, or when you tow, you should consider switching to SS lines.

5. Peace of mind – I don’t think you could argue that SS lines offer peace of mind over rubber lines, what that peace of mind is worth is completely relative to the individual.


Other than this the only thing I can offer is my personal experience with the SS lines. I bought my 2005 DCSB in 2008, and one of the first things I did was replace hoses since my brake pedal was soft, and the travel was unacceptable in my opinion. Before replacing the rubber hoses, I flushed the brake lines to ensure old fluid and air in the lines weren’t the cause. I noticed very little change in braking performance. Once I replaced the rubber hoses with SS lines and re-bled the brake system, I noticed a substantial difference in braking performance and pedal travel.


I purchased a 2016 taco in June of this year and replaced the hoses in August. There weren’t any issues with braking performance I just wanted to be proactive. I noticed a slight improvement in braking ability when the truck is loaded, and when towing. I did not notice any improvement in every day driving conditions.

Hope this helps.

JP

 

Well said. I do not disagree with any of this.

 

your not pushing hard enough....................... I kid, i kid

 

now after a week of 'spirited' driving to see if I could force the pedal to get spongier... I am happy to report that there has been no sponginess since switching to SS lines. Another thing I've noticed is considerably better braking performance downhill. Where at first my brake pedal used to bottom out and from there I would progressively lose brake pressure unless I pumped the pedal on the way down, now there is ample pressure and no need for pumping at all, under any circumstances, brakes piping hot or stone cold alike. This contributed to better stopping distances downhill as well. I personally would say this alone makes them a worthy safety feature in case of towing, or driving on a mountain, or as others have said before when offroading and there is the chance that debris interferes with the lines.
If you can't afford it or don't want to pay for it then that's fine too, but there's no need to add a bunch of noise to the discussion on here if you don't have SS lines on your truck and speak from experience on the subject.