C5 rear hydraulic cylinder

[lexi]

Are you logged in Labman? Do you want a phone no.?

[lexi]

Will be offline for a week or so. Will catch you when I get back. I may be interested in other items like your comms unit and intercooler.

[KennyW]

It's a simple repair, I have done it my xantia same rear clynder as you have. Since repair no problems.

Kenny

[Bandit12]

Hi Labman

Have you decided if you can fix your C5 or are you scrapping it? If you are going to scrap it, any chance of getting the deisel additive ECU? Mines gone u/s and cant seem to find one (other than silly price new from main dealer)

Bandit

[THELABMAN]

Hi folk, I've decided to scrap the car of if anyone wants parts they're welcome to them but I'm afraid you'd have to be local to me as I don't have the tools or the knowledge/ability to strip it ... I know to some it's an easy repair but I've honestly just had enough throwing a few hundred pounds at it every couple of months....

if anyone would like the whole car you're welcome to it ... she is MOTd to April next year and has £40 worth of diesel in the tank as I only put it in the morning I went to work and got told of the leak.

[Bandit12]

Hi Mate thanks for letting me know you are scrapping the car. Unfortunately I'm in kent so can't come and collect.

Hope you shift it soon

Bandit

[THELABMAN]

Well I've been offered as little as £97 to scrap it which is insulting and Iim more than happy to let her sit in the driveway .. I'd live it if someone could put he'd back on the road or at least use her to keep others on the road rather than just turn her into a pile of shredded metal ....

[chinkostu]

scrap prices must be taking a tumble again. i got the same for a Saxo a few years back and thats a tin shed!

is there no option of keeping her on the road for yourself? seeing as most of us guys are located mid/south, and definately south from you!

otherwise it might be worth throwing on fleabay

[ecohouse1]

Chris Morewood is recovering from an op in hospital but asked me to reply on his behalf. It is the same issue as he had with his Xantia HDI estate and the rear cylinders are the same as the HDI Xantia. Bigger than the standard Xantia estate rears. Chris said that there was a period when they used the C5 cylinders. He has a few for sale if you are interested,as he had to get a job lot made. I think he said they were manufactured in India. Let me know if you need any further details and I can text him.

[RichardW]

That' not quite right....

The cylinders themselves are different; C5 has a flange with two bolts in it to hold it in whereas the Xantia one fits in a hole and is retained by a big clip, so they are not interchangeable. There was a period where C5 style pipes were used on the Xantia, and these cylinders are not interchangable with other Xantia ones (nor C5 ones). However, the failure mechanism is the same - corrosion of the outer lip at the end that allows the seal to blow out. Chris's solution was to machine the end off the cylinder to remove the groove, and then use a Dowty washer to seal it rather than the std Flat O-ring. I believe the sphere threads are the same size, and therefore the supply of (M36?) dowty washers Chris has got could be used on a C5. Being a bodge artist, I would just file the end off the cylinder in situ and fit the dowty. Had I known this at the time, I would have saved myself 2 days work when mine went....

[c.morewood]

Yipee! Escaped for a day..
Thanks Ecohouse for the post on my behalf.
Labman, if you have a garage this should be quite a simple repair. The only difficult thing is getting the pin out which releases the cylinder from the car so that you can grind off the corroded part of the cylinder.( I suppose if you had a small enough grinder and were careful you could just about do it in Situ.) On a 13 year old xantia it was a bit of a pain but I can't imagine you'd have the same problem with a C5.
The dowty seals are £14 each.. mainly because they had to come special order from India and had to order a min. on 10.
It seems a shame to scrap a good car because of this. But this will become a more common fault as the old cylinders succumb to salt corrosion.
I wish I was fit enough to to the job and I'd say get it trailered up here.. you're only 150 miles away.
All the best,

[elma]

scrap prices must be taking a tumble again.

£60 a tonne if my friends correct.
Makes a Diesel Xant worth £84 minus whatever they rob you of in environmental charges which is usually £15.
£69 for a Xantia!?!? No wonder they sell for nothing if they've a problem.

[c.morewood]

If you look after them....294 K and 798 miles for 3/4 tank.. they'll go on and on and cost you next to nothing but time... 21p per mile including everything, from insurance to nuts bolts and polish! (been trying to use that last quarter for a couple of months, but the doctors wont let me!!!)