Options for stuck hydraulic line fittings

With the whole front of the motor on my Saab C900 ripped apart in anticipation of fixing the leak from the front main seal, I'm planning to replace the power steering lines since I'll never have better access barring removal of the engine. In all likelihood they haven't been apart in 30 years, and they are predictably unwilling to separate. There are O-ring seals in there, so I'm loathe to use heat, as I'm sure I'll end up with a sticky mess. Range of motion with a wrench is limited, and there's no good way I can figure to hit a wrench with a hammer in a useful way. I'm running out of ideas. My nuclear option is cut the hard lines at the fittings so I can get a socket on there and (hopefully) rattle it off with an impact. Any better ideas before I get desperate and pull out the Sawzall?

Can you get on it with a crows foot wrench?

I have cut, heated, and bent wrenches to pull a bolt. Can you bend or rebuild the wrench so you can get a hammer on it?

Haven't tried a crow's foot, mostly because I don't have them, but that's easily rectified. They might give me more flexibility on how I approach the least accessible fittings.

Access to hammer at the wrench is more a question of the intake manifold being in the way than anything else - bending would only get me closer to the inner fender or the block, so I don't think there's a lot to be gained there.

Remove the rack from the car to a bench.  If you are replacing lines cut them as you have posted and use a socket and impact wrench.  You can clean the rack before taking it apart and clean the chassis after the rack is out.

In reply to ChasH :

I considered doing just that. I'll have to look into just how difficult it is to remove, as it's kind of buried. I've already got the car somewhat torn apart, but I'm trying to keep it under control so I don't end up with a giant pile of parts when my motivation inevitably weakens. I want to get this thing on the road sooner rather than later.

Ordered a set of crows foot wrenches last night, so I'll see if I can make any progress with those first.

Could you fit a scissors jack in between the manifold and wrench? Then use the jack as a cheater? Or a small bottle jack. Or a chunk of pipe on the wrench.

Also, theres that trick with the closed end of another wrench over the open end of the first to make a junkyard cheater bar.

Tighten ever so slightly first to break fitting free, then loosen.

Freeze-Off is your friend.  I used this to remove the power steering lines (well, just one difficult AN fitting) on my FX16.  Went down the same road as you.  Freeze-Off is now stocked in my garage.

Since Saab has been an orphan brand for a number of years now, I'd make sure you can readily get new lines before cutting the old ones.

I had already tried the tighten then loosen procedure, but I can't get movement in either direction. I'm intrigued by the Freeze-off solution - I'll have to grab a can and try it when my crows foot wrenches arrive tomorrow.

No worries about the lines - I have new Gates replacements in hand already. No way I was cutting anything until I was sure I had new parts that matched the old ones.

I would get a line wrench style of crows foot and then rattle it moderately with an impact in alternating directions for a good while before giving up on that and moving to heat/cold.

Success! The combination of impact gun (just another instance where the stubby Milwaukee M12 proved its worth), flare nut crows foot, and Freeze-off took care of all three fittings in reasonably short order. I think I spent more time trying to remove the pump end of the unpressurized feed line (30-year old hardened rubber, broken hose clamp, no access, yadda yadda yadda...). Not quite done with the job, but the new lines are in place and tight, so I'm declaring victory.

Thanks for all the suggestions.