Stop warning on c5 110 hdi

boristhespie · Post by **boristhespie** » 11 May 2011, 07:02

Thank but. I am car illiterate. The cylinderhead. Eh...um... Is that just the main engine where the injectors are?

wheeler · Post by **wheeler** » 11 May 2011, 08:38

boristhespie wrote: Anyway mechanic said it maybe air in the coolant. So run the car with resevoir off to bleed air out.

Thats not how you bleed the cooling system, anyway its unlikely to be air in the system if you get the warning straight away from cold.

boristhespie wrote: although mechanic said the light is just a warning and there wouldn't be a code. This only comes if there's a engine management light?

Thats not true either, faults can be logged without the ilumination of the engine management light. I would say that if it is the coolant temp sensor thats faulty as suspected there more than likely will be a fault code relating to the sensor as the injection system also uses this sensor.

boristhespie · Post by **boristhespie** » 11 May 2011, 11:13

Where is the this thing and what does it look like?

Don't have Lexia so codes are kinda irrelevant.

boristhespie · Post by **boristhespie** » 11 May 2011, 16:16

boristhespie wrote:Where is the this thing and what does it look like?

Don't have Lexia so codes are kinda irrelevant.

Had all the bits off the engine. I can't see where this thing is.

boristhespie · Post by **boristhespie** » 12 May 2011, 14:50

OOOOOooo All things went wonky last night.

The warning came on again and STOP sign was on and needle went to top and back in matter of a second or two.

Funny thing is this seems to happen from starting to 7-8 minutes into journey and then not again.

But the suspension lights all came on again a few time when switching on lights and dipping and switching onto main beam.

What with the airbag light on permanently, this car has major leccy problems. I am beginning to think the temp guage is just another.

What does the temp sensor look like?

Post by **RichardW** » 12 May 2011, 15:11

Have you checked the battery voltage - low volts can cause all sorts of mayhem on multiplexed cars - particularly if a big load comes on, such as the suspension pump

boristhespie · Post by **boristhespie** » 12 May 2011, 15:59

no haven't car had been sitting for months before I bought it.

What should voltage be?

Post by **Paul-R** » 13 May 2011, 10:18

Finally found some time to look at the cars.

On both the Xsara and C5 the temperature sender is on the right of the engine if you're standing in front of it (the manual says the left side of the engine but that's because right an left are defined as being relative to standing behind a vehicle).

If you look at where the big plastic box that houses the air filter sits there's a gap between it and the engine. Look down and you'll see a threaded stud coming out pointing rightwards and just below that is the temp sender. The electrical connector plug is colour coded green.

Haynes suggests taking the battery out to make access easier but looking at it I would think that taking the air filter housing out will be more useful.

boristhespie · Post by **boristhespie** » 17 May 2011, 16:44

Is this it? Looks fidly. Unclip and pull out? Detach from wires and the reverse with new on????

Post by **Paul-R** » 17 May 2011, 23:29

That's it.

Bear in mind I haven't actually dome the temp sender on either the Xsara or C5 but it should be similar in technique to the VW Polo I mentioned above.

I would practice on your "spare" C5 first and you'll soon see whether you need to take the air filter housing and/or battery to get at it.

Assuming you've got to actual sender detach the plastic connector. It may have a locking acion - I don't know. Then find the clip holding the sender in place. It may be a wire type or a flat piece of metal but it should be in general a sort of C shape. Once pulled out then the sender should wiggle out. There's almost certainly a rubber seal as well.

That's about all I can tell you. If I were doing the job I would work a lot of it out as I went along - which is absolutely no help to you!

boristhespie · Post by **boristhespie** » 23 May 2011, 19:33

The stop sign came and stayed on when i came home last night. As usual the temp guage shot up to full and stayed there and the temp light was on.

There's no engine management light.

I can only think to take to dealer and hope they can diagnose.

It's gone off this morning.

Thing is. As it says stop should i stop driving the car?

Post by **Paul-R** » 23 May 2011, 22:30

If the engine isn't overheating then I wouldn't. The trick, of course, is deciding that the engine isn't too hot!

Take into account how long the engine has been running. If it's only a matter of five minutes then it's highly unlikely to have even warmed up unless you're doing 60mph. Are losing water at all? If not it's a fairly safe bet that it's not the head gaket (again!).

What do you reckon then?

boristhespie · Post by **boristhespie** » 23 May 2011, 23:43

Don't know and that's the problem. I simply don't have neither the confidence nor nous to tinker about with the car myself.

The frustration All the time is that the numerous garages don't know neither. Only I've paid out hindreds of pounds on unecessary work due to their lack of knowledge.

It leaves yoy in a no mans land. As i can't do things myself I have ro keep trying. The dealers have been worsr but am considering them again amd ther 80 quid an hour as the otjer garages can't help.

Frustratingnis the word.

Post by **Paul-R** » 24 May 2011, 10:13

If the warning comes on within 5 minutes then it's highly unlikely to have overheated.

Strangely enough I had a STOP message on my C5 shortly after you started this thread. As I had only driven about 200 yards round a couple of corners from my house from cold I knew it wasn't overheating. It also couldn't have been catastrophic tyre pressure loss as those are disabled.

It only came on for a few seconds and then went off. I decided to just drive on.

It's not appeared since. I haven't had time to put the Lexia on it but I'm not unduly worried.

citroenxm · Post by **citroenxm** » 24 May 2011, 12:51

This is all rather interesting!

I have this EXACT same problem with a customer car...

At first complaints of the needle shooting right up into the red then back down. So I firstly did a Thermostat change.. then ok for a day or so, then the opposite started, the needle would then be in the middle, then drop to the blue, then straight back up to normal!

The car does lose a bit of coolant over time but theres no water in oil or vice versa.. yet..

So last week I did a coolant change and flush, and at first it was full of rusty brown water.. urrghhh.. not good, so ran it clear and re filled and topped up.. but while I was waiting for the engine to warm the needle did its trick, it dropped to the blue, so while it was there, I fiddled with the plug on the sensor above and it went back to normal.

So the next bit to try will be a replacment sensor.

So we aren't the only ones with all these faults...

Paul