97 civic brake line replacement - costly?
 

I have a 97 civic lx 4 door with only 75000 miles on it that I bought new. I just found that one of the rear brake lines is leaking about mid-way under the car. There appears to be 4 lines that run from the front to the back and they are protected by a black plastic guard. I am assuming that 2 of the lines are for the brakes and the other 2 for the fuel. They are all badly rusted and all would need to be replaced. Has anyone attempted this repair themselves and is it difficult? What should I expect to have to pay for this work to be done at a shop such as Tireman, Midas, Tuffy, etc.? Can anyone recommend a good place in the Perrysburg, OH, area, just south of Toledo?
Thanks for your help.

Not sure about price on that, but if Honda still makes OEM replacements, that might be the way to go in lieu of fabricating new ones.

However, the cause of your problem is because the brake fluid was never changed. As that fluid ages, it'll collect water. Since the car doesn't get driven much, the water that's mixed in the fluid will actually rust the lines from the inside out.

When your brake lines get changed, so will your fluid, but it's something to keep an eye on down the road.

Actually. I did change the brake fluid once some years ago. The rust I see is very bad on the outsie of the lines. That is not to say they aren't rusting on the inside also. Sounds like this is a common problem based on what I find online. Would like to hear from someone who has made this repair.

I think you can still buy new OEM lines from a dealer or online dealer like hondaautomotiveparts. Replacement is potentially a DIY job, though it would be much easier with a garage lift. The actual replacement is nothing beyond the obvious: disconnect both ends, take off mounting brackets, fit new line, and in the case of a brake line, bleed the system. Fuel lines do not need to be bled.

From what I have found on the Internet, it sounds as though it is a real pain to install these lines already pre-bent. I found out from the dealer that one option they use is to leave the existing lines in place and install the new lines under them. Then they cut the old lines at a point where the lines are OK and tie the new lines in there. That way they do not disturb the old gas lines. Makes sense. Plus has to be much cheaper than buying OEM lines from dealer. Since they quoted me $1000 to fix it that way, I will be looking at doing it that way myself.