Xantia - Rear wheel alignment / \

KevMayer · Post by **KevMayer** » 02 Nov 2005, 21:23

I've searched the forum and not found the answer i'm looking for. Hence, a new question.

I suspect the left rear wheel on my Activa is leaning slightly /. My steering pulls to the right so this could be the cause.

This must be a symptom of bearing wear in the rear arm. But, where is the rear arm bearing that people refer to. Is it actually the rear hub bearing on the stub axle. Or, is it a bearing at the pivot point of the trailing arm ?

Haynes says that the complete hub assembly should be replaced including a new nut and cap over the hole in the hub. I'm keen to do the work myself, so, do I just need a new hub assmbly ?

thanks for any replies.

cheers, Kev

adamskibx · Post by **adamskibx** » 02 Nov 2005, 21:43

Hello Kev

I know for the BX you need the rear arm bearing- their may be a kit that includes any other parts you may need. It is the bearing inside the point where the trailing rear arm pivots. I dont think you can feel for play here like you can in a rear wheel bearing so if you cant feel significant play it will be the rear arm bearing. If you can feel play try to see whether the movement is in the arm or just the wheel. Its 99% likely that its the rear arm bearing- Its good to catch it early as it prevents irreversable damage inside the arm itself. I saw a Xantia on the motorway the other day that had this problem so severely that it looked like the wheel was about to drop off. Literally at this angle: / and the driver had the car on Max height to prevent the wheel rubbing on the car! Ive heard its not technically hard but requires a bit of brute force here and there. Should be cheap if you can do it your self or £120 or so if you get a specialist to do it so best to have a go with the right part form GSF.
The BX DIY site covers the job and im pretty sure one of them deals with the Xantia too but I doubt they are too different.
Regards, Adam

Post by **Peter.N.** » 02 Nov 2005, 22:17

If as Adam says its the same as the BX (and the CX) the most difficult part is removing the outer part of the bearings from inside the arm. This can be made much easier if you have an arc welder and can run a ring of weld around the inside of the bearing casing, when it cools the casing will contract and you should be able to lever it out with a couple of screwdrivers. Dont worry to much if the inside of the arm is damaged, providing there is enough to hold the bearing in position, the bolt will clamp it all together.

Post by **Peter.N.** » 02 Nov 2005, 22:21

I had the same problem Adam, so learning from your experience I didn't post it twice!

j_roc · Post by **j_roc** » 04 Nov 2005, 00:26

The rear arm bearing is at the pivot point of the arm (24mm bolt and nut), GSF sell a kit for the Xm but not the Xantia?????? Where is the logic in that, I know that it's the same underneath but not everyone else does. Also 1 problem that I had fitting the Xm kit to my Xantia was that the bearing shaft was about 1/2 inch to short. The rear wheels still lean slightley, but are much better than they were before. When I bought the car they had (a cheap set, but none the less) a new set of tyres that had the inside edge knackred due to shot bearings. If you do buy the Kit for the Xm beware of the shaft being short when you fit it to your Xantia. Hope this helps - Alex.

j_roc · Post by **j_roc** » 04 Nov 2005, 00:27

Why was my post submitted twice?

-Alex.

Rostami · Post by **Rostami** » 04 Nov 2005, 08:56

Car Mechanics magazine published a series of articles on the Xantia, one of them covering the rear arm replacement. Look for the May/June editions of 2005.

Rostami · Post by **Rostami** » 04 Nov 2005, 08:59

Car Mechanics magazine published a series of articles on the Xantia, one of them covering the rear arm replacement. Look for the May/June editions of 2005.

Gregg1100 · Post by **Gregg1100** » 04 Nov 2005, 20:15

Hi,
See Common Problems And Fixes- Archive, in this Forum.
Under Rear Arm Bearings-Permanent Fix, it will explain all you need to know about radius arm bearing renewal.
Hope this helps,
Greg

wrinklet1 · Post by **wrinklet1** » 06 Nov 2005, 11:24

Hi Kev.
The rear arm bearing is the bearing that the rear arm pivots on. One side normally collapses. They are roller type bearings.
The rear left hand one went on my Xantia. It took me about 3 hours to get the arm off and replace the bearings and put it back.
Make sure you get a dry day to do the job.

Have a dremmal tool with metal cutting discs as you will need this to cut out the worn bearing shell. A lump hammer and a cold chisel is very handy too. A good idea too is to had a socket set so you can use one to help knocking the new bearings back in place.
Haynes says remove the ABS sensor, dont!, you dont need to. Have some latex gloves or similar. GSF do have a kit for the rear arm bearing for the Xantia, about £25.
Not a very hatd job to do.
Dont forget either, the Xantia rear wheels do point inwards anyway at the top as the car also has passive rear steering so its needed.

Paul

wrinklet1 · Post by **wrinklet1** » 06 Nov 2005, 11:25

Its worthwhile contacting GSF as they will give you some good tips.

KevMayer · Post by **KevMayer** » 06 Nov 2005, 19:12

Thanks everyone for the replies. :0)

dnsey · Post by **dnsey** » 06 Nov 2005, 23:21

If you're unsure whether the bearings have gone, check the tyre wear - it's VERY fast usually with bad bearings.

sheddriver · Post by **sheddriver** » 08 Nov 2005, 00:47

I have a similar problem (see earlier post) and I'm waiting for a free weekend to have a bash at fixing it. From what I can gather from the archives it seems the arms should be replaced as well as the bearings. Maybe someone could confirm this. What is a good price for the arms?

sheddriver · Post by **sheddriver** » 08 Nov 2005, 00:47

submitted twice

French Car Forum

Xantia - Rear wheel alignment / \

Xantia - Rear wheel alignment / \

Rear arm bearing

Rear arm bearing

Xantia- Rear Wheel Alignment