I've joined the dreaded Heater Matrix Club

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steviewonder7
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I've joined the dreaded Heater Matrix Club

Post by steviewonder7 »

Hi folks,
Yep,joined the club,car was steaming up the other day when we had the rain,the header tank is down on coolannt and the passenger side carpet is wet.
I've bought all the necessary items for refurbishment and currently have the car in bits.I'm part way through removing the dashboard but I have a question.....Is it necessary to remove the scuttle as i believe if I have read correctly that there are three other screws/bolts to remove in the engine bay before the dash finally comes away.
As my scuttle has leaked in the past and is currently water proof I'm reluctant to remove the scuttle if it doesn't need to be removed.....but if you say it does then I'll bite the bullet.

regards Steve
1994 Xantia 1.9TD sx non anti sink.No aircon.Gone to the great scappy up above.

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Post by CitroJim »

Hi Steve,

Yes, I'm afraid the scuttle does have to come off :( Sorry...
Jim

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Post by davethewheel »

yep scuttle has to come off, there is also a bolt somewhere behind the lhm reservoir that is a bit tricky to get at.
all i did with the scuttle was to run a bead of clear silicon along the edge when i put it back on and it's been ok :)
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steviewonder7
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Post by steviewonder7 »

Well I finally finished the job today(thanks for your answers by the way) and what a B*&*$rd job it was.I'm definately not strpping a car to that extent just to get to a mini radiator :evil:
I've done this sort of job before on other vehicles and they were a piece of cake in comparison.
One thing I was concerned about (touch wood its not leaking) was the new heater matrix I purchased from GSF had outlet and inlet plastic pipes that was poorly manufactured in that they were not straight like the original leaky one I removed.
I had hell of job getting the plastic connector to push into the matrix at the firewall/bulkhead.So much so that I could not for the life of me push the two together properly...I would have had to use a Hammer on the pipes..but obviously my two days of hard work would have gone up the swanny if i'd done that :cry: never-the less the joint is holding and apparently water tight at the moment.
There's also nice hot air coming throught ducting,which was barely luke warm before. :)
Anyway all in all I'm glad its done and I never want to see behind the Xantia dash board again :wink:

regards Steve

Ps what the hell do they make those dash boards from,theyre blooming heavy :shock: :shock:
1994 Xantia 1.9TD sx non anti sink.No aircon.Gone to the great scappy up above.

Now with Xsara Picasso 2.0 HDI (90 bhp)(03 plate) in 'Wicked Red'
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Post by lexi »

If it`s any consolation a Rangerover is as bad. One guy should be designated from the forum to do all the Xantia matrix that are leaking.
We could put him up for a few nights and get him soundly drunk...........then give him his diesel money home..or some Biodiesel :lol:
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Post by CitroJim »

Steve,

Seriously, well done :D

An excellent job!
Jim

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Post by MikeT »

lexi wrote:One guy should be designated from the forum to do all the Xantia matrix that are leaking.
I used to work in a garage that had a dedicated matrix mechanic. He would get the job done in double-quick time but the howls of abuse and flying tools made it unerving to be there! :lol:
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Post by steviewonder7 »

Thanks for the comments guys.......and I couldn't agree more with the above.
I just wish things like this had the mechanic more in mind when it comes to design.It reminds me of my job as a maintenance technician where the eqiupment I maintain is never designed with the likes of us in mind.
:roll:
Regards Steve
1994 Xantia 1.9TD sx non anti sink.No aircon.Gone to the great scappy up above.

Now with Xsara Picasso 2.0 HDI (90 bhp)(03 plate) in 'Wicked Red'
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Post by CitroJim »

lexi wrote:One guy should be designated from the forum to do all the Xantia matrix that are leaking.
I can see a sizeable queue forming already for his services :lol: Who's it going to be then?

In any case he would never be short of work.
Jim

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Post by steviewonder7 »

How long would a Citroen mechanic take to do this job and roughly what would they charge for their services???
I bet when the garage supervisor comes in and tries to designate a mechanic to do this job on a customers car the mechanics all disappear to the toilet in a vain attempt not to get lumbered with the job :lol: :lol:
1994 Xantia 1.9TD sx non anti sink.No aircon.Gone to the great scappy up above.

Now with Xsara Picasso 2.0 HDI (90 bhp)(03 plate) in 'Wicked Red'
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Post by DickieG »

steviewonder7 wrote:How long would a Citroen mechanic take to do this job and roughly what would they charge for their services???
I beleive its viewed as an 8 hour job, which having now doen it twice is not that unreasonable. A major issue on the time factor is whether the engine is turbo powered or not as the turbo ducting pipes severely restricts access to the heater hose to matrix connection on the bulkhead.

A word of advice for anyone undertaking this odious task is to get the car up to full temperature with the cooling fans running, switch off and use the additional pressure created within the cooling system to push the joint apart as doing it cold leaves a serious risk of splitting the plastic housing, a new one costs the best part of £100, not to mention the hassle of the car being off the road etc.
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Post by steviewonder7 »

8 hours to do the job is not bad going and yes I agree its very wise to get the car warmed up before removing the matrix pipes..its does make the job easier.
Definitely that turbo ducting needs to be removed when requiring access to the matrix pipes..I should think its impossible otherwise.In my case it would have been easier to do the job by removing the inlet manifold as well giving more access but I was reluctant to do that as access to the bolts etc are at the back of the engine making the job even longer and costing more for the likes of gaskets etc etc.
1994 Xantia 1.9TD sx non anti sink.No aircon.Gone to the great scappy up above.

Now with Xsara Picasso 2.0 HDI (90 bhp)(03 plate) in 'Wicked Red'
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Post by myglaren »

The guy I entrust my broken Citroens to did it in one working day, plus one or two other small jobs, don't recall what now, charged £180 inclusive.
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