Dom's Car Blog

[robert_e_smart]

M'welll, What other problems will be unearthered (that may have been overlooked) after a large wedge of cash has beeen spent.

Scrap it, its the best way of realising its full value, and more importantly keeping other Activas on the road. Activas aren't rare enough to make this one worth fixing.

Its not worth the chew, as Dean says, het another, and use this for spares.

Apologies if this hits on a nerve with Activa owners, but we have to be realistic at times.

[Dommo]

The car will be being scrapped now, I started taking bits off it today

Both rams will be kept, along with the flexi pipes for the rams, all the spheres on the car have been used elsewhere apart from the Activa specific ones which have been removed. Electrovalves, interior, wheels, CD changer, head unit, and the engine if anyone wants it?

Where do people recommend advertising the engine, on here or a gay05 forum (205 )?

[robert_e_smart]

Put the engine on the tuner kids forums, unless someone on here wants it.

[Deanxm]

worth putting it on here first of course but you will get better money from the pug boys. having said that there is an engine on ebay for £250 and that isnt selling and its a low miles lump too i think so maybe the pug boys dont have the xU10 hunger now days.

D

[Dommo]

Well, KEV has gone

Will update this thread when I get chance, just started an night shift so if I get any quiet periods and I'm not feeling sleepy I'll post a more in depth reply.

The 2.1TD requires a repair to the downpipe, there's a hole just in front of the cat, doh! Other than that it is ready for use. Didn't take me too long

Does anyone know if 2.1TD and Activa cats are the same??

[Xaccers]

No but according to Cats Direct the 1.9TD exhaust system is the same, so you can get a catless pipe for under £40.

[Dommo]

No but according to Cats Direct the 1.9TD exhaust system is the same, so you can get a catless pipe for under £40.

Nice.. I did wonder whether that was true..

My mate works at euro car parts so I should be able to get the pipe cheap as chips via him.

I got a quote from a place near me to replace most of the down pipe with stainless (I THINK?) stuff for £40 fitted, leaving around 5" of standard pipe in place.

It's priced close to stainless prices, they're good at this place, but can you weld stainless and mild steel together?

[Dommo]

Well well..

I used the green 2.1TD SX for the first time today - even drove it the 35 miles to work which is where I am currently (graveyard shift ). Apart from needing the brakes bleeding it drives very very nicely. I think it could benefit from a couple of rear corner spheres, fronts are approx 2-3 years old so while they're not old, they probably aren't as gassed up as they should be, the front and rear accumulators (AS sphere) are new as they were the original spheres when I got the car!! (and flat as a fart)

The 2.1TD engine pulls beautifully, it feels more akin to my 1.9TD 306 with its small HDi turbo than my 1.9TD Xantia with the older larger turbo. I honestly prefer the drive of the 2.1TD engine so far, just a shame I can't run it on WVO without changing the pump, so for that reason (and lack of hydractive) it's not the car I'm going to be doing the commute in me thinks.

So is anyone interested in a '97 S2 SX 2.1TD in green with shed loads of recent work done? Work includes 3 new brake pipes, a new power steering pipe (from the HP pump allllllll the way around the engine to the steering rack), new cambelt and water pump, new rubbers on the engine inlet manifold to sort the common 2.1TD boost leak problem, a new cam cover gasket (so the back of the engine is now as clean as a whistle), new bushings on the wishbones, new pads and discs all round with the rear calipers being removed to remove the corrosion build-up they get and grease applied, perfect condition strut tops, a stainless de-cat pipe welded in today to replace the standard leaky cat - although the turbo did sound good with the leak . It's had that usual bit of rust found on early S2 cars in the rear door sorted, the paint match isn't great to be honest, but at least it's been rust remedied and sorted, there's also some laquer missing on the bonnet where there was a little blemish that turned into a bigger one when we tried to tidy it up, doh! There's almost definitely much more we have done to this car, I just can't remember off the top of my head..

In other news, the white VSX passed it's MOT only requiring three easy jobs to pass - the fuel pump de-tuning so it doesn't smoke off boost, one of the headlights adjusting down slightly, and a new front caliper because the handbrake had seized completely on one side, I knew about the handbrake problem so sorted it before the MOT anyway.

[Dommo]

Oh and one other thing I will add.


Everyone with an S2 car should check the power steering pipe just after the flexi hose that goes between the front nearside of the engine, and the nearside of the chassis. The pipe comes from the HP pump, goes up, then down around the oil filter and accumulator, across the front of the gearbox then into a flexi hose across to the chassis. Just as it joins the chassis it bends up at 90 degrees and goes up and around the gearbox. You guys with S2 cars really should check this pipe after the flexi pipe and up over the gearbox.

My 2.1 PAS pipe had actually rusted through and started leaking badly just after I'd sorted all the other issues it had (DOH). I had a word with Pleaides and they noticed that S1 cars have much better protection than S2 cars on their PAS pipe. So I checked my Activa before it went to the scrappers, it was crusty and horrible, and yet my s1 VSX has a perfect condition pipe.

Other cars I've seen in scrappers have been the same, s2 HDi 110, rusty and horrible, numerous s1 1.9's, perfect. Is that stupid or what?!

[Dommo]

So. I bought a 1991-1992 Toyota Soarer yesterday, and what a shed it is too, I seem to attract them No tax which made getting it home so much harder than it needed to be!

First things first (and most importantly) the suspension works. It looks much like this one here when in it's suspension test mode:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S2QV_PaUWhs

It's not quite as simple as flicking a switch and its done, you have to bridge three pins in the engine bay diagnostic port, turn the engine on until the dash starts blurbing at you in Japanese writing, then you have to flick the suspension pump switch in the boot off and on nine times... Yes thats right, nine times Then you sit in the car and keep your foot on the brake and off it goes.

It works in a similar way to a Citroen with hydropneumatic suspension, only they went one stage further, the nitrogen sits in the suspension struts instead of in a sphere on top like a Xantia. Then there are numerous sensors which detect ride height in each corner (akin to a C5 I assume), and I believe there are G sensors which determine whether the car should be rolling or diving etc, and it corrects for that by sending hydraulic fluid from the electric suspension pump to whichever corner of the car needs it. There was nothing stopping Citroen designing this system if you ask me, besides the electronic side of things. So the basic idea is that it's perfectly level side to side, and front to back. It doesn't have any anti roll bars, it's totally done by the struts and suspension pump.

Now to the issues:

The bodywork is RUINED, whoever owned this car before needs shooting, its absolutely awful, the front splitter is split and missing the majority of it's paint, the rear nearside quarter is in a bit of a mess with a touch of rust, the drivers door has a dent in it, a slight crease at the front of the door, and a blob of rust just under the glass in the middle, the offside rear wheel arch has a dent and associated scuffs, the rear spoiler had split so the previous owner replaced it with a red one (on a blue car), amongst other issues. Xantiaman - do you do fillering and spraying jobs like this? I might call on your services if you do!

The interior isn't in great nick, the drivers door car gets pulled off slightly when you pull the heavy-ass door shut, the drivers seat leather has a couple of rips in it, the carpets (which look beefy) are filthy, the dashboard "EMV" (touch screen in the centre console) is broken, part of the dashboard clocks are damaged - the milometer convieniently, the steering wheel also looks as though its done 168 thousand miles and not the supposed 68 thousand, although maybe they wear badly, I doubt it though somehow, and one of the electric motors in the drivers seat doesn't work. I've not tested the AC yet.

In the boot the spare wheel is missing, the CD changer is missing, and the suspension switch is wet, however we drove back last night with the boot unlocked - and presumably flapping about (without meaning to of course) - which would account for that as it was absolutely battering it down last night on the way home!

The engine sounds as rough as a badger, it sounds like it's running a cylinder or two down which is worrying me, I've got absolutely NO idea what I'll do should it require replacement as I don't imagine a 4L V8 with a 4 speed auto box attached is even remotely easy to remove!

How did I get the car home I hear you ask? I towed it on a car transporter/trailer behind my Xantia, which performed brilliantly, I can see why DHallworth uses a Range Rover V8 for it though! Only came to a complete halt probably 4-5 times the whole way back which meant the clutch didn't get abused, which is nice. We ripped off a heat sheild while getting the car onto the trailer which could well account for the rough running if we caught an O2 sensor or something. Fingers crossed we didn't but you never know with something like this


And what did I pay for all this pain and misery? £1250. Lets hope I don't lose TOO much on it.. (Money and hair)

[Dommo]

Good start, just gone to do an oil change, I did the 'active dance' to get it up in the air a couple of hours ago. Gone out to it just and it's dribbled suspension fluid under the offside front strut... I could cry

[CitroJim]

That's a great project Dom

Gone out to it just and it's dribbled suspension fluid under the offside front strut... I could cry

It must be in the genes of all vehicles with Active suspension Else that, it's been in close proximity to an Activa in the recent past....

[red_dwarfers]

I've just been reading up on those, never heard of them before. What a clever bit of kit

[Deanxm]

Oh Dommo, an Active soarer!!!! i would love one of them, just a brilliant shed, i hear they are rather unreliable at this age though and expensive to operate on, any truth in this?
I wish you the best of luck with it and keep us posted, its a brilliant project.

D

[Citroening]

i hear they are rather unreliable at this age though and expensive to operate on, any truth in this?

For a moment then Dean, I thought you were talking about Activas...!