V6 Xantia......... the beginning of another adventure

[Trainman]

I'm not surprised you could hear me, Sarah has told me the swearbox is full now and we need another

It's no wonder I'm skint.....

I didn't know you could fill a skip sized swear box!

You'd be surprised....

[KP]

Those bleed valve nipples are a right royal pain in the sphincter!

I've found the best way to deal with them is some fat nosed pliers and being gentle with them pointing straight on as im they do the job just great and allow bleeding of a hot system as well

Glad you've worked through all of the last little jobs to do before you decide what's being done at the end of the month, and the boot light switch would have definitely had me sweating like a trooper after 12months

[Trainman]

It seems this "young lady" is craving my attention again.....

Started her up after being at work and thought the gearbox was falling off, there was one he'll of an horrendous noise, I then realised that it was the exhaust....

When you start the car, there's one shell of a screaming noise coming from underneath, but it's weird It's almost like something is loose around the exhaust, because the noise is only at idle, and when cold, as soon as you apply power or once the car has warmed up, there's no noise.......

Going to have a look later ....... subject to the weather

[CitroJim]

Something is indeed showing a gap when cold Steve and expanding with heat to close it up..

Worst it could be is a cracked exhaust manifold but more likely it's an exhaust joint and there's plenty from the manifolds back to the cat.

I'd start my search at the cat to mid-section join and then move to the cat to collector joint. One useful way of seeing if any of these are leaking when stone-cold is they'll drip water from condensation the engine and exhaust makes when running cold.

One common place is the cat to mid-section joint. This is double-skinned and rots away. It can be repaired by a skilled welder in order to save the cat.

Another common place is for pinholes to appear in the double-skinned area of the front pipe - the one that comes off the front bank manifold and dives under the engine. That one can be fixed with a spot of weld...

So, if you see a dripping joint or hole you've found it!

[CitroJim]

Actually that's a good point Mike...

I did notice the auxiliary belt was looking a little elderly...

Also, it might be the crank pulley beginning to separate. Steve, paint a couple of lines across it and check they remain unbroken. If the lines break after a couple of starts you know the pulley has had it.

Sometimes if the pulley is bad enough a squeal can be provoked when the aircon compressor engages...

New pulleys are about £60 from a stealer and are easier than they look to replace.

[Mandrake]

The silver problem child was starting to make a noise that sounded like the crank pulley rubber was slipping - only when starting, where it would give a loud squeak, I painted white lines on it but never got a chance to check them before the car went!

[KP]

Steve do you want a second set of eyes to help find it? If it's after your shift I can bob over and listen while you crank to narrow it down some more

[Trainman]

Xantia rear ended...... suspect it to be a write off

More later

[Hell Razor5543]

You appear to be having the weekend from hell! I hope that you are OK (apart from getting somewhat fed up, that is!).

[KP]

Dear god that sucks! I've sent you a text Mr W and hopefully help save it!

[Northern_Mike]

Oh bloody hell. I hope you're ok Steve.

Sent from my SM-N9005 using Tapatalk

[daviemck2006]

That's awful Steve. And here's me moaning about a 6 inch scratch. I hope all the bodies are ok, they are more difficult to fix.

[Mandrake]

Unbelievable.

Hope everyone involved is ok.

[bxzx16v]

As above Steve, I really hope nobody was injured and hope the car can be repaired.

Mark

[CitroJim]

Oh dear god Steve

Hopefully it can be saved but a rear-end is not good unless light. The rear end crumples very readily...

A good sign is if the rear doors and tailgate still operate normally...