Does this $1400 estimate to replace brake lines all around sound right?

[dennismv]

My 1997 Expedition had a brake issue where the pedal would go down to the floor. I think one of my brake lines busted and was leaking onto the manifolds, which was creating smoke coming from under the hood

The shop called and said essentially:

Brake lines: one of the lines is paper-thin, and one is leaking and broken, so they need to rebuild the seal/brake line system.
Brakes still have life on them so they are not replacing them but still recommend replacing them.
They are not sure if they could open the bleeders, but plan on soak them in a penetrating fluid, and try to crack them open to allow brakes to be bled.
If they can bleed the brakes, great! they will bleed the brakes, and I am good to go. If not, it is an expensive fix.

If I'm looking for a cheap fix, they are not the shop.. They saw someone has done compression fittings on the brake lines before, and if someone else can piece together a repair, it may not be safe, and if I go that route, I will be doing a repair piece by piece if some other part of the system goes bust.
So, the plan is on replacing all the brake lines, front to rear, ABS to the master cylinder, master cylinder to all of the tires, all of the lines fitted properly. The cost of this repair is $1400"

Does that sound right for price? I am trusting the shop here that I do need the brake lines replaced, but for that kind of job, is that a fair/reasonable price?
I picked the shop because it is local and sits at 4.9 starts with 185 reviews on Google, so I assume they are doing something right.

 

[dcsang]

I had a 1997 Expy and the brake lines fail 2x. I consider myself very fortunate that both incidents did not result in an accident or injuries. The braking felt fine otherwise but there might have been moisture in the line that contributed to corrosion and the salted NY roads certainly didn't help. After the second failure I decided to replace all of the brake line in the vehicle and opted to do the work myself. I didn't price the job but it wasn't an expense I was able to manage at the time. I don't remember the specific product I replaced it with but decided on a bulk roll of flexible brake line that had some sort of corrosion resistance coating that was recommended by one of the Ford techs. I may have also purchase a couple of formed lines from the dealer for the ABS but don't recall exactly.

It was the first time I worked with brake lines other than bleeding the system, but I considered myself mechanically inclined enough to research the process and gain enough confidence that I could complete the job properly without compromising safety. A few practice bubble flares later and a couple of days worth of work and it was completed. Some of those lines were awkwardly routed but a little perseverance and patience brought me to the finish line. I tested the vehicle on open road while braking aggressively and the system was fine.

I know my reply didn't answer your pricing question, but just thought I'd share my experience. Your shop's repair assessment seems reasonable but at the cost of $1400 I'd factor in age and the condition of the rest of the vehicle while considering it's current value. Sentiment is always a factor... but sharing my 2¢.

EDIT: Wording

 

[Vincent Vega]

I had a 1997 Expy and the brake lines fail 2x. I consider myself very fortunate that both incidents did not result in an accident or injuries. The braking felt fine otherwise but there might have been moisture in the line that contributed to corrosion and the salted NY roads certainly didn't help. After the second failure I decided to replace all of the brake line in the vehicle and opted to do the work myself. I didn't price the job but it wasn't an expense I was able to manage at the time. I don't remember the specific product I replaced it with but decided on a bulk roll of flexible brake line that had some sort of corrosion resistance coating that was recommended by one of the Ford techs. I may have also purchase a couple of formed lines from the dealer for the ABS but don't recall exactly.

It was the first time I worked with brake lines other than bleeding the system, but I considered myself mechanically inclined enough to research the process and gain enough confidence that I could complete the job properly without compromising safety. A few practice bubble flares later and a couple of days worth of work and it was completed. Some of those lines were awkwardly routed but a little perseverance and patience brought me to the finish line. I tested the vehicle on open road while braking aggressively and the system was fine.

I know my reply didn't answer your pricing question, but just thought I'd share my experience. Your shop's repair assessment seems reasonable but at the cost of $1400 I'd factor in age and the condition of the rest of the rest of the vehicle while considering it's current value. Sentiment is always a factor... but sharing my 2¢.

Dcsang, About how much did you spend on materials doing it yourself? And how many hours did it take you?

 

[Vincent Vega]

At first, the $1400 estimate seemed high, but I looked up brake line parts for my '04 (just to get an idea, recognizing you have a Gen 1) and it would be roughly $500 to get the factory pre-formed brake line segments for each of the four wheels (downstream of the main lines). I did not see factory parts to replace the main lines, but the mechanic would make those. Anyway, the cost of parts plus up to a day of labor would get you to $1400. He could make all of the brake lines himself, but unclear if that would save money because of the labor, and if it were me I would buy factory stuff to the extent available and make the rest as needed.

 

[dcsang]

Dcsang, About how much did you spend on materials doing it yourself? And how many hours did it take you?

The better part of two summer days because I took time to remove and replace one line at a time. That allowed me to roughly pre-form each one but some bending and maneuvering was required to manipulate the longer sections in place. The flexible lines are pretty forgiving in that respect. I was also meticulous about those bubble flares since it was my first time doing them, and I was using a standard flaring tool. I don't recall the exact expenses, as this was several years back, but estimate parts at +-$250 including the lines purchased from the dealer (I do recall getting some of those). It helped that I knew a guy, so paid less than retail for the OEM parts.

 

[Boostedbus]

I’d give “SS Tubes”a shout. I had them make a complete set for my 95 F-150 and also a complete set for my 99 Jeep Wrangler. Their brake lines are all stainless steel and fit like OEM. After I had the same brake lines rust through twice on my F-150, it was a no-brainer for me to go stainless. Both times I was lucky enough for the brake lines on the truck to blow pulling in my driveway and not on the highway. The second time I even had a camper in tow that I had just bought and towed it home with no tags or trailer brakes. I had figured my luck is gonna run out if I don’t change something. A lot of auto parts store brake lines are total garbage as far as corrosion resistant. I’m not sure about the rolls of copper brake lines you can buy now, but my SS lines look as new as the day I installed them and that was over 10 years ago.

 

[Trainmaster]

Make sure they know how to bleed the anti-lock brakes. They may need special equipment for that.

 

[tommyddsr]

You will definitely need special equipment to bleed the brakes due to the ABS Trainmaster suggested.. Cost me $120 for just a bleed as I did not have the proper equipment to bleed the ABS module.

 

[laiod]

That sounds like a decent price, possibly a few hundred extra, all things considered. I don't think there are factory pre-bent lines that you can buy (although I did see a set for sale on inline tube for $170). They would probably have to flare and bend all the lines themselves if they don't have a predone set. Most of the money you're paying is going to be for labor; those fittings are a PIA to get off.