Test driving a low mileage Xantia

[madasafish]

I have driven a wide range of cars – both company and privately owned – including 2 BMW 3 series, Mercedes260, Jaguar XJ6, Audi A4 110TDI, Ford Fiesta, Peugeot 106, various Fords/Rovers and Toyotas. So trying to find a nice diesel Xantia free from the usual ills proved an interesting experience this week (November 2004)
Finally I found a 1998 Xantia LX with airconditioning in silver with 31,000 miles on the clock. On an S plate. (the facelift model). First owner was Citroen UK and in 2000 it was sold to an owner who did 20,000 miles, had it serviced twice and hardly used it. The stamps verified the mileage.
Paintwork was the usual Citroen late 1990s shade- dull and uninspiring. Apart from a scratch over the passenger side rear wheel arch (very common – presumably reversing) and minor scuffs on either end of the front bumper (turning to park- again very common) the paint was perfect. No external rust, all external bightwork was OK and all lights were uncracked, bright and unfaded. No cracks to screen, all electrics worked and it started first time ( a recent new Halfords battery helped). Both plip keys were in perfect order and worked 100%.
The engine bay had not been cleaned but it was dusty with no oil stains, new filters and showed signs of good maintenance – backed by the stamps in the book. There were 2 new front spheres. The radiator was not corroded and heated up evenly down its length as the engine warmed up. The cambelt looked as new .
The suspension rose and fell with no squeaks or groans, the fluid was green with no apparent leaks apart from spills under one wheel arch after changing the spheres. The airconditioning pumped out hot or cold air as required.
I drove it. The engine was fine: no black smoke and smooth, no obviously nasty noises, no turbo whistles. The ride was smooth and took all bumps very well. It rode well and cornered well The engine tended to idle at 1,500 rpm and then fall off slowly (after 30 secs) to 1,000rpm – signs of a sticking electronic control. It had been on a garage forecourt for weeks so maybe lack of use. The clutch worked perfectly but the clutch mechanism felt stiff. – maybe lack of use.
As usual the steering felt very detached but the barkes were perfect – no odd noises, powerful and straight line braking. It rode and cornered smoothly.
At £2,699 from a garage with a year’s MOT I was impressed but decided not to buy it. It was nearly perfect BUT the clutch worried me , the 4 Michelin tyres looked original and had about 4mm of tread left – but at 6 years old were past their sellby date and would have to be replaced. And that silver colour was so dull. The wheels were steel with very good trims – no alloys – there was no sunroof and a radio cassette and no CD player. And the price was about £500 over mileage adjusted top book.
Compared to an Audi A4TDI it was- Slower- less power, had a much smoother engine, a much better ride and felt less like driving a bus. The Audi won hands down on interior fittings – but the Audi (and SE) cost nearly 60% more…
Compared to an E36 BMW 318 the interior was unimpressive, the handling had no feel but it was much smoother to drive.
With minimal work it would do another 150,000 miles with no trouble and would be a good buy but frankly it was overpriced and under specced. Since it had been for sale for 3 weeks, others obviously thought the same..

[nick]

What engine was it? If its a 1.9TD that is overpriced, but for a 2.1TD or an HDi that's probably not too bad considering the low mileage.

[jeremy]

Somehow I think you'd decided that you didn't want this car before you even sat in it? Mileage, history and condition made it a sensible purchase but its good to see that your heart overrules your head!
Hope you find what you're looking for!
I know exactly what the problem is - having never really been a person who bought sensible cars. Some have been expensive but I've enjoyed most of them.
On holiday my BX TD Estate developed a hydraulic leak which looked like octopus - not expensive but difficult to do. I also ahev an ongoing gearbox problem that will probably need a repalcement and the engine seemed to be making noises for the cambelt end. Nothing terminal but with an MOT due on my return and 2 new front tyres coming up soon it made me have a think about alternatives. naturally my mind turned to Xantias but unless I could get a 110 estate I didn't really think they appealed that much as either being slow (TD) and thirstier (2.1 and TD) than the BX as well as significantly longer. ZX was an alternative but whilst our 1.9D is an excellent car I much prefer driving the BX and I like the hydraulics.
So we decided to persevere with the BX, glad that we had had the discussion. I send it for the MOT expecting trouble over the leak at least (didn't even put any injector cleaner in it or fill the tank!) and much to my surprise it passed with a clean sheet! the hydraulic leak turned out to be the HIGH pressure line between the regualtor and the safety valve (about £22 from Citroen) the cambelt noise was the alternator bearings (not cheap! but easier job) and I've still got to sort out the gearbox! and hopefully I'm set up for some more years happy motoring in the thing!
jeremy

[madasafish]

It's an XUD.. a HDI would be nicer but round here (stoke on Trent) there were few of them sold

[mseymour]

<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by madasafish</i>

It's an XUD.. a HDI would be nicer but round here (stoke on Trent) there were few of them sold
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote"></font id="quote">
If the clutch was heavy you did well to walk away. It's about £270 for a new clutch, and given the low mileage the car had probably done a lot of town driving, lots of wear on the clutch bearing.