Veggie and Activa tales but now rental reviews blog!

[KP]

well is hould start with a bang i guess.
There are already posts of how many rear wheel bearings i've got thru, i got my car at about 96-98k on the clock and she has just passed 131k now!

So far i have fixed the rear bearings twice(both sides), the aux belt tensioner that killed itself, the front spheres that went flat, topped up the aircon, 2nd set of front pads and a new set of discs, new tyres at front and one rear.

Removed the spare tyre and bits to save some wieght, done all the filters every 3-5k as running veg so want to keep it clean.

ABS light is now on all the time although all sensors look fine i guess the bearing replacements have knocked one out of kilt.
One of the front driveshafts inner CV joints is on its last legs but identifying which one it is is proving difficult thought the car still drives fine other than the hum from it

Drivers top door hing is suffering rust, again the first xantia in the many i've come across to have this fault and as usuall citroen aren't interested in repair obviously shoddy manufacturing work....

Its fine most of the time... I love being able to cruise along in it knowing im not using diesel and that the veg oil i use is much cheaper as well The car is super comfy, the seats are really nice(though i hanker for leather again) the aircon works supremely well and she corners and rides over bumps just right with the Exclusive alloys on her.

Most adventures for her of late are to work and back everyday. 15miles each way, and midnight trips with the little en to settle him off, somethign about a dark enviroment noisy diesel engine and soft ride sorts him out!

Oh and an engine mount seems to be getting very flexible lately as the clutch wear continues as its still on its original from what i know...

Shes been up hills, off roaded, over to northern ireland and back, done countless miles on veg(nearly 40k now) and hasn't cost too much(excluding silly bearings) to keep going and is serving very well.
I do feel it a shame that the new C5 Digress's from the true citroen suspensio roots so much...

[KP]

Well our faithfull little 1.4 D-4D Auris is going back to its maker as we have outgrown it now and after 18months of leaving its factory has still only just covered 13k.
It was getting silly having to load the pushchair into the boot and Rachel really needs a car she can feel confident in driving all day everyday as well sa being easy to load the kids and their clobber into.
The MMT gearbox is good in theory but i would advise against owning it or its sensodrive/EGS relatives as the control for exiting busy junctions could be hit or miss and a bit scary sometimes.
The vehicle to replace it is a nice 06( so 1 year older) Verso T180 so we get plenty of space, poke and entertainment as well as not much more on insurance and negligble increase in MPG, wont matter much when its Bio i start chucking in it...
It has £44k on the clock and was £11,990 and considering we got the Auris part ex'd for £9700 not bad. plus full tank of fuel and the minor scrape on it tidied up before we pick her up. so its lost most of its value already(£23k when new with the packs on) means it will be a better own for the next few years considering how well the4 MPV market seems to stack up, especialy the more potent mini MPV's knocing around.
DVD's ion the back to keep one nipper happy and then in a year or so the other squeeler should be good. The ride isnt as good as a xantia but it is quiter than my Noisy Xantia.
if only citroen did fully hydraulic Picassos and C8 they would be well worth it for road holding and ride but alas they only do the rear on some models

[KP]

Well the Sump has finally holed after the small crack i fo9und in her the other weak. I have use Liquid metal again as a temp repair with some metal sheet to cover it but i know this wont last long so ill be hunting out a spare sump from an aircon model to fix this if i can ever get round to pulling off the AC compressor and aux belt considering how strapped for time and sleep i am at the minute and that i have spent about 2 hours in the last week with SWMBO so my brains a bit fried sometimes

On the other hand picked up the Verso and i have to say its not as bad on the juice as i thought, easily hits into the 40's on a cruise and more if driven carfeully. Cruise control is good for this and the rear parking sensors will no doubt help rebuild Rachels confidence in driving again after the many knocks the auris suffered, though mostly from people not seeing the car Its great for the little ens as the DVD system keeps them happy, well one of them as other one is happy to just look around at the minute!

It handles very well, it sits on 17" alloys but has a decent profile of 50 so its not too hard and grips very well. The torque is immense, 400nm's if im lead to believe is what it puts out and it dont half feel it!
Compared to the xantia it really really pulls.
Its a strong engine its done 44k already so its run in a bit and going to be going on Biodiesel soon enough if i find the local place is producing good stuff.
It easily fits the Pushchair in the back with a full load of shopping and still has loads of space and the privacy glass does help to keep the heat of the car down as well.

My only grip with it is the air blower fan in the car seems a bit weedy. on full power it sounds like the xantia at 3/4 power... Probably the airfilter slowing it down a bit but it feels a very very solid i have to say. I think im starting to get bitten by this build quality bug thing
Pity that i cant get one that runs on Veggie power!! lol

[KP]

Well i've been trying the liquid metal and even though the surfaces have been cleaned and roughed up prior to application im convinced that due to the minimal amount of oil remaining in the sump and slowly running down that when its applied it hits the inner edge of the seal and then break it by forming a layer between the surfaces im trying to stick.

Trying to find a replacement sump at the moment but not looking forward to doing that job on the drive with no ramps and just the trolley jacks

Also the Verso blew its Pass side front tyre out the other day after a motorway run and has damaged the alloy but Toyota are replacing the tyre with a brand new one and the alloy with a brand new one as well so thats all good! considering the tyres are about £110 each and then the alloy thats good And also got a verso T3 while in its which feels as powerful as the mighty Xantia, a very noticable drop in poke compared to the T180 but the same kinda MPG as well which is a bit pointless really....

[MikeT]

Well i've been trying the liquid metal and even though the surfaces have been cleaned and roughed up prior to application im convinced that due to the minimal amount of oil remaining in the sump and slowly running down that when its applied it hits the inner edge of the seal and then break it by forming a layer between the surfaces im trying to stick.

Many moons ago I was asked to jack up the front of a Rover P6 and naively cracked the ally sump. To fix it, the garage owner drained the oil and then sat patiently heating the crack with a blowtorch and mopping the oil residues that appeared. This was to allow the araldite to take and seal the crack. Perhaps that might work for you if you've run out of alternatives? I do remember it took a long time of heating and wiping before the oil was removed.

[KP]

Got the Verso back, took mechanic for test drive and returned him to dealership where the car has been booked in for another day of investigation The Auxillary belt and tensioners are due for renewal in the next year or two fro what i've seen of the service schedules but Rachels poor verso is currently suffering a ticking between 1500-2000rpm which has now been put down to either
Water pump,
Aux Belt,
Tensioner/idler pulley for aux belt
and on thursday these are getting replaced.

If it doesn't cure the noise then at least its saved me spending the money for a few years on getting them done but the guy said he has never had a Dual Mass Flywheel fail on a T180 yet which is encouraging and has not yet replaced one either(i asked as i originally thought it could be early warning signs it was failing).
Not doing bad out of this new car malarky i think. New tyre and rim so far and a courtesy car for 3 days in total by the end of this week with free fuel in it as well

[KP]

Well now there appears to be a weep from the sttering rack(from what i can see with a quick scan under the bonnet this lunch), the rad weld has either given up or the rad has blown another leak and it cant seal it, and the car for some reason when on full right lock wants to apply the brakes..... Not heavily but enough to notice a slowing force or drag on the front nearside wheel....

[KP]

Well it now appears to be going off to the car graveyard.

I'd like to it go to a good home but the following jobs make it uneconomical even for a lover of the cars....

Steering Rack/Block weeping,
Rad Leaking,
Aux belt gone and pulley damaged,
Rear trailing arms need to be swapped out,
Front driveshaft or gearbox,
Drivers side top door hinge needs rewelding,
Sump needs repair or replacement,
Part of the air inlet tract needs replacing.....

Not worth repairing or working on so its off to the bin, minus any parts anyone wants of course, though im keeping the radio and the alloys and maybe will rip the speakers out as well as i think they are doing nice, though could find they are U/S when stripped out!

Got my eye on either an exclusive V6 now or a 2.0CT or a HDI exclusive so no more veggie oil motoring for me by the looks of it

[jgra1]

sorry to hear that KP almost got a sump for you at the weekend but may need to keep it...

Hate to see a car scrapped but will give you something for the steering wheel

[KP]

Ill see what i can sort out, are you after the controls or the whole wheel?

[jgra1]

well the controls really... but its hard to get them out without breaking the ribbons... care needed..

like I say, dont worry unless your sure the car is going to that place

[KP]

Oh yeah it will be going as i cant fix it with all the things wrong with it, may as well put the money and tax rebate onto getting a another Xantia really.
Cant even user the brakes or suspension so may take it for one last thrash along the worst potholed muddy track in the world just round the corner before it goes away. wonder if they will just pick it up on a grabber as it wont be driveable when i've finished lol.

[CitroJim]

If you do break it KP, bags me the Injection Pump please. I need one to practice de-armouring

[KP]

Ok Jim, guess it will give me practice at actually removing one!!!

[KP]

Ok Jim, guess it will give me practice at actually removing one!!!