Clutch/Bearing/Driveshaft/Suspension Trouble VSX

[admiral51]

Righty ho just a quick update

Have not had a great deal of time to delve deeply into this as have been on holiday in Devon with the TD and caravan (Oh yes family came as well )
Had to cut holiday short more in my blog soon
I have decided that the problem of judder/rumble is def the front brakes/handbrake binding as if i drive it 1/4 mile to my local shop and back without touching the brakes except when stopping at home the front disks are somewhat warm even though they have only been applied once from approx 5 mph to stop(warm= fry an egg )

The suspension overall is still bugging me but specifically the rear

Now i have read the articles in the Activa section on how the Hydractive suspension should work and i can now pinpoint the following
1. The front and rear are switching between modes and both valves give a good loud healthy click when shutting off (amazing the deadening from the spare wheel )
2.By going over the same stretch of road with ecu in/out the ride is more harsh than bouncy with ecu out.
3.No now im confused
Now a list of questions
A/If i have a flat rear centre sphere how should i expect the rear to be in "soft" mode if the corner spheres are in good order
B/If i have a flat rear centre sphere how should i expect the rear to be in "soft" mode if the corner spheres are in bad order
C/ When in "soft" mode does the inclusion of the centre sphere in the ciruit bypass the corner spheres or just assist them

Will leave it there for the moment but anyone thinks it best to start a new thread rather than continue here feel free to amend as you see fit

Cheers

Colin

[CitroJim]

Hi Colin, Welcome back! I hope the holiday was good and not cut short for any bad reason...

Yes, the brakes should not be so hot as to be able to fry an egg after such a short trip. I'd expect them to be warm (i.e. feel the alloy wheels to be warmish) after a long run but not on such a short one. A good strip and clean will soon show where the problem is.

As for suspension. If you run with the ECU out, you'll be in hard mode all the time and just the corner spheres will be in use. The ride should be firm but not bouncy but will be a tad harsh as expected.

If the centre sphere is flat than there will be little difference in feel between hard and soft modes. It sounds like the centre sphere is low as you are getting a bouncy ride in soft mode. Generally, the centre sphere does a lot of the work in soft mode but the corner spheres are still there and in circuit; they do assist the centre sphere.

If the corner and centre spheres are all flat and ride will be almost solid in both modes.

Generally, at the rear, if all is good, the rear in soft mode will be very soft and in hard mode you should be still able to get good movement in the rear by pressing on the tailgate. It'll be a bit harder than a non-hydractive Xantia so compare your VSX in hard mode with your TD to see the difference. The VSX should be a bit harder then the TD but in soft mode, very soft

The only realy way to clear the spheres of guilt is to either test them on a pressure tester or bite the bullet and replace them.

[admiral51]

Not going to be able to do much more on the suspension front until payday oh why is it soooo far away

Have started a new thread about the front brakes

Colin

[admiral51]

Have decided to replace the rear centre sphere any tips on its removal am i likely to damage anything if its a bit tight ie valve block etc

Cheers in advance

Colin

[citronut]

Jim wrote several replys ago
"and stiffer than my shoulder was on Saturday"

you put the --adware link removed-- in the wrong place then Jim, did you not read the instructions,

Colin
if you mean the one with a pipe fitted directly into it, i found if you loosen the pipe nut, then loosen the sphere and hold the pipe nut still with a flair nut sppanner and unscrew the sphere

regards malcolm

[admiral51]

Unfortunately its not the anti sink its the centre rear hydractive sphere and somewhere in the deep recess of my addled brain i remember something about a risk of damaging the hydractive valve block

Have done the anti sink sphere before on other Xantias and they are a PITA for other reasons

Colin

[citronut]

citronut me did not wright!!!!!!!!!!
"the get ripped off"

why was this censored then, me no understand

are we not allowed to use the word V I A G R A on this forum then???????

straight over my head

regards malcolm

[myglaren]

citronut me did not wright!!!!!!!!!!
"the get ripped off"

why was this censored then, me no understand

are we not allowed to use the word V I A G R A on this forum then???????

straight over my head

regards malcolm

Yep, Vi + Agra is autocensored to reduce spamming and links to sites that will possibly download a virus to your computer.

[citronut]

ok Stevt
thats stiffend the need for that to be censored

i will have totry and remember not to get it up again (that word anyhow)

regards malcolm

[myglaren]

Nothing quite like the double entendre Mal.

A man walks into a bar and asks the barmaid for a Double Entendre. So she gave him one.

[admiral51]

Some progress has now been made i think

Have managed to replace the rear centre sphere and now i have some movement in the rear suspension when in soft mode

Not had chance to test drive it yet but it does seem to be better

Next up will be the front brakes overhaul (up on axle stands at the moment with both front wheels off) so hope the weather holds tomorrow.

The sphere came undone quite easily with my cheapo ebay tool.....just had to drop the spare wheel carrier to get some good leverage

The difference with the new sphere is quite marked on the push test and being able to get close to the valve to hear it hum and then clunk shut is very comforting

When it shuts and goes into hard mode with ignition off and doors shut etc the suspension is rock solid so i reckon im going to have to replace the corner spheres aswell to give me a good starting point. Also reckon the fronts will also need doing for piece of mind.

Colin