Citrojim's Pixo, Saxo and Cycling Tales

[CitroJim]

Springer Spaniels are big tarts

Kyra has been as good as gold with me but is terrified of my two grandfather clocks. Last evening we sat down to watch a bit of TV and she curled up under my footstool. One of the clocks struck 8 and she flew up, banged her head on the stool, ran to the clock, looked at it menacingly and barked. Then the other clock struck. One very confused and bewildered dog.

This was repeated at 9PM.

Earlier we visited Val and she has a decoy cat screwed to the side of her garden shed. Kyra spotted it, thought it was real and spent a good few minutes wildly jumping at it in a desperate attempt to catch it

She either loves or hates cats as none are safe from her. She spots a cat and the chase is on!

She's always been trained not to come upstairs and is good at obeying the rule but no way was she going to sleep with those damm clocks last night so she crept upstairs and slept with me. All very quietly and apologetically... She was good despite she snores and has dog's breath!

I'm happy too as unlike cats I find I have no allergy to dogs although she has just been clipped and is distinctly short in the coat department. If a dog can sleep with me I see that as a good test.

She's been out in the Activa today and approves. The boost has been tweaked just a tad higher again

Spaniels.. You just have to love 'em

I'm going to miss her when she goes back to her rightful owners tomorrow. Never thought I'd say that about a dog...

[KP]

Watch that boost addiction Jim! You'll be on about aquamist or hybrids next...

[CitroJim]

Watch that boost addiction Jim! You'll be on about aquamist or hybrids next...

It's OK Will, I've hidden the 17mm spanner an Allen key I need to adjust it

[Hell Razor5543]

Yep, hidden them in the glove box!

I like spaniels. They are a bit scatty, but always cheerful little people. I would say they smile with their whole body.

[CitroJim]

I like spaniels. They are a bit scatty, but always cheerful little people. I would say they smile with their whole body.

Very right James. Kyra has gone home now and I'm missing her

Team WFA did a heck of a job yesterday. Firstly we replaced the duff bits of my garden fence and then we set about replacing the broken heater flaps in Liam's 407.

It's a common fault. The axles break on the flaps and they become stuck. The plastic is a bit rubbish. Pug now do an updated and improved set of flaps and they're not expensive but to swap the it's necessary to remove the dash complete and then get to the heater box.

For those that know the full horror of Xantia dash removal we're pleased to report that 407 dash removal, despite all the air bags and screens and other hi-tech bits is marginally easier

Getting the heater box out isn't but luckily there is a short-cut - literally - that allows the offending flaps to be replaced with partial disassembly of the heater box in-situ and then making four careful cuts with a junior hacksaw and then gluing it back together with Araldite.

If a heater matrix ever goes in a 407 we now know it's a heater box right out job and that's a bit of a pain.

We now see why a Pug dealer will quote over a grand to do heater flaps.

It took us all day as we had to learn how to get certain bits of the dash and centre console apart without resorting to angle grinders, axes and dynamite. In some places Pug have been very silly and it looks like the XM design team have been at work again. In other places a far better effort has been made to make things more logical and sensible.

We reckon now that we could just about knock the job out in six hours...

[KP]

It's the same on C5's Jim but from what I read of 407's the new flaps can still go as well so it's best to strengthen them with thin metal rods, fishing wire and araldite I believe. One guy I've seen has made some turbo versions completely replacing te shaft with a metal dowel and the nutting the required shape into the end of it.

I'm going for the side entry method when i get round to doing my dads new C5

[CitroJim]

Interesting to know the same applies to a C5 Will

Once again PSA have chosen a foot, taken careful aim and pulled the trigger

What cost a decent bit of well engineered plastic against the reputation of the car and massive repair bills for an owner who does not fancy popping out the dash and attacking the heater box with a hacksaw?

It makes me want to cry... PSA just cannot get all their ducks in a row however hard they try

[KP]

Well I've seen the new flaps and the longer splines on the newer motors and can't see how it resolves the underlying issue that the joints dry and cause twisting to occur.

Just like killing off hydro later this year. A pointless waste of good kit and engineering

[Mandrake]

Surely consumer guarantees act or something similar comes into effect, as the construction is not fit for purpose ?

You have a clear design flaw which has been there for years where you have an obviously inadequate piece of cheap plastic within the bowels of the dashboard and heater system that requires many hundreds of pounds labour to replace. And the fact that the replacement part is upgraded (but not enough) is a tacit admission of the shortcoming of the design.

No wonder PSA don't sell cars to the class action lawsuit crazy USA market - they'd be sued out of existence for crap like this....(and Xantia strut tops...)

[KP]

Yip, which I honestly think is a crying shame. If they had their act together and did it right from the start the US market would be ripe for them as they produce good cars for long distances and economical cars as well when you think of the 1.6hdi c5 and the 1.0l c1

[addo]

I haven't seen inside a C5 or 407 heater box but the earlier ones which stuck, seemed to stick because they tried too hard for a close tolerance fit between flaps and chambers - the casing distorts, the flaps bind and it's all over.

A dash job with a clued-up helper is just magic. It really does halve your time.

[CitroJim]

Ahh, now that sounds very good Adam as the axles snap from excess torsion by the looks of it....

A dash job with a clued-up helper is just magic. It really does halve your time.

A helper is absolutely necessary really, if only to assist in lifting out the dash as the 407 one is both bulky and heavy.

I must say that on a successful conclusion of the job it's most satisfying.

Forgot to say, we also found the aircon leak - a split flexi pipe from the compressor to the condenser - replaced the pipe and regassed the system. It now all works a treat.

I believe that pipe splitting is also a very common fault on the 407 and that too has been redesigned. Luckily it's not expensive and easy to swap. If it was the other compressor pipe it would be a bit of a devil.

[KP]

Ooo I'll give that a check on my dads as well then as his has a leak somewhere! Fairy liquid and water over the pipes should do it I reckon

[CitroJim]

After a happening this weekend my little C1 is now forever going to be known as 'Eyelashes'

I parked it behind a car in our Close that I thought was not going to move any time soon but as always that was not so. The owner popped over and asked if I would please move Eyelashes so that she could move her car

So that's it, the C1 has a name...

I do find that at 60mph the eyelashes don't half become agitated...

Huge thanks to Chris and Liam for another sterling effort today. Much appreciated indeed

[Hell Razor5543]

I do find that at 60mph the eyelashes don't half become agitated...

She is flirting!