Xantia Rear Suspension

Nomad · Post by **Nomad** » 15 Sep 2004, 00:43

Hi all
I have a LHD Xantia 5 door hatch 1995 with only 41,500 KM on the clock, it is a 1.8i Prestige.
In the last month or so the rear suspension seems to have got very hard, the slightest bump in the road make for a really uncomfortable ride. When i push down on the back of the car, it has very little movement, unlike the front when i push down on it.
The hydraulic fluid level is OK and it has no leaks.
I know nothing about this sort of suspension, but i have repaired most of the faults with my other cars my self. So i don't mind having a go myself, if it is easy enough.
I will be graetful for any help on this matter.
All the best
Tony

np · Post by np » 15 Sep 2004, 00:57

Sounds like the spheres need renewing.Round green "balls".These are inplace of normal shock absorbers.Not sure what a Prestige is to a uk model.Do you have hydractive suspension?If you do,you will have a "sports" switch between the front seats to stiffen the suspension.Depending on the type of suspension,you will have 3 or 4 spheres on the back.
Use the search facility at the top right hand corner on this page to find out more information.

TheWorker · Post by **TheWorker** » 15 Sep 2004, 00:58

sounds like your spheres are shot, get new ones from this very site. go to the homepage then online shop and search for spheres.
better still, the part number is N45364 presuming you dont have hydractive

Nomad · Post by **Nomad** » 15 Sep 2004, 02:40

Hi Thanks for your replies.
OK Prestige is just the interior trim level (I think)
It does not have hydractive suspension as far as i know, there defiantly is not a sports mode switch on the centre console.
OK now you talk about the spheres excuse my ignorance on these, but why would they need replacing, don't they fill up with the hydraulic fluid from the system? or have they got something else in them?.
Thanks again
All the best
Tony

Nomad · Post by **Nomad** » 15 Sep 2004, 02:48

Hi again
I have just had a look at the on line shop here, and the price for the spheres is a reasonable £18 each plus carriage to Germany. Now if i buy these what is involved in replacing them, OK i know from reading some of the posts here that they can be a pig to get off, but i have seen some of the home made tools for the job, and i can knock one of them up in no time.
Thanks again
Tony

np · Post by np » 15 Sep 2004, 03:11

You would have 3 spheres on the back.1 by each wheel for the suspension,& 1 roughly in the middle underneath the rear,antisink sphere i think.
I think the spheres are filled with a gas,which after time can leak,causing the ride to suffer.I know its covered on this forum somewhere in full detail exactly how it all works,maybe in the links section.
I haven`t changed any yet,but know what you know,that they can be a bit of a pain on the back to get off.Fairly straight foward though.

Nomad · Post by **Nomad** » 17 Sep 2004, 21:49

Hi all.
I got a quote today from Citroen for the spheres, they want € 75.00 for each one plus € 48 fitting

so i phoned somebody else, first off he said that he needs a number from the vin plate by the front door, then he can tell what spheres it needs ? but he said the the dearest spheres would be € 69 with fitting. Now as i am English live in Germany, this part i don't know if we got our wires crossed, but i told him that the car does not have Hydractive suspension & that i want the 3 rear spheres replaced, he said that if it does NOT have Hydractive suspension then there are only two at the rear. But from what i have read in this thread by you guys if my car does not have a "Sports Switch" on the centre console then it does not have Hydractive suspension. Have i read what was said here correctly?.
Cheers all for your help.
Tony

uhn113x · Post by **uhn113x** » 17 Sep 2004, 22:07

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">there defiantly is not a sports mode switch on the centre console.
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">
Nah then Tony, definitely no need to be defiant. [}:)]
Spheres are £18ish each in UK, and easy to fit. They are metal and inside there is a flexible diaphragm containing compressed nitrogen which acts as the 'spring'
The LHM fluid replaces mechanical linkage betwixt the diaphragm and road wheels, and can be added to or removed to alter the ride height.
You really need to avoid dealers!

silverback · Post by **silverback** » 17 Sep 2004, 22:13

Avoid dealers like the plague!
They all seem to assume that the public are idiots with money to burn.
If you haven't the knowledge (like me!) to do the job yourself, find a good Cit specialist who will do the job for about £25 the pair plus parts.
I hate Citroen dealers with a vengence.

Nomad · Post by **Nomad** » 17 Sep 2004, 22:20

Hi
OK then excuse my spelling

I have looked on the site here and found the spheres for £18, but i fell that the cost of postage will push the price up a fair bit, does any body here know roughly how much the shop here would charge for postage to Germany. I definitely have 3 spheres at the rear of the car, do i have to replace them all, or is it just good practise to replace them all?
Cheers
Tony

Nomad · Post by **Nomad** » 17 Sep 2004, 22:27

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by silverback

Avoid dealers like the plague!
They all seem to assume that the public are idiots with money to burn.
If you haven't the knowledge (like me!) to do the job yourself, find a good Cit specialist who will do the job for about £25 the pair plus parts.
I hate Citroen dealers with a vengence.
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">
I know what you are saying about the main dealers, but i do not have the word of mouth and recommendations over here in Germany that i used to have in England, i guess that is lucky really (i have not had too many problems with cars)
But the main dealer did come up the cheapest by a long way for my roof rack for the Xantia about 50 quid when all the other places (like Halfords) wanted about 75 quid, so it is worth asking them about some things. But what they have quoted for the spheres is way too much.
Cheers
Tony

JohnD · Post by **JohnD** » 17 Sep 2004, 23:34

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by Nomad

Hi
I definitely have 3 spheres at the rear of the car, do i have to replace them all, or is it just good practise to replace them all?
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">
The centre one is an anti-sink sphere. That can be replaced on its own. The two near the rear wheels should be replaced as a pair.
For advice on replacing them, use the 'search' tool at top right.

Nomad · Post by **Nomad** » 31 Dec 2004, 17:19

Hi all
Just to let you all know that i got the 2 rear spheres replaced on the car for € 150 (£100 aprox) fitted (original Citroen Parts aswell), i was lucky enough to find an ex Citroen mechanic that has set up on his own just around the corner from me, and his prices seem ok to me.
Tony

PeterMann · Post by **PeterMann** » 31 Dec 2004, 18:39

Tony,
the third rear sphere will also be not in good working order, but the effect will be more difficult to feel. In my experience, when the ride in a Citroen becomes hard, it is time to re-gas or replace all the spheres on the car. I successfully regassed all 6 spheres on my 1994 Xantia (115,000km)18 months ago, and she is like new again. In Australia, replenishing the lost nitrogen is much cheaper than buying new spheres .
There is a trap in removing/refitting the rear accumulator on the Xantia. Before unscrewing the sphere from its mounting point, the 9mmAF nut on the screw-in fitting must be captured so that it cannot rotate, or the tube that connects to the sphere will twist and rupture.
I made a special tool by cutting a 4.5mm gap in the end of a cheap 9mm ring spanner (using an angle grinder), so that the tube passes through the ring and gives the spanner extra engagement with the soft steel hex nut on the hydraulic fitting (and that way, the spanner hangs rather than falling off the nut).

modi · Post by **modi** » 02 Jan 2005, 02:33

My xantia is terrible on ramps too i guess i will do sphere's check, but what about when you turn the engin on and the back starts raising, is there any sound.., mine does some tik-tik sound and just wondering is that normal??