Lost chains == Brake Leak

Hello, Fellow Honda Drivers:

The snow up in the northwest required that I put chains on my 98 Honda
Accord EX. It was so nice to have chains and get around, I followed
all the rules, do not exceed 30 mph and stay off dry pavement, but
when my wife go into the car, she failed to remember "do not exceed
30mph." She took the car on the main Interstate (I-5) and probably
somewhere around 40-50mph on dry pavement, the chains proceeded to
break off.

The chains broke off, tearing out my driver-side blinker, and grinding
through the bumper, corner panel, and door. Luckily the car continued
to drive normally without losing control, but now the brake light is
coming on. The brake light coming on is a direct result of low brake
fluid, which is now leaking. I'm not sure where it's leaking from,
but the chains were on the front tires. I took the tires off and
verified, as good as possible, the brake lines weren't affected, which
they weren't. So what do I do next? The leak seems to be a slow leak,
I can drive three-fours days without worrying about it.

Thanks,

--tj

 

hose off the underside and let dry. refill the brake fluid, and, with the
engine running so you can get full vacuum assist, pump the brake
repeatedly at least 10 times. hold down hard for at least 10 seconds each
time. then get back under the wheel well and inspect closely. chances
are, you have a leak in the flexihose and it should now be evident. do
NOT continue driving until the leak is identified and fixed.

 

Can you recommended a website to purchase and replace the flexi hose?\
\

Thanks,

--tj

 

sure - go to tegger.com and check out his excellent list of online
retailers. you'll get a ton of other useful info there too.

while i think the hose is likely what the problem is, you should still
take the time to do a proper investigation first. if there is other
damage, you need to know so you can order all the necessary parts at once.

 

Is this also called the brake hose? Would it be as simple as buying
the new hoses and swapping from the old? I can't seem to find the
retailers on the tegger.com site, can you help me out?

Thanks,

--tj

 

http://www.tegger.com/hondafaq/online-parts.html

if you couldn't find that, i think you should a pro do this job, don't
attempt to do it yourself.

 

Ouch. Alright, I guess it's a better idea to let a pro.

 

Local shop estimates, if it's a brake line, 60-70 (parts & labor), so
I'll keep you up-to-date.

Thanks,

--tj