This is a company vehicle. It was used on Tuesday of this week without problem. Thursday it was used again, and the coworker who used it this time found that the brakes were just barely able to bring the vehicle to a stop from a slow roll. Fortunately, he was able to safely return to the parking lot without incident. When I checked on the vehicle later that day I noted a puddle of brake fluid on the ground under the rear axle. Thinking that possibly some road debris had punctured a brake line, I took it into the shop, a Dodge dealer. There they found that one brake line had rusted completely through. Also, they noted significant rust on other places in the lines. I had the shop give me the old lines after the new ones were installed. I have them available for photographing or physical analysis. It appears to me to be a case of dissimilar metal and / or crevice corrosion at the location where the solid tube meets with the wire mesh portion of the line. I think this represents a true safety hazard, particularly since this is a 1998 vehicle on which such a problem should never be anticipated. Thanks for investigating. By the way, they also said that the vehicle is unsafe to drive because snow and/or water has rusted up one of the rear brake assemblies. This also seems like an issue that should be addressed. But I don't consider it to be as great a safety concern. I think that a reasonably observant driver should have plenty of warning if a brake is dragging, unlike driving off some day with almost no brakes whatsoever because of a rusted out line.

- Charleston, WV, USA