Activa dumped all it's LHM

Sl4yer · Post by **Sl4yer** » 24 Aug 2010, 17:25

Hi.

Noticed the STOP light had come on earlier, about a mile from home. After I (slowly and carefully) got back, the LHM could be seen pouring (although not spraying)from the rear offside area. Power steering had almost gone by the time I got back, but the brakes held on long enough so that I didn't have to resort to the handbrake.

On retracing my steps afterwards, my green trail appears to start at some traffic lights I was stopped at - something to do with the rear brakes maybe? Another possible clue to the cause is that although the front has sunk quite low down, the back has stayed up. Much better than it usually does in fact! I won't get a chance to have a decent look at it until weekend, but does anybody have any ideas what I'll find? Something related to the anti-sink valve perhaps?

Thanks,

James

XantiaMan · Post by **XantiaMan** » 24 Aug 2010, 17:49

Sounds like the return pipe has popped off the ram.

Sl4yer · Post by **Sl4yer** » 24 Aug 2010, 17:55

That did occur to me Gareth. Hopefully it's something simple like that.

How quickly did yours lose it's fluid when it happened to you though? This has gone from full to next to nothing in less than 10 minutes.

James

Post by **CitroJim** » 24 Aug 2010, 18:13

Gosh

Sorry to hear that James...

There's a number of choices and all capable of draining the LHM in the time you give..

Favourites are the rear ram return, the anti-sink valve, the electrovalve returns or the electrovalves themselves. Corrosion around their bases can eat through them.

Only thing to do is look. Electrovalve problems can be eliminated by forcing hard mode by removing F8 with the ignition off. If the leaks are absent then, you have a good clue...

I'm hoping it'll be simple. One horrible one is the rubber tube from the hydractive valve. It perishes and the only way to get to it is to drop the subframe a couple of inches

JohnD · Post by **JohnD** » 25 Aug 2010, 10:06

When that happened to my Xantia - when I had it - it was a seal that went in the front anti-sink valve. I later discovered it had been dripping for a couple of miles, but suddenly dumped all the LHM when I parked.

Stempy · Post by **Stempy** » 25 Aug 2010, 16:06

Similar storey for mine, turned out to be the electrovalve corroded away

Sl4yer · Post by **Sl4yer** » 27 Aug 2010, 19:47

Hi.

I took some photos underneath the car the other night, which showed the ram leak-off still in place, and led me to suspect that the leak is from the Hydractive valve above the ram. On getting the car on stands tonight, it was soon clear that the pipe on top of the valve is not where it should be.

The current location of the pipe wasn't immediately obvious, and I didn't have a light to hand. Could anybody say where the pipe should come from, as an aid to locating it tomorrow?

The next problem then will be WHY it came off... Hopefully the valve isn't knackered.

Thanks,

James

Sl4yer · Post by **Sl4yer** » 27 Aug 2010, 20:20

Hi again.

With further reading (still ongoing!) I'm not sure the piece I saw was supposed to support a missing pipe... Does anyone have a decent picture of a rear Hydractive sphere block?

Thanks,

James

Post by **CitroJim** » 27 Aug 2010, 20:22

Sometimes the pipe just pops off James, often becayse the end has become a little perished.

The valve gives a quite a fierce squirt out of the leakakage return on switching between soft and hard. This is normal and if the end of the pipe is a little suspect (they often perish where they bulge over the barb of the spigot) the the pressure could dislodge it.

The pipe is rubber and disappears over the top of the subframe. It is a devil and a half to replace fully.

I have not got a picture of it but if you can wait until tomorrow, I'll crawl under mine and get one for you...

If your tick rate is good in hard and soft then the valve itself will be fine. A leaky valve will give itself away with a fast tick in soft mode.

Sl4yer · Post by **Sl4yer** » 27 Aug 2010, 20:31

Ah, thanks Jim.

The bit I was looking at sticks up from the top of the valve block. I was sure it must be for the leak-off pipe, but then I read about S2 blocks having a bleed nipple. If the bit sticking up is for the leak-off pipe, there's no need for a pic. Please don't go crawling underneath on my account!

The LHM was still coming out at a decent rate even after parking, so I'm wondering if the spring is knackered, and the leakage has forced the pipe off. I've just read your oscilloscope thread!

Thanks,

James

Sl4yer · Post by **Sl4yer** » 28 Aug 2010, 18:30

OK, bad news. Don't know what I was looking at yesterday, but it looks totally different today! Can't see anywhere for a missing pipe.

With the engine running, the LHM runs along a cable conduit to the right of the Hydractive sphere block, then down onto the ram. I can't actually see where it's leaking from, but it's a steady pour. Access is terrible, and this won't be a repair which I can tackle.

I've read that pulling the Hydractive fuse might stop the leak (depending on where it's leaking of course). Failing that it will have to be RACd to a Cit specialist.

James

Stempy · Post by **Stempy** » 29 Aug 2010, 00:18

Sadly these cars are getting to the age now where all the rubber bits are beginning to perish and even some of the metal bits are beginning to suffer.

After the third leak that sprung on mine I've been round the whole car looking for any sign of perished or splitting hoses and replaced or repaired all the ones that I could find that looked dodgy in the hope of preventing another leak. The LHM bill was becoming greater than the petrol bill

I've now got a slight coolant leak which I must get round to attending to before it becomes a big coolant leak.

Sl4yer · Post by **Sl4yer** » 29 Aug 2010, 00:43

Hi Stempy.

I've found your thread from earlier in the year, and it does sound like the same problem. Trouble is, the Activa system makes access even worse:

I'm hoping that pulling the correct fuse will make it driveable to get it to the nearest specialist (about 10 miles). I'm expecting a healthy bill, but at least I'm not paying £300 per month plus depreciation to have new metal on the driveway for the sake of it! It's worth it to me...

I know what you mean about the LHM. It's not cheap. I was surprised it emptied so quickly to be honest. It's the first show-stopper I've had with the car in nearly 2 years.

I'm even wondering if the drip (or leak last winter) from the ram could actually have been coming from the Hydractive block - the way it runs down the ram is quite convincing!

James

Post by **CitroJim** » 29 Aug 2010, 09:04

The fuse to pull James is F8 in the engine bay fuse box. on the right-hand side. It's a yellow 20A one.

This will force hard mode constantly. It is VERY hard in an Activa!

Normally, a leak from the electrovalve will cause LHM to gather and drip from the hydractive centre sphere filling union (the round knob on the end of the sphere).

There is a leakage return junction just upwind of the ram leakage return pipe that can split.

If the leak stops in hard mode then the area to look at is considerably narrowed.

A good way to determine is to give everything a good cleanup and look to see where the first drips arrive from.

Sl4yer · Post by **Sl4yer** » 29 Aug 2010, 17:56

I'm having the same fuse trouble that Dommo had with his.... Fuse F8 in the engine bay doesn't stop the electrovalves, and neither does F3 in the cabin fuesbox (the other possibility).

I'm stuck!

James