strut return pipes - ain't got none, but why....

[tim]

Having been through the hydraulics with a fine toothcomb the past year it hasn't escaped my notice that on both sides the strut return pipes coming off the front struts have been cut off short. They've obviously failed, and the two incoming pipes have simply been linked together with a bit of plastic. And yet, the stubs on the strut only seem to widdle a bit when you drop the car down to minimum.
I won't ask 'are they necessary' because they obviously have a function. Not much of one, though. The real questions, having read the thread down below, are a) can one still buy the strut pipe block anywhere at all and b) if I marry them up again using either a new block or the ol' copper tube and pipe bodge, will the pipes start blowing off as Malcolm has mentioned ? And what then - strut rebuild time? They seem otherwise to work fine, and have done 10,000 miles like this, maybe more.

[Discoil]

I got my strut return pipes from OEP in Glasgow ( cit 818 ) and they come with a 12 month warranty, so even I live in hope that they last longer than a year which my others did not .

[citronut]

they only blow apart/off if the strut internal presure seals are going home,

regards malcolm

[Vanny]

i've got silicon hose and barbs on my car, i couldn't readily find replacements, and it's only low pressure fluid return so shouldn't be a problem.

[citronut]

one is a vent the other is a seepage return,

that is unless the strut pressure seals allow to much citro blood by,

regards malcolm

[tim]

And yet, if an incoming pipe splits where they fit onto the solid bridge on the inner wing, it absolutely pisses fluid.....last year, MOT man told me to go away and fix it and come back later in the day.