Xantia suspension again!!

[Jacob2112]

Hi

First things first...I have had my 2001 110bhp Xantia HDi for 7 years (coutesy of ebay) now with 104K on it and I LOVE it!!

However, having read just about every suspension related forum entry, I can't see one that exactly replicates my issue so....

For last 18months or so on probably 7 out of 10 occasions when I stop the car and then get out, the front suspension is sitting slightly higher than normal and then slowly sinks to normal height accompanied by a creaking /groaning sound. In Oct 2013 I replaced two front spheres via GSF as ride okay but not great, and thought this would fix the issue. However, my local Citroen specialist thought the noise was coming from the rear arms/bearings (?) - the rear wheels are slightly off vertical. The rear spheres were replaced and rear height was reset in May of this year

The noise is definitely coming from the front and having investigated further, it seems that when I stop and press on the front wings, the car is solid. However, if I keep pressing up and down, or press on the towbar quite heavily, the front end "releases" and there is some movement there - I would not say it is as soft and "dreamy" as the back end though. The car does not stop in the full height position - it's just a little higher than normal

Over the last couple of days I have had the car doing Citreonics, with the bleed valve undone two turns. Bubbles appear in the reservoir and then when they stop, I do it all up and the front suspension seems okay. Test drive and no different - back end fine, front end not that forgiving when driving (but not solid). Get out..can't push front wings down.

One other thing is that when doing Citreonics, I noticed there is no difference between full height and when I set the lever to intermediate between normal and full height. However, both front and rear do go up and down virtually together as I go through the other lever settings.

Sorry to go on at length, but my wife wants me to dump the Xantia to get a new towcar. I want to keep it as it's already got a towbar and I know it won't let me down.

Please help me save my Xantia!!

[Hell Razor5543]

I get the creaking on Gracie. You might want to raise her to full height, pull down the strut gaiters (in the wings), and then smear some moly grease on the struts (unless somebody knows of a better grease and corrects me). Then pop the gaiters back into place.

It could be worth looking at cleaning and greasing the height corrector mechanisms. Really what you need to sort out is the linkages (as the height correctors themselves are very reliable).

As to the lack of difference between intermediate an service height, that appears to be normal, so don't worry about it.

[addo]

All the best in your hunt for a new, Xantia-friendly wife. They've got to be out there.

[RichardW]

Don't worry - they all do it to a greater or lesser extent....

It's caused by LHM escaping past the partially closed front anti-sink valve, causing a pipe to vibrate against the bulkhead. I believe there was a service bulletin about it early on, but the cure was to stick a foam block behind the pipe It is probably exacerabated by poor front accumulator / rear anti sink sphere, and wear in various components that exacerbate the speed at which system pressure is lost sufficient to cause the anti sink valve to close. So, if not done recently, then I would change the accumulator and anti-sink sphere, and if it still does it, then just ignore it and put it down as a 'trait'

The front suspension being a bit high is probably due to the height corrector winding up due to it being a bit sticky. A small amount of error in the front ride height causes quite a difference in ride quality.

[Old-Guy]

The front strut hydraulic seals are prone to sticking - making the front suspension feel stiff when you push down. Do as James recommends but LHM is the correct lubricant. You may need to do it several times. Come MoT time, clean off the front struts below the gaiters otherwise the tester may assume that your the "dampers" are leaking. You could ask him to show you, and then show him the front spheres and explain that the dampers are internal to them, but that's probably counter-productive.

The groaning is normal, but (like its owner) more prevalent when the suspension is cold.

DON'T undo the bleed valve when doing Cita-whatever-you-care-to-call-it, that just makes the pump work furiously against a massive leak!
In fact I'm surprised the car will actually go up at all! Are you sure it was the bleed valve (the only 12mm 'bolt' head on the regulator) that you undid?

It's normal for the front to rise slightly when you get out of the car (all vehicles do this because the weight on the front springs is lessened) and then sink back to normal ride height (only cars with real self-levelling suspension do this).

[Old-Guy]

All the best in your hunt for a new, Xantia-friendly wife. They've got to be out there.

I thought I'd found one but recently i'm beginning to have my doubts

I'm blessed with a wife who persuaded me to buy a Xantia in the first place and has encouraged me to keep her going (the car that is) for over 7 years.

[Jacob2112]

I only undid the 12mm nut once the car was in the lowest position and left it there. There's no up and down at this house with slack nuts - another reason she's got to go!!!

I appreciate all the help so far - will be venturing out with the LHM and foam pads shortly (and WD40 for the height adjuster.

Is the height adjuster reachable with a spray at arms length, or does the car have to go up on the ramps.

Nervous of ramps since driving my first ever car (Vauxhall Viva) off the end - never been so scared!

[Hell Razor5543]

I would lift her up to full height, and then lift her higher using a jack and then use axle stands to support her. You should then have enough room to get underneath safely.

[Mandrake]

Richard hit the nail on the head - its a known design flaw with a vibrating pipe that only manifests if system pressure is lost quickly after engine turn off. This is usually either due to a flat accumulator sphere, or leaky electrovalves if the car is Hydractive 2.

First port of call is to replace the accumulator sphere, and if it still does it but the suspension is otherwise working fine and rides well, just accept it as a normal quirk.

My new Xantia sometimes makes this groan after I come to a stop and switch the engine off, before I even get out of the car - but I know the accumulator sphere is nearly dead flat and it will stop doing it when I replace the sphere.

My first Xantia also did it due to a badly (internally) leaking front electrovalve - after I replaced the electrovalve it stopped doing it!

PS some of the other symptoms point to a flat accumulator sphere too, so definitely get that done and then see what symptoms remain.

As for the height correctors, there's no way you can reach the front height corrector without the front of the car up on ramps or parked on a pit/hoist. The last thing you want to do is try to go under the car with the suspension up to play with the height corrector and end up crushing yourself to death!

You must have enough room to get under safely with the suspension fully down, which means ramps, hoist or pit...people have been killed under Citroens taking risks with the suspension so be careful. Assume that it could drop suddenly and unexpectedly at any time and be sure you have sufficient space underneath for that eventuality.

[Old-Guy]

In a 'semi-emergency' I've lifted a Xantia safely as follows. Back wheels chocked with (broken) bricks. Suspension on HIGH, then jack under front jacking points one at a time to lift enough to get axle stands under subframe mountings (could have used concrete blocks if my folding axle stands hadn't been in the boot). This gave me just enough space to fix a blowing exhaust.

WD40 isn't much use for height adjuster mechanisms IMHO. I use lots of spray penetrating fluid to wash off the crud (squirt, brush, squirt, brush ad infinitum) with an old bowl underneath to catch the evil greasy fall-out. Leave to drip-dry then spray with chain grease.