buying an Xantia Diesel

Chevron Terry · Post by **Chevron Terry** » 22 Jul 2009, 20:11

Iam looking to buy a Xantia Diesel .
Which model has the top Spec ?
Which model would should I be buying ?
Terry .

Post by **admiral51** » 22 Jul 2009, 20:25

Hi Terry

You have opened up what will surely be a fierce and forthright debate with this one

My own personal thoughts are that you should stay well away from the top spec end of the range and settle for a nicely run in 1.9 n/a diesel with mechanical fuel pump and maybe the odd luxury like A/C

Im going to stand well back and observe the fireworks

Colin

red_dwarfers · Post by **red_dwarfers** » 22 Jul 2009, 20:34

I would say the 1.9 N/A Diesel (with Bosch injection pump which incidentally Colin has in the one he's got for sale) and the 1.9 TurboD.
Purely because they run on vegetable oil and its cheap/free.

I really would talk to Colin (admiral51) about his as it's been in the forum for a good couple of years now so you know it will be right and he's not going to hide anything as that would tar his reputation on the forum.

Oh and we know where he lives

Post by **Peter.N.** » 22 Jul 2009, 22:04

You know what I'm going to say don't you

The best engine by far is the 2.1, its not only more powerful its also more economical, its only Achilles heel is the electronic EPIC pump, it works perfectly well but costs if it goes wrong, although you can fit a Bosch mechanical pump from an XM, they last forever.

Krede · Post by **Krede** » 22 Jul 2009, 22:05

I'd say you need to be more specific about what you are going to use the car for... what expectations do you have?... what price range?.. how much maintenance are you able to do yourself?...

I recently bought a '00 "fully loaded" 2.0 HDI (110hp).
For me that was the ONLY Xantia of interest.(Well... after getting to know Xantias, the idea of a hot turbo or V6 Activa doesn't sound too bad either)

Since I find that a Xantia is somewhat an "enthusiasts car" by now, I want as many toys as I can possibly get!!, and I am prepared to spend the time and effort to get them all working again.

That said In Denmark where cars are hugely expensive, Citroens are often good value as they tend to be better than their reputation.

I would not have bought an Xantia, had it not been for the HDI engine. I find this to be an absolute peach!and it suits the car, my temper, and my driving style, perfectly.
However... it must be said that I can do most of the maintenance myself. I would not recommend a Xantia to anybody who cannot do any work on the car themselves as "time" spend on these cars far out weighs the cost of the spare parts.

As said my HDI is the 110hp one.. I don't think many 90Hp HDI Xantias were ever sold in Denmark, and besides... the 110 hp version is the one to have for several reasons :

-More power (obviously )
-Engine is Inter cooled!.. and has better fuel economy
-Bigger and stronger gearbox. Mine has done 400000km and is still way better that the one I had in my old ZX after HALF that distance.
-Cable gear selection mechanism has a nice feel to it and never gets "sloppy"
-Hydraulic clutch. Apart from more pleasant clutch operation you don't have to fear the troublesome clutch cable repairs that haunts some Xantia owners.
- Pollutes less = lower road tax (at least in Denmark)

Having driven a couple of 1.9xu powered peugeot's I never considered buying an Xantia with this engine. Its not that its bad.. but those that are still around all see awfully old by now, and I find the commonrails to be FAR superior in every way, except with regards to ease of repair and cost, which of cause might be of interest since I guess you want a diesel for a reason.

Regarding running on vegetable oil. I might add that the Danish department of renewable energy chose, of all cars, an Xantia 1.9TD as their experimental car, and ran it for years without any trouble.

I know nothing about the 2.1...apart from that it is rare as hell here in Denmark.

My advice:

If you know how to fix your car yourself and have fun doing it , get a HDI with all the bells and whistles ... if not.. don't buy ANY Xantia.

Ps: Whatever engine you do choose... get it in an X2.

Post by **Peter.N.** » 22 Jul 2009, 22:10

The main difference between the 2.1 and Hdi is that the 2.1 will probably be good for 300,000 miles with very little money spent on it.

Xantic · Post by **Xantic** » 22 Jul 2009, 22:41

I have the 110 HDI Exclusive model and i'm loving it.
Comfort, excellent fuel economy with all the toys.

Ok, I have not had it long and have had no serious problems with it but, This is a very informative forum with some experienced members who go out of thier way to help.

I cannot comment on other Xantia as i have not owned them.

citroenxm · Post by **citroenxm** » 23 Jul 2009, 10:19

Trim wise the SX is probably the most sensible...in either S1 or S2..

SX had a great spec from: 4x elec windows, elec mirrors, ABS, Sunroof OR from about 1997 Air con instead of sunrooof, front fog lights, the useual central locking and PAS.. and if you go for an 1997 R reg onwards you get Rear spoiler..

Series 2 has the same as above, but deleted sunroof in favour of standard Air Con..

The VSX / Exclusive models have the electroniclly controlled suspension, which has extra spheres which can add more to the cost of replacing spheres, and less common pipe work and strut tops..

Engine choice is a matter of personal perferance. Peter is baiesed towards the mechanical engines and I dont blame him for that either, however, is a 1.9td you look at has had a head gasket replacement find out if its the Laminated metal type as these dont seem to go again when done properly, but mechanically the cooling system is VERY important, and should be absolutly CLEAR of ANY rusty water what so ever!! 2.1 units are rarer, and have electronic fuel system..

The clue to its condition (1.9 td's) is HOW SOON the heater in the car gets warm from a cold start!! If its warm before the needle on the guage mooves then you have a pretty good chance of a GOOD head gasket!!!

Keep the water complete anti freezed! Too much wont hurt, if anything do it great favours and it will KEEP going to the 300k that the 2.1's can do!

The HDi however, is also a great driving engine and is also very good on fuel too..

good luck
Paul

Sid_the_Squid · Post by **Sid_the_Squid** » 23 Jul 2009, 12:33

If your on a tight budget and you want to keep maintainance simple, Id seriously consider admiral51's car, heres a link http://www.frenchcarforum.co.uk/forum/v ... hp?t=27435 The 1.9d n/a is a fantastic engine, plus you can use 80%+ SVO without issues as this one has a BOSCH pump, fuel economy is as good as the 110 HDi, plus this car has AC!

If you want something a bit more luxurious a 1.9TD VSX would be my recommendation, all the toys plus extra soft Hydractive suspension, again you can still run a very high amount of SVO without issue.
As other people have mentioned the VSX and Exclusive trims have Hydractive suspension which has 2 more spheres than the standard LX/SX suspension raising the cost of ownership slightly, however I think for the extra advantage it is worth it.

The HDi models are very advanced engines, offering performance equal to their petrol counter parts, with excellent fuel economy (better than the TD's) I had mine to 126k miles without a single problem, however I have heard people say IF they go wrong its very expensive to fix.

If I was after a diesel today I would get a 1.9TD VSX, run SVO and enjoy the softest suspension the Xantia has to offer, if I could not get a VSX My second choice would be a 1.9D n/a with as many extras as I could find, like admiral51's car.

Old-Guy · Post by **Old-Guy** » 23 Jul 2009, 12:36

citroenxm wrote: SX had a great spec from: 4x elec windows, elec mirrors, ABS, Sunroof OR from about 1997 Air con instead of sunrooof, front fog lights, the usual central locking and PAS.. and if you go for an 1997 R reg onwards you get Rear spoiler..

To clarify: 96 Model Year (in theory January 1996), introduced 2 important changes: A/C instead of a sunroof on SXs, and the introduction of AGR emmissions control and associated ECU.
Otherwise, all SXs had all the goodies mentioned.

I say in theory, because my 95MY SX estate with sunroof and no AGR/ECU was built on 16/1/96 and registered 5 weeks later.

In my book, the changes introduced undesirable technologies - I can't easily fix electronics or A/C. On about 10 days a year, I think it would be nice to have air-con - the other 355 days I'm glad that I'll never have the grief of trying to get A/C or an engine ECU fixed!

citroenxm · Post by **citroenxm** » 23 Jul 2009, 12:58

Id still avios a VSX, the pipe work is more expansive, and in my opinion, I think the electronic setup REALLY DOES take out the "Soft French Floaty" ride that the mechanical "Original" setup was designed for... Hence my preference for the SX...

Internally, the only difference from SX and VSX, plusher trim with option of Leather, Oil Temp Guage, Outside Temp readout, leather steering wheel rim, uprated radio to take a CD changer, and externally alloys and colour coded mirrors... of which MOST of those can be fitted to an SX...

Paul

Chevron Terry · Post by **Chevron Terry** » 23 Jul 2009, 15:17

I would drive the Xantia diesel daily , replacing my old zx .
I drive 80 miles every day .
Do you all think the high mileage Xantia from the Admiral would still be ok .
Iam very tempted by his car .
Terry .

Sid_the_Squid · Post by **Sid_the_Squid** » 23 Jul 2009, 15:33

http://www.frenchcarforum.co.uk/forum/v ... hp?t=27457
High mileage club thread, 200k miles should not be much of an issue on a pug/cit diesel, seems like admiral51 has done all the regular servicing required. Best thing to do is check it out yourself. is your zx a D or TD, if its a D the speed is about the same I would guess, if its a TD the 1.9D Xantia will be a bit slower. 0-60 in 16~17 seconds.

I think the electronic setup REALLY DOES take out the "Soft French Floaty" ride

Paul what are you talking about? The hydractive ride in soft mode is much softer than the standard Xantia ride, also is hydractive not standard on all XM's??

jgra1 · Post by **jgra1** » 23 Jul 2009, 16:53

Sid, my V6 in soft mode was about twice as hard as all of my 'normal' xantias..

am I talking about the same suspension type ?

At the time, I got the impression this was normal.. its wasn't bouncy, just a bit jarring...

maybe there was something wrong with it..

Xaccers · Post by **Xaccers** » 23 Jul 2009, 17:18

jgra1 wrote:Sid, my V6 in soft mode was about twice as hard as all of my 'normal' xantias.. am I talking about the same suspension type ?

At the time, I got the impression this was normal.. its wasn't bouncy, just a bit jarring...

maybe there was something wrong with it..

Probably needed it's diodes done.

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buying an Xantia Diesel

buying an Xantia Diesel

buying xantia diesel