Brake line hose cut or torn?

[TomTomTomTomTom]

Hello everyone. What a great forum! I own Hilux D4D 2007 and 1984-87. On my old 1984 or 1987 (confusing info in the paperwork) Toyota Hilux I just received an exclamation mark light yesterday and realised the liquid has run out through a cut hose and the other side hose is leaking. That happened while the truck was parked and being loaded with soil. As the leak was a large spot with break fluid on the concrete floor on both sides under the truck's (lorry's) front wheels. Please see the attached photo. Do you think the brake line hose was intentionally cut or was it rathä snapped under weight of soil loaded into the truck?

Strangely the truck was fine on that day, but after I parked it into a roofless (unfinished) garage for the loader to load it with soil, I went away and came back to drive the now fully loaded truck (with tyres quite "flat" (full air was assured, but he loaded a bit "too much" wet clayish soil) to the unload site and the warning light came on when I started the truck the exclamation red light came up. He then told me to let him inspect the car and he went straight to inspect the brakes. How did he know that the exclamation red light means brakes are in trouble? OK, so the left side brake line hose is slightly leaking, but the right side hose is nicely "cut" or snapped / torn (please see the attached photo). Can this smooth tear be natural? I want to decide whether to have police involved or just repair the truck.

Thanks guys for your great help, always appreciate it very much. 

[TomTomTomTomTom]

Looks like this forum is not the most popular forum out there. Thanks for your attention anyway.

[mickburkesnr]

It is, but it's predominantly a UK forum.

I spot some corrosion on the hose, but I'm not exactly an expert with a Hilux. It could've been cut or just broke under the force of braking. It's a 30 year old machine afterall.

The exclamation mark on the dashboard is usually a signal of the handbrake being on and/or there being an issue with the braking system. So that's why the guy knew to look at them. The light would be triggered if the brake fluid level reached a low level. If it had been fine during the day then it's completely possible the hose broke the day before or whenever, and you wouldn't notice the fluid dripping away until the fluid had escaped.

[craggle]

Flexible brake hoses have reinforcement threads inside them to stop them expanding under pressure. I have cut brake hoses before (When stripping car for parts, not as a criminal act!) and they are not easy things to cut. If they fail they normally fail with a split or tear in the side where the pressure has blown the pipe outwards, I've never seen one cleanly break like that. 

I'd say that had been cut but a closer image of the face of the cut pipe may assist. 

Question is when did it happen and why? If the guy loading it up did it, why, what's in it for him?

If it had happened earlier in the day you would have noticed it, braking would have been very unbalanced and it would only take a few presses of the pedal before you run out of fluid and have no brakes at all.

Craig. 

[TomTomTomTomTom]

Very interesting observations. By the way, I am in Europe, and the best foreign language I can speak is English, so I am posting in a UK forum. I find English speaking forums being frequented by most people on Earth.

Thanks for your opinions and info. I suspect it was a cut although it makes sense if there is some rust and it may have torn as well. Or perhaps some pliers were used to make this perfect cut? Regarding the workman, it was not a conflict, something more complicated, as he potentially "saved my life" by explaining to me it is too dangerous to drive with such condition after I told him I get an exclamation sign in red on my car's panel, but I suspect he may have possibly cut the hose, because he wanted to buy some multiple stuff from me cheap and I did not sell to him (other people reported him to me as sneaky and even being a thief), then he brought his car to swap cars with me and I accidentally put my finger through the bottom of his door that was rotten. So his "revenge" could have been about these mild reasons only. Yet he will never work here again. Can't report him cause I am not sure, but one guy who came here and his opinion was - 100% this is a cut. I don't have sinister people wanting to kill me as I have done only good for the place, but when I am offered a RIDICULOUS price for stuff I own, I naturally turn down such "offers". The guy would not be able to cut the hose so easily and so straight, because if he put his hand behind the wheel it would probably have been a cut that would not be so straight, but rather at an angle? Do you think? (sorry, i am not from an English speaking country).

P.S. The way it all happened was I brought a truck into the roofless garage (unfinished) and he started loading dirt into it while I went away for a while. When I returned I sat in my truck and turned the engine on to drive and immediately I noticed the warning light, but decided to drive anyway since it was only about 100 m (300 ft.) drive at most, up the hill and unload the dirt up there. I noticed lose brakes but drove anyway thinking we must finish the job asap. After we unloaded the truck I told him to get in and we drove downhill and I felt the brakes were weak. So I parked the truck again in the same spot and I told the guy I have the warning light on which was not there earlier that day and went on while the car was parked for loading the dirt. So he insisted for me not to drive it and he inspected the brakes and showed me the left side line slightly leaking but the right side one completely cut. I moved the truck OUT OF GARAGE and noticed two puddles of brake liquid (smells funny) on both sides of the front wheels on the GARAGE FLOOR. The bigger puddle on the right side where the brake line hose was cut (I am clueless about brakes). There were no signs of brake liquid leaking elsewhere. I suspect he may have cut the line while I went away as it was very private moment for him and he had at least 5 minutes to do that. The wheels were straight so he may have had to go under otherwise how could he make such a straight cut to the hose? I don't even know what is inside of the rubber hose, is it metal pipe? I mean how can the puddles be there, which means the lines failed while being parked on concrete in the garage. Someone must have cut them then?

It is very hard to make a better photo of the cut line, but I'll try again.

[craggle]

Sounds to me that your suspicions are correct. 

There is no metal inside these flexible brake pipes. They have fibres inside them but they are fabric and they take the strain to stop the rubber expanding under pressure. Tyres also have fibre reinforcement to stop them expanding when inflated. If you've ever blown up a bicycle inner tube outside the tyre you'll see how big a non reinforced rubber tube can get. The fibres in tyres and brake pipes prevent that from happening.

It could have been cutters, car looks fairly high so shouldn't think it's too much of a problem to reach them from underneath or maybe he had a knife, slipped in behind the pipe and sliced it through. 

Hopefully you have had it repaired by now but if not it should be a simple case of two new pipes and then bleeding the brakes again. Hopefully no more than a couple of hours work.

Craig.

[TomTomTomTomTom]

Reply to Craggle: 

Thanks for your post. Actually the guy who probably or allegedly have made the cut, he told me on that day that it will cost €200 to repair the brakes. Our local garage where I repair my cars charges €22 per hour, so if it's a two hour job (and they spent 2 hours replacing the timing belt for my newer Hilux 2007) and can those two hoses costs 80€ each? I am clueless on some things in cars. He wanted to work on the construction project and I said no, because he is too young and has no skills as a professional, especially in load bearing and complex construction, only as a helper. So all those multiple things may have added up for him. Regarding repairing the car, hmm, it has multiple problems and someone said it needs €3000 to repair everything, which I doubt that high and I paid €1500 for the car, which multiple people offered to buy for €500. Yet I like challenges and I will probably repair it even if it is not worth it. The motor is good. Cause if I sell it for €500 that will mean I gave €1000 away for nothing.

Thanks