French Car Forum

Sounds very much like spheres.
Go to common problems & fixes & you'll find articles on how to change them. Also if you scout through the archives of this forum, there's been heaps on that subject over the years.
Alan S

Andrew -
The plug may have been replaced in production by a welsh plug - or simply been filled in the casting process.
Poor Haynes can not predict what the manufacturers may decide to alter/redesign after manual is written.
Indeed a VERY common problem with popular manuals like Haynes.
The only sure way is to get a genuine Citroen workshop manual...

I haven't done a belt as yet, but my BX has air/con fitted & hence has a jockey wheel. When I bought a new belt, I thought ir was the wrong size and assumed it was for a series one without air/con, however as I also have access to one of those I checked it & found that whilst it was smaller than the original, it was also larger than the series one...

My zx has the same problem i.e. rear wheels leaning in but they dont rub yet. I have spoken to a citroen specialist about this and he said that its acceptable to have some negative camber on the rear wheels, but to think about changing the beam when it starts scrubbing tyres away quickly on the rear. My left rear has scrubbed away and its done...

Ive seen a ZX in a scrap yard which im sure had it as the heater dial was totally different and im sure it had a extra switch either in it or near to turn it on. Cant remember now but im sure it was an extra when new along with the leather seats.
Oh did I need air con today in mine! :)

Some Xantias (VSX IIRC) sat on 195/55/15 wheels/tyres, so I don't think you'll notice much difference.

My thoughts.
- Timing slightly out.
- Loose crank pully bolt.
- Noisy hydraulic pump
- Missing wheel-arch panels.
- Loose / leaking inlet/exhaust manifold / gasket ( would also explain performance due to lack of turbo boost ).
- Take a general look around the air intake systems - ensure the connections are tight.
- Failing all these, as you...

Ken, when the rad caps get old/tired they actually fail to hold pressure, rather than preventing it being released in my experience. For the price of a new rad cap, you could try one of course, but the problems you describe are fairly typical of a Xantia of advancing years.
That plastic thermostat housing is a notorious problem, and my own ZX is...

Paul -
Do the Citaerobics extensively BEFORE you bleed the brakes
- as Bob Smith says :
heating stuck bleed nipples allways helped me ...
- which I second

I had this problem with my 1.9tdsx & took it to an independant french garage who also do accident damaged repairable's & must come accross this kind of problem a lot & the cure was to remove the immobiliser on my pump with a chisel,alter the wiring to suit.
The keypad still flashes,and appears to the outside world to be active.
I know you have a...

should be 90 I think or possibly 92 as ive seen in some places.
Diesels always have far more torque than petrols. Bolt a turbo onto a bx16v engine as they did with the rare 405 t16 in france and you would end up with around 200lb/ft :)

You're a braver man than me then. C5 electronics are best left well alone.

Any chance your car was about to stall its engine. If the engine speed drops below 500rpm, the steering will get very heavy. The engine warning light makes me think your car had a little hiccup, almost stalled but recovered to work normally afterwards. My 94 VSX will do the same sometimes, though in my car, its due to the car not recovering to...

sent you an email :) I think the white ones are the best colour, saw one the other day going to the New Forest. I wanted one but after 3 months gave up waiting and got a red one.

Sorry GSF don't do them.
They are different for manual and automatic cars.
Manual: Citroen 133013 (new) or 1331PN (exchange)
Automatic 133028 (new) or 1331PR (exchange)

Hi there.
To answer your queries in order:-
1. The hot water will remove any acidic deposits and the 'furring' that occurs around batteries. Make sure however that you dilute any runoff well as it will, effectively, be dilute acid. Dry the area thoroughly afterwards and apply a protective coating of some sort.
2. Batteries are easy to replace....

Leonardo,
There is an agreed price for an MOT, set by the Government, and which I think is around £40 now. Garages are free to charge whatever they like up to this level, but I (cynic that I am!) always look at lower charges as a 'loss leader' to get you through the door, given that an MOT takes about an hour, and needs more than one person in...

Should of added cambelt to my other requests - see my other post!!

Jez,
Look no further than www.gsfcarparts.com - of which Andyspares is now part. For HG job on Xantia TD you'll also need inlet / exhaust gasket, rocker cover gasket, possibly thermostat gasket, and certainly new head bolts.
Richard

Hello!
I have a '92 2.0 Turbo CT XM. I wonder if you could tell me how much (in seconds, approximately) you Series-I XM takes to raise to operating height if it has sit overnight.
Thanks!
JOSE

Just looked this up, and its not shown as a separate part, only as a complete dizzy.
Looks like a s/hand one may be on the cards, anything off a BX 16/19 carb should be OK.
If theres a Bosch number on the old one, let me know, I may be able to get direct from Bosch.

Tears running down the face & ribs hurting from hysterics.....what a classic description.
As someone working around animals (not cats though) I can relate to that!!
Alan S

Rear radius arm bearings ?
Known to scream/clonk at you - right at the point of wear where you still can save the arm on repair ASAP.

If water consistently gets into the injection pump it will damage it eventually, its unlikely to get that far though as water is heavier that diesel and it enters the filter at the bottom, the filtered fuel leaving via the top makes it difficult for water to go the distance.
Play it safe and use fresh fuel, stored fuel can become infected with...

Sounds unusual for this to leak. The normal problem in this area is the vent pipe on top of the tank splitting. The fuel then covers the top of the tank and runs down wherever it can. Still waiting to get mine sorted :)

Naughty ??
- it's d... fun

You havent said, but you mustn't have bought your BX from new, as it is written in the warranty on page 974, para 78 sub section 35q, that if you do need to remove the speedo cable retaining rubber thingy. That all warranties are void and it is recomended to replace the car rather than remove the rubber thingy in the first place.
Paul

Andrew,
Have you had this car for long? I assume this clatter is a mechanical noise on top of the light clatter these engines seem to make at the speeds you mention.
David

I had a call from a friend with a Pug having some gremlins in the sparks department. I posted on the Peugeot forum and thanks to Wheeler I had an early response which is most appreciated.
Just wondered if some of you guys would care to take a peep & come up with any alternative opinions (or is everybody happy with Wheelers diagnosis?)

Alan S

Timing is carried out with No.4 piston at TDC, early engines have a plug in the head next to No.4 injector, you can unscrew it and use a probe (don't use a short probe incase you drop it) to touch the piston crown and determine TDC, your flywheel peg will then go into the appropriate hole.
If there isn't a probing hole in the head it gets a bit...

Use your common sense in this case, if there is anything wrong with the nut or bolt, replace it.
Pay particular attention to the state of the threads.
Nylock nut's where they are critical are best renewed to be safe.
Using loctite is ok until it comes to removing the bolt again in the future, then it can be a pain in the arse.
Dave

I've just seen my first DS in the metal. A 1973 DS23 Pallas with cream leather and 5 speed gearbox, left hand drive. For sale from a Citroen dealer in Halifax, £6k.
The car had been resprayed, but not perfectly and the roof gutters had been filled with silicone.
Nice car either way, as a precaution, I have bought a couple of lottery tickets.
They...

Graham,
More information please.
Was the keyfob working previously to replacing the battery?
Has it ever worked?
Have you just bought the car with a dead keyfob, and thought replacing the battery would restore functionability?
Chances are the PCB in the fob is faulty - replacement is pricey - £50 odd.
OR you've put the battery in the wrong way...

Whoever fitted the HC has not connected the linkages up properly and thus the car won't lift up.
Its not really safe to drive it in either position really, as neither offers any suspension movement. If you hit a heavy pothole at speed the car could bounce uncontrably.
Try the position above normal and see if that'll lift the car up.

Yes John they are available from Citroen as a little kit for about £12...a bargain!
There are the cords, elastic parts and plastic anchor/guide bungs.
You have to push a stiff wire through from each end to hook the cords back and some would say it is a fiddly job...but I can't stand a droopy parcel shelf or cords hanging loose.
David

Vanny,
This really isn't a job you can have a rough guess at! You really need to take it to a reputable tyre fitters/garage and have them look at it. If as you say its visible then its out quite a long way and will affect handling/tyre wear etc etc., The fact that the steering wheel is in the central position obviously doesn't mean that much!!

My rear wiper has stopped working in delay -mode. It now only works in the wash/wipe-mode. Is this the result of a broken relay? If so, could someone please tell me where it's located? Or could it be something else?
---
Jarle.
Norway

If it's not slipping, and not too heavy, stick your head in the sand and ignore it
It's probably about 8 hours labour to change it - cost that out at your local's rate
RichardW

On my car Xantia 1.9 TDSX that light means there is water in the Diesel, the sensor is under the diesel filter.
John

I did one about 5 or 6 years ago, can't remember having to use a spring compressor, but then I can't remember alot of crap I've done from years ago.
Didn't take leg completely off car though, I can remember that much.
Dave

Most likely the glow plug relay (timer). Known to have limited life expectancy.
Sand in the key barrel will not likely reach the electric switch block internals.

If it supports the Sony OEM remote stalks (look on Sony's website) then it will be fine.
I have a CDX-MP40 MP3 CD Player in mine and it works a treat with the wheel controls.

Is'nt there a rubber bush at the shock mount ?
This could be the main (cheap) problem.

Yes, thats right.
They did it like that for safety reasons, that is so a child could not get its head wedged in the window by the window going up. More sophisticated vehicles have a sensor which stops the window going up if there is an obstruction, but the one touch down and hold the switch up method is cheap and effective I suppose.
One touch...

Hi, when you say LHM pouring out, where abouts on the strut is it leaking from? Is it from the rubber pipe half way(or there abouts)up the strut itself? if it is, this is the leak off pipe and it returns fluid to the resevoir. just remove the old rubber pipe and the replace it with the new one, just follow the two 'tails' and push them onto the...

When you say inside the car do you mean inside the engine compartment?
Is it possible to pin down a rough area for the noise?
Not something to do with the aux belt such as the belt breaking up, failed idler pulley, failing hydraulic pump, failing a/c comp or worse of all a loose crank pulley??
Or perhaps timing belt/tensioner problems?
This could...

take a look at this recent thread

Ted,
I presume this is the CX you bought in Australia, in which case it would be a 4 speed manual, is that correct?
If so, i feel you have been given incorrect info on the 5 speed box parts fitting it.
I've never done one personally, however, I'm led to believe that the 4 & 5 speed boxes are not interchangeable in the synchro department. This is...

Are you sure the engine has been hot enough to bring on the second speed for the fans? It's got to get up beyond 101C to go to the second stage speed. My Xantia, when towing has only ever gone to the 2nd speed once.

That's a familiar story! When we bought a diesel Pug 205 a few years ago it was supposed to have a belt fitted as part of the deal. After I got it home I took the cover off - sure enough they hadn't done it!