[DeTomaso] CLUTCH HYDRAULIC LINE FAILURE / REPLACEMENT

[NED BYRNE, CB SECURITIES, LLC]

----- Original Message -----
To: MikeLDrew at aol.com
At:  8/13 11:56:36

Mike     I was surprised at the failure my self.  The tube was sort of hanging
down below the car after doing things like replacing the emergency brake
bracket and cross member with the removable ones.  There is a chance this is
not the original line as there is a fitting attaching two pieces just behind
the bell housing where the tube comes up to the slave.  It may have broken in
the past and was repaired with a coupling.  Anyway; as the tube was hanging
down below the car we used a zip tie to hold it up against the frame rail.
When we did that it created slack in the slave end of the line and a small bow
was created.  The line may have been too long.  The bow in the line "just"
allowed it to touch the spinning U-joint  and it may have only touched it when
the clutch was pushed and that may have caused a slight movement in the line.
But in the end there is a small hole in the line right where the U-joint is.
Thanks for the direction, the new one will be no where near the U-joint.  Ned
----- Original Message -----
From: MikeLDrew at aol.com
At:  8/13 11:33:23


In a message dated 8/13/07 7 44 38, nbyrne4 at bloomberg.net writes:


> After doing many things to the car it appears I allowed the clutch's
> hydraulic
> line to sit too close to the universal joint.- As a result the universal
> just
> touched the line enough that after two hundred miles or so it wore a hole
> in-
> the line.- It's the original line.- What is everyone using now for a-
> replacement and who offers it.- Should I just have a new line fabricated-
> locally.- Any direction would be greatly appreciated.- -
>

There are two options--stainless   hard line, and stainless flex line.   For
a variety of reasons I prefer the latter.

Pantera Performance Center sells a beautiful no-muss, no-fuss replacement
braided steel flex line.   It bolts right up to the stock location on each end.

Works great, lasts forever as long as you can keep it away from your U-joints
(!)   The other vendors sell replacement hard line kits, but they don't make
any attempt at preserving the stock orientation; instead it is a multi-piece
kit which completely replaces the stock line from front to back.

I'm quite curious as to your failure.   The driveshafts are considerably aft
of the clutch line so there's no way they could touch.   You said that it was
a U-joint that did it in but in my mind I can't picture that as being
possible, since the clutch line goes straight back through the center of the car
(with
the cooling pipes), then the flex hose attaches and runs under the motor,
between the engine and gearbox and attaches to the slave cylinder.

So, no U-joints anywhere nearby?

Mike


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