Xantia air con not working...

Post your Cit/Peu/Ren air conditioning queries or advice.

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Kowalski
Posts: 2557
Joined: 15 Oct 2003, 17:41
Location: North East, United Kingdom
My Cars: Ex 05 C5 2.0 HDI Exclusive 145k
Ex 97 Xantia 1.9TD SX 144k
Ex 94 Xantia Dimension 1.9TD 199k

Post by Kowalski »

Progress, I found a cheap bottle of 134 and gassed the system up and now its working.
That was yesterday, the bad news is that I have a leak, somewhere around the evaporator. I bought an electronic leak detector off ebay (£13 all in, with a spare tip and new batteries). I pulled the cover off the pollen filter and before the filter was taken out the leak detector went absolutely crazy, it continued beeping away crazily for a good few seconds as I stood 10 feet away from the car. After I took the pollen filter out, the detector got a bit excited again but quietened down once the air had time to circulate. Now it doesn't detect anything at all in there, which would seem to suggest that the leak is very slight, or that it only leaks with the system running.
If I could remove the glovebox and it's surround I'd have reasonable access to the area in question. The glovebox surround is held in by 3 scews at the top which I can easilly remove, but there are another 2 screws at the bottom, concealed by the glovebox and I can't see how the glovebox comes out. There is a stop at the top of the glovebox which stops it from opening too far, but once you get past this stop the glovebox doesn't move any further, I can't see what is stopping it. I can't see the glovebox hinges either, so I'm stuck.
Does anybody know how to get a Xantia glovebox and it's surround out without breaking it?
alan s
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Joined: 26 Jan 2001, 15:53
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Post by alan s »

If it is showing a leak when you first access it and/or the leak seems to disappear when the system has run for a while, that's due to the build up of gas in the evaporator area when not running.......a.k.a. a low side leak.
It will possibly be on the "O" rings on the fittings to the T/X valve or alternatively on the actual valve itself and leaks when the system is off more than it will when it's running, due to the pressure build up in the region (suction side) when the system is inactive. A crack or pinhole in the actual evaporator will also show the same symptoms.
I don't know if Xantias over there originally came with the older type gas in them which if they did, you may even find that the system is still fitted with black "O" rings instead of the green neoprene ones, in which case, you'll need to do a full system conversion of "O" rings or as fast as you sort one leak, there's the potential for another as the new gas eats the old type "O" rings.
Alan S
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