Advice please

Bren · Post by **Bren** » 20 Jan 2008, 20:12

I have a problem with the ABS light on my vehicle - it failed the MOT last september because it was illuminated, needed a front o/s sensor - problem solved and a new MOT was handed to myself. However, it is illuminating intermittently again, and usually goes out after the car is restarted and driven a short distance.

The other problem I have is with the drivers door - it has dropped, and the top corner of the frame is just catching the top of the passenger door as it closes. I have replaced the pins and they did'nt make much difference. There does'nt look to be any kind of adjustment.

Any advice would be appreciated. The car is low mileage (115K) and in excellent condition( the aircon needs regassing). I cant think of anything that will do what this car does for the same money. However, I do not want to be throwing wads of cash at what is, at the end of the day, an 11 year old car.

Post by **CitroJim** » 20 Jan 2008, 20:37

Hi Bren,

Sometimes, the ABS light intermittently illuminating is down to dirt on the "Dragons Teeth" on the front CV joints. These, in conjunction with the ABS sensor itself generate the speed-related pulses for the ABS ECU. I had the same problem after a split CV boot spilt grease on them. After a good clean-up, no further problems.

Flaky rust can also cause the problem, especially on the rear hub teeth. To get at these you need to remove the rear discs.

Bad connections on the ABS sensor wiring is also a prime candidate. The connectors, aprticularly at the front are in a very exposed position and often get saturated with oil.

Although I've not personally experienced it yet, I understand Estates have a problem with the door hinge welds failing. It is easy enough to fix I believe.

The Estates were all built by a company called Heuliez and maybe they did not weld the hinges in quite the same way or quite as well as Citroen did on the hatchbacks. Heuliez also built the BX, XM and CX Breaks amongst others.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heuliez

np · Post by np » 21 Jan 2008, 00:14

I would 2nd the door hinge welds.Never had it on my old `97 est,but is a well know weak spot on the estates.Usally need re-welding in place.Plenty on here,try a search to see what comes up.

Bren · Post by **Bren** » 25 Jan 2008, 21:49

Had a good look at the bottom hinge and the weld had started to tear away from the surrounding metal. A local body shop charged me £40 to do an invisible repair (they even put some silver paint on it) and the car is sorted. Apparently the guy who did my car claimed that citroens in general have this problem, and that the saxo is the worst as it can be difficult to find an area of sufficient strength to weld to. I had thought about welding it myself (I used to be a welder before I joined the local constabulary) as I have a little arc welder, but I was worried about damaging the car's electronics - all the idiot lights illuminated, no radio etc. Thanks for your input.

citronut · Post by **citronut** » 26 Jan 2008, 21:24

i dont know about useing an arc welder on car body work i always think its a bit fears, but i have heard people say it is possible, i use a mig and attatch a surge prottector across the battery especialy on 2CVs to prottect there sensative electronics HE HE HE
regards malcolm

davek-uk · Post by **davek-uk** » 28 Jan 2008, 10:27

I picked up a cheap tip off of here a year or so ago. Drill a hole through the hinge plate, right through to the inside - it needed a long masonry drill. Then put a bolt through it with a large washer and nut on the end. Do this up tight and it cures the problem.

reblack68 · Post by **reblack68** » 28 Jan 2008, 22:00

When an ABS fault is detected it stays detected until the ABS ECU is reset. On S1 cars the ECU is reset when you turn the ignition on, while on S2 cars it resets the first time you reach 20mph. If the fault is still present when the ECU resets then the light doesn't go out.

I had an intermittent ABS light problem, it would come on as soon as I hit a certain speed. One day there was a clatter under the car and the light came on to stay. It turned out that one of the CV joints had shed its toothed ring. The intermittent fault must have been caused by it either being cracked or running off centre. Unfortunately I had to buy a whole CV joint, the ring wasn't available separately.