I am seeking information on the activa. In particular the 2.0L turbocharged petrol. I am looking at purchasing one which has just clocked 100,000 on a P-1996. It is is excellent condition and cost a £1000 which seems quite reasonable to me. I know the xantia well but not this variant and haynes doesn't speak of it.
Can anyone tell me:
Is the 2.0 turbo a 16v or 8v?
Is the gearbox and clutch the same as the other xantias? Namely the 2.0 non turbo?
Is the clutch cable or hydraulic?
What can I expect for mpg? 25 or less?
Is it the right price for a good one with 100k miles? I know xantias are generally cheap especially the petrols.
Thanks
dave
xantia activa
Moderator: RichardW
Hi Dave,
I bought a 96 P Activa for £2000 @ 52 000 miles.
Glass's Guide puts value, with low mileage adjustment and A/C, at £3250, but from the Autotrader ads in my area (Basingstoke) most are selling for £2500 - £2000. All have fsh.
The Haynes manual doesn't cover the car. The XM manual has info on the engine, but not much.
I checked the Peugeot 406 item, as the same engine was used in the SRi version, but it isn't covered there either.
Gearboxes and clutches are rated on Torque capacity, not power, so I might expect the Turbo Diesel versions to have been used, but I certainly don't know for sure.
From looking though, the Activa seems to have a clutch common with the 2.1 TD.
It is definitely a cable operated item.
Citroen claim 25mpg for urban use, 40.9 @ 56mph and 35mpg @ 75mph.
40.9 seems hopelessly optimistic but the last time I checked, I got about 32mpg on the Motorway at an average of 70mph.
Don't even bother to check around town ~ too scary, but most cars except diesels are.
I have had no issues with the suspension, and I love driving the car, but the usual Xantia problems have arisen, i.e
Alarm and central locking craziness and water ingress into the passenger footwell (suspected heater matrix leak).
That said, the car was £20 000 new and I got it for 10% of that price. It represents pretty good value, especially given the performance, the handling and the very high equipment spec.
Insurance is a bit steep though.
Hope this helps,
Simon
I bought a 96 P Activa for £2000 @ 52 000 miles.
Glass's Guide puts value, with low mileage adjustment and A/C, at £3250, but from the Autotrader ads in my area (Basingstoke) most are selling for £2500 - £2000. All have fsh.
The Haynes manual doesn't cover the car. The XM manual has info on the engine, but not much.
I checked the Peugeot 406 item, as the same engine was used in the SRi version, but it isn't covered there either.
Gearboxes and clutches are rated on Torque capacity, not power, so I might expect the Turbo Diesel versions to have been used, but I certainly don't know for sure.
From looking though, the Activa seems to have a clutch common with the 2.1 TD.
It is definitely a cable operated item.
Citroen claim 25mpg for urban use, 40.9 @ 56mph and 35mpg @ 75mph.
40.9 seems hopelessly optimistic but the last time I checked, I got about 32mpg on the Motorway at an average of 70mph.
Don't even bother to check around town ~ too scary, but most cars except diesels are.
I have had no issues with the suspension, and I love driving the car, but the usual Xantia problems have arisen, i.e
Alarm and central locking craziness and water ingress into the passenger footwell (suspected heater matrix leak).
That said, the car was £20 000 new and I got it for 10% of that price. It represents pretty good value, especially given the performance, the handling and the very high equipment spec.
Insurance is a bit steep though.
Hope this helps,
Simon
Thanks for your comments. They have not put me off. The reason I ask about the gearbox and clutch is if it is hydraulic then it is the same as the 2.1td and if cable I expect it is the BE3 box on most xantias. I couldn't see below the pipework, air ducts etc to see when I looked. Price seems fair then escpecially as it has quite an extensive sh.?
I may invest!
Dave
I may invest!
Dave
I am confused now too.
Re. Clutch ~ I was thinking of the Renault 21 that I had before the Xantia. The Turbo had a hydraulic clutch, and all of the other petrol models were cable...D'uh.
I think the gearbox must be cable operated because whilst crawling under the car, no gearchange rods or linkage could be seen.
The only other comment on the gearbox is that the change quality is a little clunky....certainly not a slick shifting item.
The clutch, and everything else actually, is so lost under the turbo plumbing and the suspension hydraulics that you can't really see anything. I guess at least if it is hydraulic then the frequently reported problem of the clutch cable to pedal fixing clip breaking won't be an issue.
If you are thinking of buying this car, haggle harder ~ nobody seems to want used Xantias in general, and the Activa in particular.
Add to that a reasonably high mileage, and they ought to be tearing your arm off to sell at any price.
Also remeber that a turbo engine of any kind is susceptible to accelerated wear if the oil and filter haven't been changed exactly on the mark. If the service history or receipts don't prove this, think hard about buying. And ask what oil has been used: if it's Brand X, leave it.
simon.
Re. Clutch ~ I was thinking of the Renault 21 that I had before the Xantia. The Turbo had a hydraulic clutch, and all of the other petrol models were cable...D'uh.
I think the gearbox must be cable operated because whilst crawling under the car, no gearchange rods or linkage could be seen.
The only other comment on the gearbox is that the change quality is a little clunky....certainly not a slick shifting item.
The clutch, and everything else actually, is so lost under the turbo plumbing and the suspension hydraulics that you can't really see anything. I guess at least if it is hydraulic then the frequently reported problem of the clutch cable to pedal fixing clip breaking won't be an issue.
If you are thinking of buying this car, haggle harder ~ nobody seems to want used Xantias in general, and the Activa in particular.
Add to that a reasonably high mileage, and they ought to be tearing your arm off to sell at any price.
Also remeber that a turbo engine of any kind is susceptible to accelerated wear if the oil and filter haven't been changed exactly on the mark. If the service history or receipts don't prove this, think hard about buying. And ask what oil has been used: if it's Brand X, leave it.
simon.
Hi,
The Activa has the ML5T gearbox which has a cable operated gearchange mechanism and a hydraulic clutch as used on the 2.1td Xantia and also the C25 van I believe. The clutch mechanism is a sealed unit and fairly expensive to replace I think. There was an issue with the clutch mechanism failing and causing serious damage, but as the car has an extensive service history it should have been changed.
The 2.0l Turbo CT engine is a low pressure turbo unit which is designed to have a fairly flat torque curve, CT standing for Constant Torque. This is also why it is an eight, not sixteen valve unit. The engine produces strong pulling power from low down the rev range all the way to about five and a half K, overtaking is a dream.
There is a very good explanation of the Activa suspension in the Citroen Technical Guide from http://www.tramontana.co.hu/citroen/guide.html
It is worth noting that the Activa ride is quite a bit harsher than other Xantias. I came to the Activa from a series 1 XM and boy was it a shock, but certainly no harsher than many lesser cars. The handling is stunning though, it just goes where you point it, no squealing tyres, no fuss.
The fuel consumption is a bit on the heavy side and with such a lusty engine, it's hard to resist putting your foot down a bit <img src=icon_smile.gif border=0 align=middle> especially through the twisty bits.
Hope that helps,
Richard
The Activa has the ML5T gearbox which has a cable operated gearchange mechanism and a hydraulic clutch as used on the 2.1td Xantia and also the C25 van I believe. The clutch mechanism is a sealed unit and fairly expensive to replace I think. There was an issue with the clutch mechanism failing and causing serious damage, but as the car has an extensive service history it should have been changed.
The 2.0l Turbo CT engine is a low pressure turbo unit which is designed to have a fairly flat torque curve, CT standing for Constant Torque. This is also why it is an eight, not sixteen valve unit. The engine produces strong pulling power from low down the rev range all the way to about five and a half K, overtaking is a dream.
There is a very good explanation of the Activa suspension in the Citroen Technical Guide from http://www.tramontana.co.hu/citroen/guide.html
It is worth noting that the Activa ride is quite a bit harsher than other Xantias. I came to the Activa from a series 1 XM and boy was it a shock, but certainly no harsher than many lesser cars. The handling is stunning though, it just goes where you point it, no squealing tyres, no fuss.
The fuel consumption is a bit on the heavy side and with such a lusty engine, it's hard to resist putting your foot down a bit <img src=icon_smile.gif border=0 align=middle> especially through the twisty bits.
Hope that helps,
Richard
Tnx to Simon and Richard. So now there's no doubt about 2.0 CT gearbox.
According to various sources, Activa suspension seems to be the same as in Xantia VSX. But roll-bars are different. They are much thicker than in other Xantias (and other cars), and each one has it's own 'suspension', consisting of a hydraulic ram and a sphere. When going straight, there shouldn't be much difference between VSX and Activa, because roll-bars behave like they are thinner. But in sharper bends, additional activa spheres are cut off, leaving roll-bars alone, so the ride suffers. More info can be found on Tramontana site. Well, I didn't find this system to be very well designed (my opinion only).
According to various sources, Activa suspension seems to be the same as in Xantia VSX. But roll-bars are different. They are much thicker than in other Xantias (and other cars), and each one has it's own 'suspension', consisting of a hydraulic ram and a sphere. When going straight, there shouldn't be much difference between VSX and Activa, because roll-bars behave like they are thinner. But in sharper bends, additional activa spheres are cut off, leaving roll-bars alone, so the ride suffers. More info can be found on Tramontana site. Well, I didn't find this system to be very well designed (my opinion only).