C5 rear suspension boot

[SaabC5]

Just had the car MOT'd which she passed with flying colours, just got an advisory on this split rear suspension boot. I've got a replacement on ebay for £8 but looking at the job i can't work out for the life of me how to go about swapping it out. Has anybody replaced one who can give me any advice on the method required?

[Lighty]

You will need to get the "hand grenade " clip out of the joint that secures the assembly together. It can often be seized, so start spraying it with release fluid any time soon.
Once you have depressurised the suspension, you can get the piston rod separated from the swinging arm (this was held together by that clip) and then removal of the boot is relatively ok, if you can undo the large circular clip that holds it on.
I would recommend a new clip, as they are usually seized.
This job is very fiddly, so expect to swear a lot.
I have found, the best way for me. Is to remove the sphere, and pressure pipe, take the whole hydraulic unit off,(it's held on with a couple of Torx screws, and fit the new gaiter , on the bench, and reassemble with it already built.

[Bandit12]

I've recently replaced the rear swing arm bearings which involved removing the hand grenade pin. One thing i did not realise is that the gaitor holds the suspension fluid! I accidently caused about 10mls to leak out during the process of getting the swing arm back in its correct position under the car! Probably be worth making sure you have some replacement fluid to hand after you replace the gaitor so you can 'top' up the the system:-)

[citronut]

firstly that boot should have failed the MOT and not just an advisory,

here is price and part No. from citroen for the boot, its clamp, and as Lighty calls it the "hand grenade clip",

Part Number Description Quantity Price excl. VAT Price incl. VAT Total incl. VAT Selection
0000527209 CYLINDER PIN 1.36 GBP 1.63 GBP 1.63 GBP

0000527264 CYLINDER BOOT 6.36 GBP 7.63 GBP 7.63 GBP

00005280T6 BOOT CLAMP 8.02 GBP 9.62 GBP 9.62 GBP

and going by the tail of others trying to dismantle C5 rear cylinder bits, you might well require the hand grenade with its clip removed to get it apart

[citronut]

One thing i did not realise is that the gaitor holds the suspension fluid! I accidently caused about 10mls to leak out during the process of getting the swing arm back in its correct position under the car! Probably be worth making sure you have some replacement fluid to hand after you replace the gaitor so you can 'top' up the the system:-)

the fluid in the gaiter is/should only be seepage that has passed by the piston seals

[SaabC5]

Thanks all for the advice, i'll order the pin and clip before tackling the job.

Citronut, i think he issued an advisory on the basis it wasn't a steering rack boot. I think a lot of people have "grey areas" when dealing with Citroen suspensions.

[Bandit12]

One thing i did not realise is that the gaitor holds the suspension fluid! I accidently caused about 10mls to leak out during the process of getting the swing arm back in its correct position under the car! Probably be worth making sure you have some replacement fluid to hand after you replace the gaitor so you can 'top' up the the system:-)

the fluid in the gaiter is/should only be seepage that has passed by the piston seals

Phew thats a relief I made an assumption based on my amazing, clear and helpful Haynes manual! that fluid leaked while I was messing about with the boot and because the boot has 2 pipes of fluid going into it. Citro suspension although fantastic (IMHO) not the easiest or simplest to maintain.

[citronut]

Citronut, i think he issued an advisory on the basis it wasn't a steering rack boot. I think a lot of people have "grey areas" when dealing with Citroen suspensions.

no grey areas nowadays, it is quite clear/open and shut

all/any suspension and steering joint or boot must not be split, if it is is is an instant fail,

this includes inner CV, suspension swivel joints and boots, and all steering gaiters and track rod end joints rubber covers,

because the boot has 2 pipes of fluid going into it.

one of thise pipes is a vent and just dangles into the rear sub frame, whilst the other is to collect any seepage in the boot and trickle it back to the tank under capillary action

[Bandit12]

Thanks for the explanation mate. Makes me much more confident to change mine if the need arises:-)

Bandit:-)

[jgra1]

Will follow with interest as both of mine are shot

[RichardW]

no grey areas nowadays, it is quite clear/open and shut

all/any suspension and steering joint or boot must not be split, if it is is is an instant fail,

this includes inner CV, suspension swivel joints and boots, and all steering gaiters and track rod end joints rubber covers,

Don't think it's as clear as that Malc.... Under suspension:

a ball joint dust cover missing or excessively damaged, deteriorated or insecure to the extent that it would no longer prevent the ingress of dirt etc.

No mention of anything else (eg ram boots!), whereas, rack gaiters get a speific mention:

an insecure, split or missing steering rack gaiter

So would need to fail either on a leak, or excessively damaged

[citronut]

Don't think it's as clear as that Malc....

it probably doesn't mention cylinder boots as most other brands of car dont have such fangled devices


even if the MOT rule book doesn't specifically mention cylinder boots, they are to stop ingress of dirt and grit into the suspension cylinder/system,

so any MOT tester that is mechanically knowledgeable will almost certainly fail those strut boots completely come away as they have in the picy's

[myglaren]

More of a concern is the ingress of dirt and water that will contaminate the LDS and cause scoring of the cylinder and who knows what havoc with the pump.

[KevMayer]

This raises an interesting point about whether LDS absorbs moisture?

When you buy a tub of LDS to do a top up of your C5 suspension, it say on the container that any remaining LDS must not be stored to use at a later date (or something like that). As though LDS is the same as brake fluid.

The breather on the rear cylinders means LDS is exposed to atmosphere at this position and so moisture cannot be a factor.

So, why do they tell you to not use old LDS??

[dnsey]

MOTs are not designed for Citroens!
At last year's test, the boot was slightly oily from LDS which had misted from the breather, collected in the crossmember (perhaps a ml or so over the years), and worked its way past the breather grommet. Although I discussed this mechanism with the tester, he felt that he still had to record it as an advisory, although he agreed not to fail it ss he had intended.
This year, I washed out the crossmember and sealed the grommet with silicone before the test. No advisory this time!

Re storing LDS, my impression is that as part of the change from LHM to LDS, with its much longer service intervals and no obvious filters, a great deal of effort was put into preventing contamination of the fluid (including making topping-up a dealer job). I think the idea is that a new bottle of fluid is 'clinically clean', but an opened one may have been contaminated. After all, the surface area of fluid in the resevoir is greater than that in a bottle, and is under a degree of positive pressure, so would absorb more atmospheric moisture if it was going to do so at all.