I'm going to install his gymkahana(sp?) tarmac springs/struts into 98 obs, problem is that where the the brake lines meet up to th estruts(that metal piece that holds them in place....well that metal piece surrounds the brake line so i can't pop it off...how does subaru replace this stuff? just cut it off??
hey you're finally gonna put those suckers in! Those are clips that holds the brake lines in place. If they dont pop off, cut them off with a hack saw. you're gonna have to use the hack saw or something to cut the brake line support so you can bend them and take out the brake lines. Look at those TARMAC struts, you see they were cut?
Can either cut it off, or just bend it back and forth with a pair of pliers til it breaks off - easy. Disconnecting brake line would take too long and is unnecessary, plus you might have to bleed it again when you reconnect it. No idea why subaru did that to the rear struts on the older cars, but you'll find that aftermarket struts usually come with the metal piece that doesn't completely surround the brake line (only partial like it's supposed to be) since they weren't drunk when they designed it as subaru likely was.
I cut mine off when I did the suspension swap on my Outback. I then simply ziptied the that metal tag that was left attached to the brake line and connected it up to the new tag on the new struts.
