Okay, I've got brake squeal and grinding/binding from the rear. I no longer have a comprehensive tool kit, but does anyone know what tools I will need for this job? Mk I @ 36000 miles as of signature below
As for sorting out the probable and expected corrosion, one Swedish site suggests this should be left to Citroën <ahem> and quotes:
Is this just an overreaction?Important! Brakeproblem, backbrakes C5!
Citroen C5 has problems with the brakes on the back wheels. The brake blocks are sucessively tightening due to corrosion problems. The car will because of this take slightly more petrol for each mile as time passes. This is happening already in the first years of use and when the brake blocks are worn out and you need to switch them there might be a severe problem to do this without getting heavy troubles with the tightness mentioned. To change the blocks properly is almost impossible to do yourself since you have to remove the holder of the blocks and clean it and make it corrosion free and you have to know how to clean the parts properly. It is in some cases not at all certain that you can visibly see whats wrong. Because of this the blockswitch is something that almost in every case must be done by a Citroen garage if you dont get very precise information by asking the manufacturer or one of their representatives. If you do the work yourself or let an ordinary, non Citroen garage do the work you will not know of this problem and the brakes will not work properly after the change of blocks although everything might look ok during and after the repair. The corrosion problem will still be there, almost impossible to discover and the brakes will be tight and not working properly after the change. The tightness can be severe and as a result of this the brakes might get over heated and damaged and your car might take maybe .2-.3l more petrol per 10 km. The function of the brakes might in the long run be affected and your new brake blocks will be worn out in a very short time
A Citroen garage can switch the brake blocks and do the work of restoring the function since they know of this problem and also exactly how to fix it. The cost will however be high for this since they have to take the system apart and clean it by grinding it.
The mentioned problem has been confirmed by several representatives working with Citroen cars and in spite of their knowledge the Citroen manufacturer has choosen not to do anything about this. As a result of this you will have the same problem repeating itself since the corrosion will always appear and grow in the system even after it has been properly cleaned and repaired and seems to be working properly . There is reason to warn the buyer or car owner for this problem. It is not easily handled and the cost is high for reparation and fo extra petrol. Since there are no replacement parts available you can not permanently get rid of the problem
There are in some cases additional corrosion problems on the back brakes of C5 which sometimes are so severe that you have to switch the block holder because it gets very damaged and the pin that holds the brake blocks threatens not to stay in place. These problems are easily spotted and very obvoius. In this case Citroen has chosen to prolong the warranty. However as said above they dont provide replacement parts that are of a better quality and because of this the prolonged warranty is a kind of trap since you will have problems returning and when the car is older you will have to pay for this yourself.
We strongly urge Citroen C5 buyers and C5 owners to demand that the Citroen manufacturer does something about this problem