C5 Wot do I do with it?

[birksy]

sorry for replying to my own post but...

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/motoring/car ... eview.html

Nuff said?

[andmcit]

You could have a limb amputated too and I guess that over time come to
terms with living with it as some folk are forced to do - but given the choice,
you'd prefer to play football with the kids in the park etc...

Bottom line is, Citroen kinda goofed big style with the C5's styling yet
did still manage to offer up the goods with decent equipment, economical
engines etc etc so it's not really a duff car, just one some find 'challenging'
on the eye - even admitted by some owners of said car!

If you're a happy bunny and it all works for you, great, as these are knocking
on bargain territory as Citroens around 10 years old manage to do and the
bang for your bucks is the 'alternative way' in our society of trying to get one
up on the Jones's with a new car every 3 years and financed up to the nines
etc etc...

so the answer for the future of motoring is a Ford Focus mk3?

Andrew

[Citroenmad]

So your C5 is working correctly now? Very good, a fresh MOT and a self fixed suspension pump, i think your C5 wants to stay with you! Why get rid of it when its all ok now?

Mind that is what i kept thinking, but you have to move on at some point, though I only moved for a newer one.

The 407 is basically a C5 without hydraulic suspension, or as C5III. They are good cars, the saloons are very nice looking, though id rather have a C5 estate over a 407SW as i dont much like the rear styling of the SW and the hydropneumatic suspension will always have its bonuses for me. Still, it should be just as reliable and it offers the same engines, they do seem to be pretty good value for money too.


Strong opinions Andrew! I see your point about the C5, though i obviously have different opinions.

While i do very much like Xantias and i love Xms, time moves on, and cars do too. Ive lived with a good few Xms now, petrols and diesels, hatchbacks and an estate, manuals and autos, so ive a pretty good grasp of them. Xantias i take to be similar, slightly more nimble on the road perhaps but again a great car with a good range of engines, and of course there is the Activa, though in my mind that is separate to the Xantias normal range, as nothing has or will replace that car in what it does or how it drives.

Now I will say I find the C5 is a better car than the Xm in a few ways, its more refined (not that the XM isnt), specification is excellent on most C5s, something i find extremely hard to find in an XM is air con, and for a daily car for me that is a must, as it makes the interior more comfortable.

There is a great range of engines in the C5, some reliable petrols, a 3.0 V6 and fantastic diesels, some of the better modern diesels about are found in the C5. That is evident by the number of other manufacturers who have pinched them and by the relatively few reliability reports given the number of them produced, this compares favourably with other manufacturers diesels, whos are either less reliable, nosier or not as good on fuel. The HDI range is a good one. The 2.1TD is a great engine however.

To sum up, the C5 is a great car and should not be marked down because of its styling, which really isnt offensive, maybe a touch bland. The C5 estate and C5II hatch are certainly better proportioned than the earlier S1s.


Looks are a very subjective thing, we dont all have the same opinions, thankfully, as the world would be a boring place. If you judged a person solely on their looks you might well be missing out on a great relationship or friendship!

While i dont think the C5 is ugly, far from it actually. I admit i did at first dislike its looks and that was a concern, but as I begun to live with it i started to like its styling. I find the C5II is a very handsome car. It might be a bit bulbous, but that just gives fantastic interior room, the headroom is very good (something i dont like about the XM, my head is on the roof in a hatchback) but the C5 has masses of room front and rear. This also compares in its favour to the competition, in the back of Passats and Mondeos my head is on or near the roof, the C5 has lots of room.

Oddly enough, when a car comes out and i hate its styling, its often something I really like as time goes by. Kind of worried about the new C4 though, as that is ugly!

Its a bit family sized car, so it needs to fit that bill, i think it does admirably and i cant find anything which does a better job, within the modern range. Some estates do compare well but i dont want an estate and i like the Citroen brand, with its innovative features and hydraulic suspension. Ill really struggle hard to get a genuine replacement for this C5, though ill have this a good few years, its perfect for what i need and want.

The youngest Xm is 11 years old now, the Xantia too, ive had issues sourcing come Xm parts already, even simple thing like brake discs were not as easy to source as id of hoped, even a well known citroen parts distributor had trouble getting me them. I dont much like that, its a little worrying.

My daily car needs to be reliable, as i dont have much time to fiddle and use my car for work and uni, covering quite a few miles. Id love to have this C5 and an Activa, now ive got the C5 ive been wanting i might source an Activa once ive recovered from this purchase.

The C5 is a modern car, and thats one reason I like them, it fills my Citroen interest (its a true Citroen, just a modern one), its easily replaced if something should happen to it, parts are very easy to come by, they are reliable, drive well, economical, spacious, value for money, safe, well equipped ... i could go on, they do everything for me.

Which is why we have had 5 C5s in our household, I have one after the other and we have other family members with them too. Once you give them a chance, its hard to find something which does as much and as well.

The fact is, time moves on in many many ways in the car industry and I think the C5 does everything needed of a modern car.

The C5 for me is not just a car as i wanted a 'modern' its a great car and as i like the Xm and Xantias its a good compromise and it adds things i like and need in a car over and above. Safety for example, the C5II is one of the safest cars in its class, even slightly better than the C5III infact!

The again, this is why we dont all drive the same car, as we all like, want and require different things.

That turned out longer than i was hoping

[galonki]

Hi m8, hope your c5 suspension has fixed itself.

Could you possible explain how to get to the MAXI fuses?

I have tried many times looking at the normal fuses and just lifting them but it just doesnt seem to lift off, what do i have to do in order to get to them?

Asking because i think i have a blown fuse for my rad fan.

Thanks.

[cachaciero]

Hi m8, hope your c5 suspension has fixed itself.

Could you possible explain how to get to the MAXI fuses?

I have tried many times looking at the normal fuses and just lifting them but it just doesnt seem to lift off, what do i have to do in order to get to them?

Asking because i think i have a blown fuse for my rad fan.

Thanks.

Sorry thought I had some photo's but can't find them so it will have to be a description.

R.H side looking in from front.
I st Cover behind battery.

Under the cover you will see the Engine relay unit, this complete assembly clips into the bit below and needs to be lifted up.
There are Five connectors plugging into the top of this, disconnect these connectors (Red latches slide forward to release). The latches that clip the unit in need to be "felt for" there is one on the front edge about 1/1/2 inches from the engine end and one on the rear edge about 1 inch from the locating guide don't confuse this with the latch but you are close. Once the unit has been sprung out of the clips pull it out by pulling on the heavy cable bolted at the front of the unit. The Maxi fuses can then be seen on the front part of the assembly. The heavy cable is the common 12V supply to the Maxi fuses.

cachaciero

[Rhothgar]

Whilst on the subject of Styling, one thing that I have to say I cannot get my head around and it not only appears on the C5 is the Citroen Badge.

What manufacturer in their right mind alters its branding almost everytime it brings a new car out?

The angle of the Chevron, the distance they are apart always seems to be changing.

You wouldn't see Ford altering their font on their badge or Ferrari changing the horse for a donkey!

It's simply bizarre! Perhaps it's just another lovely Citroen quirk.

Won't be long before the two Chevrons become two forward slashes and then a web address methinks!

[myglaren]

They should have retained the offset bonnet mounted chevrons as on the BX.

[cachaciero]

They should have retained the offset bonnet mounted chevrons as on the BX.

And the XM, discreet and classy, but then that was in the days when you couldn't mistake a Citroen for anything else on the road unlike today, they didn't need a badge or logo to advertise their "Marc" the product did it for them.


cachaciero

[cachaciero]

The steering and suspension share the same fluid in a reservoir above the electric suspension pump.
The steering has a separate engine driven pump.
The brakes are a completely separate and 'conventional' system using DOT4 and a vacuum brake assist

They aren't real Citroëns at all. Just Peugeots with squishy bits.

Yes that about sums it up, and to be even more damning one could say that they arn't that far from a Mondeo.

cachaciero

[XMV6 sadist]

When I was last in Vantage (Merton) he was telling me that he'd bought a load of C5 pumps direct from citroen. You should be able to get one from them - "quirky" guy to deal with though.

[Rhothgar]

They should have retained the offset bonnet mounted chevrons as on the BX.

Hear! Hear!

[andmcit]

The newer and blander (and rubbish) the car, the bigger the badges!
Mind. Could try 'sexing' it up a bit;



The things you see on your travels on eBay!

Andrew

[birksy]

is it on now? What's the spec?

[andmcit]

Was on a while back but the pic is still in my photobucket for some reason.
The spec comes up as C5 HDi SX 2179cc 136 BHP registered 01/03/2002
and it's shown on record as being pink; that's an understatement!
Or are you talking about the vital statistics for the other model pictured?
Could have a guess; she's quite big in that picture isn't she...

Andrew

[Citroenmad]

See Andrew, im sure you like that picture of the C5!

Looks quite appealing there