Citroenmads Citroen blog.

[ragger]

That's an interesting departure, Chris. I do rather like the external styling of these and prefer them to the Jaguars of that time; a good friend of mine had an X Type 3.0AWD until it lunched its gearbox and I found it small and not very comfortable. I think the Rover is more in line with my own size!! When you have got it sorted, I will be interested to have a ride as I have never actually been in one.

Rob

[Citroenmad]

The 75 isn't my departure away from Citroens but an additional project. I do plan on selling my C5 as I've driven C5s for four years and want a change for my daily driver. At the moment, once its sold, ill be using the Xantia HDi

I said this year I would keep away from buying any more Citroens (is that likely to happen?) and try some other cars I like, so I've started Perhaps my taste in cars is coming out more now! However, I can probably count on one hand the cars I'd really like to own

My car history is not vast but I have owned three examples of three models. I might work my way through the 75 range yet

Yes of course Rob, once its on the road your more than welcome to a drive in it.

[Northern_Mike]

However, having said that, that are good cars, good to look at, quite comfy and well appointed. It's just a bloody shame they represent the final death throes of the British motor industry - I can't look at one (or a 25 or 45 for that matter) without feeling a lot of sadness. It's one reason I dislike BMW so much. I blame them for starting the killing process and that's a reason I'll never have either a BMW or a Bini.

Jim I think you've forgotten a few facts about what happened with Rover, the Government gave Rover to British Aerospace (IIRC for £1) pretty much as a sacrificial lamb to support British Aerospace who then stripped Rovers assets selling off property/land whilst not investing anything into Rover (remember the Metro face lift" of the Rover grille and new wheel trims ). Once the asset stripping was complete British Aerospace sold off Rover to BMW who did invest in Rover with new cars but discovered that the losses they continued to suffer were likely to bring down the parent company. For me the serious questions need to be pointed at the then Government and British Aerospace.

Yes, I believe that to be more like it. Rover's demise was guaranteed from the 70s really, whoever owned them. Poor products, or at least badly built products earned a poor reputation which eventually killed them off.

[CitroJim]

Badly built, yes I'll agree with that. Fundamentally nothing wrong with the product though.

[Northern_Mike]

Badly built, yes I'll agree with that. Fundamentally nothing wrong with the product though.

I had a "series 2" MG Metro 1275 for about a year, it was a great little car. Weird sized, expensive tyres though. Great fun. Also had a Honda powered 416GSi auto for at least 4 years. Very good car again. I despise old fashioned Minis, hateful boneshaker thing.

[CitroJim]

I had five Metros in a long career of owning them Mike.

Two MGs, one an S1 and the other an early S2. Then an MG Turbo and that car was an absolute hoot. Started going rusty after two years though Got rid (wish I hadn't) and then got a Vanden Plas Metro. Nice...

Then a long gap until my last, a Rover 100 with the K series engine. Super little car but so let down by build quality. Rear arches rusty at a very young age and badly made interior. Mechanically it was hard to fault and hydragas suspension - almost as good as hydropneumatic...

[Citroenmad]

Thankfully the Rover 75 is arguably the best built Rover for many years, if not the best built Rover of all time. Far superior to the 25 and 45. They do have their problems, partly due to Rovers lack of financial resources and every car has some weaknesses. The 75 doesn't really rust unless its seen a bad bodywork repair, the interior is not badly put together and I have to say the switchgear feels better than Citroens offerings. There are lot of little touches you would have expected to have vanished on a car from a manufacturer who was in financial problems.

Well, it should be turning up this morning, I hope it gets here ok in this weather and hope the delivery people have taken care getting it on and off the transporter. Not quite sure how to move it around yet as it doesn't start, yet. It almost starts, well it did but only for a few seconds before it cut out. I'll charge the battery and take the plugs out and to clean them up, I'm pretty sure it will then but I suspect compression is low. I want to hear it running before stripping it down. There is no real way to know if it has badly overheated until the head is off, I'm hoping its ok. Otherwise I might need to source another engine.

Let the fun and games commence

[Hell Razor5543]

Good luck, Chris, and have fun (I mean that in a nice way!).

[CitroJim]

Thing is Chris, it's good to have a change of scenery every now and again...

In another life I'd have been very tempted to have got hold of the Fraud Focus Chris570 is peddling just for a change of spanner fodder...

Still am actually..

Hope the 75 arrived OK

[Citroenmad]

That is a big reason why I got it actually, I was in need of something a little different and have been wanting to get hold of one of these. I have to be really interested in a car to want to own one, I doubt I would have any other model of Rover, but these I do really like.

It has thanks Jim

It arrived just after 9.30 this morning, on quite a large truck!


Ive had a good mooch about the 75 this evening and its better than I expected. Bodywork is really excellent and interior just about perfect. All the electrics work fine, apart from the interior lights. Air con cuts in fine ... this is the next clue, it starts! It didn't when I went to see it on Saturday, I guess it had been stood a good while and the battery was slow. But it starts very well now. I took it out for a short run and it does drives really nicely. Clutch, gears, brakes, steering all very good. Engine sounds nice, no knocking or tapping as can often be the way with a K series.

As an added bonus, what i thought was just a large owners manual has a flip side ... it has full service history!

I am a little puzzled though, Ive had it running for ages and there are no bubbles coming up through the coolant, nor does it push the coolant out. It doesn't get hot and all the hoses get warm. There is no mayo in the oil. Combining the time I had it ticking over and driving, it must have been running over an hour and no coolant has been lost. However, there are some small splatters of mayo looking oil around the engine bay (in the most unlikely places) and the coolant tank is a bit gunky looking. There does appear to be air in the coolant system, as I can hear water rushing/bubbling through the heater matrix. So hopefully it will be a simple strip down and build up job.

However, I have checked the compressions, which are a little low, 145, 100, 100 and 140. The middle two lost pressure quite quickly. Which wouldn't help it starting on my viewing saturday, I thought the compressions must be down then. That could be the HG has gone across there or something like the valves are a bit gummed up or there is some engine damage from overheating. Will only find that one out when its in bits. I'm not sure of thestory behind it or its problem as I didn't buy it from an owner but a trade place.

Im quite temped to take it for an MOT and see what it needs to get through the MOT before doing the HG. It runs ok so emissions might be somewhere near. I doubt it would pass as its been stood for a few months but the drive to the MOT place and finding out what it does need to get through will be just as valuable.

A shocking pictures as it was dark and snowing, here it is making friends with the HDi Xantia

[Citroenmad]

Good luck, Chris, and have fun (I mean that in a nice way!).

Thanks, I'm sure I will

[red_dwarfers]

I really wasn't expecting that!
Look forward to being taken for a spin in it at some point

I'm almost done with the Xantia File contribution, just need to finish it off tomorrow then I'll email it to you. 1000 words so far That's quite impressive for me!

[Citroenmad]

I really wasn't expecting that!
Look forward to being taken for a spin in it at some point

I bet you didn't!

Yep, of course. It'll bring me along to our meet up if its done by then. Im hoping to get it on the road sooner rather than later, so maybe.

I'm almost done with the Xantia File contribution, just need to finish it off tomorrow then I'll email it to you. 1000 words so far That's quite impressive for me!

That is excellent Thanks, I'm looking forward to reading that

Im afraid my contribution is going to be a little limited for the next installment. I have spent so long writing uni assignments and on the computer at work that spending a great deal of time on the laptop again is not a welcome thought at the moment. Even my appearance on here seems limited lately. Another reason I got the 75, to do some mechanical and hands on stuff! However, it does make for much easier writing, doing the Citroenian. I'm just on with doing a bit of research for it now ...

[CitroJim]

Excellent Chris, looks like a good 'un there

Compressions certainly suggest an examination of the head will be in order. I reckon you'll only see the symptoms when the car is under way and being worked hard.

[Citroenmad]

Well its been a reasonably good day for the Rover but if anything I'm even more puzzled!

I thought it would be a good idea to take it for an MOT to see what it needs, apart from the headgasket repair etc. Im not exactly sure how long it has been off the road for, the MOT expired in Obtober 2012 and when Ive checked on the DVLA the TAX expired in Feb 2012. However, I believe if you cash in the road tax that it reverts to the previous date. So it could have been off the road 2-3 months or a year, who knows. It doesnt appear to have been stood very long and the battery is still very good. I do know its only done 4,000 miles since the last MOT.

Anyway, I did a few checks for the MOT, found a number plate light out but I didnt have a bulb for that. Tyres etc are all good and so on. Thinking it might have an overheating problem I left it running for about an hour, mainly letting it idle but also keeping the revs at 3-4,000rpm. It didnt get hot, it sat at 90 degrees and the fans didn't come on. They do with the AC but I have yet to see the fan on with engine temperature, it hadn't got that hot, even testing it with a laser thermometer. Confident that it shouldn't overheat while at the MOT test I booked a time.

It drove really nicely and I did enjoy driving it. The MOT place is only a few miles away and all town roads so it didn't give me much chance to give the car a run or work the engine. I did put a Forte engine flush in and a injector cleaner in the tank and drove there at high revs. The engine pulled really well (but only got up to the 40 limit), its smooth and sounds great. Not the slug I thought it might be with those compressions, and while it is a bit hesitant at low revs, its nothing huge.

I asked the MOT test place to test for exhaust gasses in the coolant, which they did and no exhaust gas was recorded. They also inspected for bubbles in the coolant, as I had, and found nothing. They suggested that there is nothing wrong with the head gasket, which is what I was coming around to. However, why had it been advertised as a HGF and could be driven but only for loading purposes? Im still trying to find the answer to that!

I've only driven it 12 miles and its driven fine. Ive had it running for hours and found nothing. Interestingly once I got home from the MOT place, after it had a bit of a drive at a good few revs with the engine flush in, I checked the compressions again. 1 had improved slightly to 155, 2 was now 130 (up from 100) and did not leak back, it did yesterday. 3 was again 100 and leaked, 4 was 130 (worse than yesterday) and leaked back, it didn't yesterday. The compression tester is a good quality and reliable one which is not old, I made sure a good seal was made too. I can only asume there is a problem with the valves sticking, perhaps the flush and thrashy driving is freeing them off. It is odd that one has improved and not leaking and the other which was good has got worse and leaks back. Surely if the compression loss was due to damage it wouldn't improve or move from one cylinder to the next!?!

The MOT then, well I knew it wouldn't pass as the exhaust sounds a little fruity and there is a knocking from the NSF. However, there was a slightly longer list than just those. Two brake pipes need replacing, the bulb I couldnt change earlier, a stop light bulb went out on the way to the centre (has an on dash warning), the exhaust is leaking at the centre section joint, a CV boot is not secured, worn track rod end (the knocking from the NSF) and it failed the idle emission test but passed the reving emission test fine.

So all in not too bad a fail list. Ive since replaced the bulbs. I have also fitted a new set of spark plugs as the old ones were pretty past it. However, the compression readings and blowing exhaust might be to blame. Ive got the new track rod end to go on.

My plan now is to get the MOT jobs done and hope that with a bit more driving and the exhaust fix the emissions will scrape through, its only fractionally out. The MOT place is going to replace the brake pipes and put it through a retest once I have done the repairs I'm doing. I would rather have it on the road and able to have a decent drive which might further help the compressions due to the flush rather than just strip it to bits straight away. If it fails again on emissions or develops poor running then it will be stripped down to see what is going on.

I can only guess as I'm not sure what has happened, it would appear that the HG has been done, which would explain the mayo like oil gunk in strange places around the engine bay. Im only thinking that as there does not seem to be a problem, its not using any coolant, not pressurising and has no exhaust gas in the coolant. Maybe it had an over heating problem shortly after the HG replacement and its been sold on. By the looks of it it has been traded in to a Citroen dealer who have disposed of it. I've no idea.

So I'll do the MOT jobs and see if it will pass on emissions after the new plugs and exhaust, its only a fraction away from passing. Then it will have some use and I'll see what happens, giving it some oil changes throughout. If the MOT doesn't go well or it throws up a problem then I will take the head off and do as I had originally planned. Im not thinking I wont have to do that just yet!

Ive also got the interior lights working today, which was pretty simple. For some reason the fuse was missing A new one has restored the interior lights, glovebox light and boot light.