BMW E36 / E46 Hydro Handbrake Line Kit Install Guides
BMW 92-94 E36 In-Line Hydro Handbrake Line Kit for OEMC (CB-E36-OEMC92/HB)
1. First thing's first, we always recommend starting by mounting the handbrake in the location that you desire and bench bleeding the master cylinder prior to connecting the lines to it. The easiest way to bench bleed the Master Cylinder in your Handbrake is to connect a short brake line to the "in" fitting and another short line to the "out" fitting on the handbrake. These can be new lines from our Handbrake Brake Line Kit or some scrap lines that you have laying around. Then, make sure that the free end of those lines are completely submerged in some sort of container of clean brake fluid. You will slowly pump the master cylinder repeatedly until there are no bubbles coming out of either of the lines that are in the brake fluid. Make sure that the ends of those lines are completely submerged in fluid. If they are exposed to air during the bench bleeding process it will suck air into the master cylinder and will just lengthen the process.
2. From there, you will need the longest line in the kit. That line connects to the ABS block at the rear outlet port. On 92-94 E36's, and 95 M3's, there is only a single rear outlet port. It should be labeled with H, HL, or HR depending on the ABS block. If you are unsure, locate the rear brake hardline underneath the car, and follow it to the ABS block in front to determine which port to use. Use the provided M10 to 3AN adapter to that port, and attach the 90 degree end of the line to that. Once all of that is connected, you will want to route the other end of that line through the firewall and to the "in" port on your handbrake master cylinder using the straight end and provided 90 degree adapter fitting.
3. Using the second longest line in the kit, connect it to the "out" port on the master cylinder using the provided banjo adapter and bolt. You will want the end of the line with the Chase Bays logo to be closest to the handbrake. The other end of that line can be routed straight back and be connected to the T fitting.
4. Now, you will want to drill 2 10mm or 3/8" holes on either side of the chassis to install the bulkhead fittings. Just be sure before drilling the holes that the 2 lines from the T Fitting will reach the bulkhead locations and that you will have access to the bulkhead fitting from under the car. The longer threaded shaft on the bulkhead fittings will go through those holes and will be secured from underneath the car using the supplied bulkhead nuts.
5. The two 20" lines with straight fittings at either end will be connected from either side of the T Fitting to those Bulkhead Fittings. You should now only have two 16" lines left with straight fittings at one end and 45˚ fittings at the other end. The straight fittings will be connected to each Bulkhead Fitting underneath the car and the 45˚ fittings will connect the calipers using the supplied M10 to 3an Adapter Fittings.
6. Now that you have all of the lines connected and tight you will need to bleed the braking system. We have gotten the best results using the two person method where one person is pumping the brake pedal and the other is bleeding fluid at the calipers. You can use a pressure bleeder, but in our experience they tend to give sub par results and tend to cause more frustration. You will want to start at the caliper furthest from the brake master cylinder (passenger rear) and work your way to the caliper that is closest to the brake master cylinder (driver front.) DO NOT ACTUATE THE HANDBRAKE DURING THE BLEEDING PROCESS! Doing so will create an air pocket that will then cause you to have to start the process all over again. You will bleed the calipers as if the Handbrake is not there.
BMW 95-99 E36 / ALL E46 In-Line Hydro Handbrake Line Kit for OEMC (CB-E36-OEMC/HB)
1. First thing's first, we always recommend starting by mounting the handbrake in the location that you desire and bench bleeding the master cylinder prior to connecting the lines to it. The easiest way to bench bleed the Master Cylinder in your Handbrake is to connect a short brake line to the "in" fitting and another short line to the "out" fitting on the handbrake. These can be new lines from our Handbrake Brake Line Kit or some scrap lines that you have laying around. Then, make sure that the free end of those lines are completely submerged in some sort of container of clean brake fluid. You will slowly pump the master cylinder repeatedly until there are no bubbles coming out of either of the lines that are in the brake fluid. Make sure that the ends of those lines are completely submerged in fluid. If they are exposed to air during the bench bleeding process it will suck air into the master cylinder and will just lengthen the process.
2. From there, you will need the longest line in the kit with the T fitting and two short lines coming off of it. Those two short lines will connect to the ABS block at the rear outlet ports. You should have one port labeled HL and another labeled HR. You may have already noticed, but those two short lines have two different size adapter fittings on them. The HL port should take the larger 12mm adapter fitting and the HR port should take the smaller 10mm adapter fitting. Once all of that is connected, you will want to route the other end of that line through the firewall and to the "in" port on your handbrake master cylinder.
3. Using the second longest line in the kit, connect it to the "out" port on the master cylinder using the provided banjo adapter and bolt. You will want the end of the line with the Chase Bays logo to be closest to the handbrake. The other end of that line can be routed straight back and be connected to the T fitting.
4. Now, you will want to drill 2 10mm or 3/8" holes on either side of the chassis to install the bulkhead fittings. Just be sure before drilling the holes that the 2 lines from the T Fitting will reach the bulkhead locations and that you will have access to the bulkhead fitting from under the car. The longer threaded shaft on the bulkhead fittings will go through those holes and will be secured from underneath the car using the supplied bulkhead nuts.
5. The two 20" lines with straight fittings at either end will be connected from either side of the T Fitting to those Bulkhead Fittings. You should now only have two 16" lines left with straight fittings at one end and 45˚ fittings at the other end. The straight fittings will be connected to each Bulkhead Fitting underneath the car and the 45˚ fittings will connect the calipers using the supplied M10 to 3an Adapter Fittings.
6. Now that you have all of the lines connected and tight you will need to bleed the braking system. We have gotten the best results using the two person method where one person is pumping the brake pedal and the other is bleeding fluid at the calipers. You can use a pressure bleeder, but in our experience they tend to give sub par results and tend to cause more frustration. You will want to start at the caliper furthest from the brake master cylinder (passenger rear) and work your way to the caliper that is closest to the brake master cylinder (driver front.) DO NOT ACTUATE THE HANDBRAKE DURING THE BLEEDING PROCESS! Doing so will create an air pocket that will then cause you to have to start the process all over again. You will bleed the calipers as if the Handbrake is not there.
BMW E36 / E46 In-Line Hydro Handbrake Line Kit for BBE or OEMC Brake Line Relocation Kit Equipped Cars (CB-E36-BBE/HB)
1. First thing's first, we always recommend starting by mounting the handbrake in the location that you desire and bench bleeding the master cylinder prior to connecting the lines to it. The easiest way to bench bleed the Master Cylinder in your Handbrake is to connect a short brake line to the "in" fitting and another short line to the "out" fitting on the handbrake. These can be new lines from our Handbrake Brake Line Kit or some scrap lines that you have laying around. Then, make sure that the free end of those lines are completely submerged in some sort of container of clean brake fluid. You will slowly pump the master cylinder repeatedly until there are no bubbles coming out of either of the lines that are in the brake fluid.
Make sure that the ends of those lines are completely submerged in fluid. If they are exposed to air during the bench bleeding process it will suck air into the master cylinder and will just lengthen the process.
2. Now that the Handbrake has been mounted and the Master Cylinder bench bled we can move on to connecting the brake lines. The first line to be connected will be the longest line in the kit. The end with the 90˚ Fitting crimped on it will be connected to the "out" Fitting on the Bias Valve attached to the BBE. The other end of that line will then be routed through the firewall and will be connected to the "in" fitting on the Handbrake Master Cylinder using the supplied 90˚ Adapter Fitting, 7/16 to 3AN Adapter Fitting, and Crush Washer.
3. From there, you will want to connect the second longest line in the kit to the "out" Fitting on the Handbrake Master Cylinder using the supplied 10mm to 3AN Banjo Hole Adapter, Banjo Bolt, and Crush Washers. The Chase Bays label on the line should be closest to the Handbrake. The free end of the line can then be routed straight back to the rear seat area where the T Fitting will be connected to it.
4. Now, you will want to drill 2 10mm or 3/8" holes on either side of the chassis to install the bulkhead fittings. Just be sure before drilling the holes that the 2 lines from the T Fitting will reach the bulkhead locations and that you will have access to the bulkhead fitting from under the car. The longer threaded shaft on the bulkhead fittings will go through those holes and will be secured from underneath the car using the supplied bulkhead nuts.
5. The two 20" lines with straight fittings at either end will be connected from either side of the T Fitting to those Bulkhead Fittings. You should now only have 2 16" lines left with straight fittings at one end and 45˚ fittings at the other end. The straight fittings will be connected to each Bulkhead Fitting underneath the car and the 45˚ fittings will connect the calipers using the supplied M10 to 3an Adapter Fittings.
6. Now that you have all of the lines connected and tight you will need to bleed the braking system. We have seen the best results using the two person method where one person is pumping the brake pedal and the other is bleeding fluid at the calipers. You can use a pressure bleeder, but in our experience they tend to give sub par results and cause more frustration.
You will want to start at the caliper furthest from the brake master cylinder (passenger rear) and work your way to the caliper that is closest to the brake master cylinder (driver front.) DO NOT ACTUATE THE HANDBRAKE DURING THE BLEEDING PROCESS! Doing so will create an air pocket that will then cause you to have to start the process all over again. You will bleed the calipers as if the Handbrake is not there.
BMW E36 / E46 Stand Alone Hydro Handbrake Line Kit (CB-E36-HB)
1. The easiest way to bench bleed the Master Cylinder in your Handbrake is to connect a brake line to the "out" fitting on the Master Cylinder and then submerge the other end of that line in the Handbrake Reservoir. This can be a new line from our Handbrake Brake Line Kit or a scrap line that you have laying around. Then, make sure that the free end of the brake line is completely submerged in the reservoir. You will slowly pump the master cylinder repeatedly until there are no bubbles coming out of the free end of the line submerged in the brake fluid.
Make sure that the end of the line is completely submerged in fluid. If it is exposed to air during the bench bleeding process it will suck air into the master cylinder and will just lengthen the process.
2. With the bench bleeding complete, you will now want to use the longest line in the kit with the yellow Chase Bays label on it to connect to the "out" port on the Handbrake Master Cylinder. You will connect it using the supplied Banjo Hole Adapter and 3/8" Banjo Bolt. The end of the line with the Chase Bays logo on it should be closer to the Handbrake.
3. Now, you will want to drill 2 10mm or 3/8" holes on either side of the chassis to install the bulkhead fittings. Just be sure before drilling the holes that the 2 lines from the T Fitting will reach the bulkhead locations and that you will have access to the bulkhead fitting from under the car. The longer threaded shaft on the bulkhead fittings will go through those holes and will be secured from underneath the car using the supplied bulkhead nuts.
4. The T Fitting supplied with the kit will be threaded into the end of the line connected to the Handbrake "out" fitting. You will then use the two roughly 20" lines with straight fittings at either to connect from either side of the T Fitting to each bulkhead fitting.
5. You should now only have 2 16" lines left. The straight fittings on those lines will be connected to the bulkhead fittings underneath the car. The 45˚ fittings will then be connected to the brake calipers using the supplied M10 to 3AN Adapter Fittings.
6. Now that you have all of the lines connected and tight you will need to bleed the rear calipers. We have seen the best results using the two person method where one person is pumping the Handbrake and the other is bleeding fluid at the calipers. You can use a pressure bleeder, but in our experience they tend to give sub par results and cause more frustration.
You will want to pump the Handbrake 5-10 times and on the last pump hold pressure on it. While holding the pressure, have your friend/assistant/child/boyfriend/girlfriend/neighbor to loosen the bleeder fitting on the caliper until no more fluid comes out of the caliper. Once the bleeder fitting is closed you can release the Handbrake Handle. You will want to continue this process until there are no air bubbles coming out of each caliper. Once complete the throw for the Handbrake should be significantly less.