I am an Activaist-v6 and a 2.1Estateerr

[CitroJim]

Interesting SC CAR (Indication) modification

http://alain.jaeger.free.fr/Visudiode-.pdf

Sweet and very well executed indeed

Worth doing and an excellent guide... The pictures say it all. The text is not needed really!

[Stickyfinger]

More headlamp work.

A TEST of adhesive (so not in anyway neat) strength on the 3mm clear lexian sheet I have obtained........seems to work

[Stickyfinger]

Headlamp conversion work progress....testing is getting there.

[CitroJim]

Gosh! That headlamp test has made the paint fade a bit Alasdair

And destroyed the front numberplate! They must be powerful

[Stickyfinger]

the sun fades red lot..but zero lacquer peel

[CitroJim]

the sun fades red lot..but zero lacquer peel

Odd how some colours do and some don't.. I still don't understand how red can peel so badly, dark blue a little and other colours hardly at all...

Can you explain Alasdair?

[Stickyfinger]

Metallic Silver for example has a higher mica content thus the colour coat is quite "rough". As such the top coat has to be both thicker as well as having more to "grip" to the colour coat substrate.
I suspect the reflection rate keeps the colour coats cooler/less expansion/less micro cracks/less moisture penetration under the top coat into a porous colour coat (1980/90's technology/water base colour).....as I understand it.

[Hell Razor5543]

It could be worse. I remember when there was a bit of a furor when the car manufacturers changed their paint formulas (for environmental reasons, IIRC), and it turned out that bird droppings caused damage to the newer paints. Quite a few customers were unhappy with that.

[CitroJim]

That's an interesting thought Alasdair... Makes a lot of sense

How then does one explain when Ford introduced metallic silver in the early 60s (Silver Fox IIRC) it suffered terribly from lacquer peel?

James, bird droppings are lethal to a lot of paints and surface coatings in my experience... Got to clean it up ASAP...

[Stickyfinger]

Peel/flake is caused by a thin and brittle gloss coat suffering micro cracks (and customers not polishing with WAX)....the Ford stuff will just be to thin (and no WAX on it to protect)
The lesson is you can blame the company but you also have to blame yourself as well. Ultra thin "modern waxless" super polishes are only good for going on top of a WAX coat.

[CitroJim]

Ahh, so that's what I did wrong with the Activa then - I never polished it enough with the right stuff

Now you tell me

Now, had I known that in 2008 I'd still have an immaculate Activa...

[Hell Razor5543]

Ahh, so that's what I did wrong with the Activa then - I never polished it enough with the right stuff

Now you tell me

Now, had I known that in 2008 I'd still have an immaculate Activa...

And I thought you were a Karate fan! What was it the young lad was told in "The Karate Kid"? 'Wax on, wax off'.

[CitroJim]

Ahh, so that's what I did wrong with the Activa then - I never polished it enough with the right stuff

Now you tell me

Now, had I known that in 2008 I'd still have an immaculate Activa...

And I thought you were a Karate fan! What was it the young lad was told in "The Karate Kid"? 'Wax on, wax off'.

Good one James!

Sadly, I never did perfect that technique

On that subject, I've recently had to give up karate due to my deteriorating cognitive health I can no longer marshal the necessary mental ability to perform the techniques effectively; any task requiring much simultaneous mental and physical activity is now beyond me...

For this same reason driving is now extremely difficult for me...

It's a good job very little is needed to run, swim and cycle I am now just concentrating on those three activities...

[xantia_v6]

Thomas Beligné says:
V6 Activa have specific regulators, they are firmer than the others. They "should" however switch.................but how much is "firmer" ?

Have you checked on service.citroen.com? My recollection is that all Xantias have the same rear hydractive valve body (including dampers), and all except the Mk1 V6 use the same unit (as the rear) at the front. The Mk1 V6 uses the XM valve at the front. I don't recall that the Activa uses different valves, but I can't check, as service.citroen won't let me in at present (it gets upset when I change countries).

[Stickyfinger]

Cutting out the headlamp glass