C5 1.6 HDi LX Estate - are they any good??

corsehf · Post by **corsehf** » 10 Feb 2010, 19:50

My uncle has called me to say he is going to have a look at a 2005 C5 1.6HDi LX Estate and as i have an older 2.2 C5, he thought i could answer him. To be honest, i have no info on the 1.6 unit myself other than it cannot be a bad unit if it pulls such a large car.
I believe it to be an ex company car so i am assuming full history, it has 55000 miles on the clock and the garage are asking £6000.
Not sure if that is good value or not but maybe someone can tell me.
What are the pitfalls to watch for on the 1.6 engined car??
Any extras the car could/should have?
Any info would be good so i can pass on as he does not have a PC and doesn't really want one!

mooseshaver · Post by **mooseshaver** » 10 Feb 2010, 20:06

I have paid about £8300 I think, for a 56 plate VTR, with 14700 miles on the clock.
It accelerates slightly faster than my old 2.2, but overtaking at higher speeds is not as good. I don't feel its under powered in normal driving.
The car is eager and just takes off when pulling away.
It cannot tow as much as the 2.2, but I have never used a tow bar. I've yet to fully load it with my wife's disability scooter, wheel chair and stuff to see how it handles large loads.

The engine is noisier at 60/70 than the 2.2.
Economy is far far better than the 2.2

Some 1.6 HDI have particulate filters. I don't know how to tell which do or don't, but its something to think about although the replacement of these is longer than on your 2.2

The rear demister like all estate can have a fault track. Its more than £400 for a new rear window.

corsehf · Post by **corsehf** » 10 Feb 2010, 20:27

Thanks for that, i was wondering about the particulate filter, will that include the liquid gold stuff that some call Eolys fluid?
I am assuming that its a 75000 service cycle on that??
You say that some have it fitted and some dont, is this obvious on the engine code as it is on the 2.2's??

corsehf · Post by **corsehf** » 10 Feb 2010, 20:52

Also, which would be best spec wise??
The LX or a VTR???

mooseshaver · Post by **mooseshaver** » 11 Feb 2010, 10:58

VTR replaced SX so VTR is above LX.
VTR has 2 zone climate control, I think the LX has one zone.
VTR has lumbar support, don't think the LX does.
I don't know what else the LX does not have, but my VTR has cruise control, auto headlights and wipers, bigger alloy wheels?

Also there is no sport button, but I've seen a few exclusives without that too.

den169 · Post by **den169** » 11 Feb 2010, 16:00

I think the biggest pitfall is the 1600 engine,I have a m8 who has one and he thinks its gutless compared to a 2lt.I'm looking for a newer c5 estate or a c8 but it has to be a 2lt or i won't bother.

mooseshaver · Post by **mooseshaver** » 11 Feb 2010, 17:35

den169 wrote:I think the biggest pitfall is the 1600 engine,I have a m8 who has one and he thinks its gutless compared to a 2lt.I'm looking for a newer c5 estate or a c8 but it has to be a 2lt or i won't bother.

it depends what you stw used to, the power is the same as older 2.0 hdi. Overtaking is where it falls down but it's better than my 2.2 for fuel

Citroenmad · Post by **Citroenmad** » 11 Feb 2010, 20:45

The 1.6HDi is a good engine. Some have been reported to go through turbos, however, i think this is put down to infrequent oil changes, the pipes to the turbo get blocked because of old oil and then the turbo overheats. - So im lead to believe.

I service a 1.6HDi C4 for someone i know, its a very refined and smooth unit and drives nice, pulls reasonably well in the C4 but it doesnt seem to have the same urge as my C5 with a 2.0 110 HDi. Though if you look at the pipes which go to the turbo, its not hard to imagine them getting blocked, and these are on very long service intervals, 20K i think. Though i wouldnt let them do any more than 8 at most, for peace of mind. Cambelts are every 150K!!! Which is way too long for comfort.

Anyway, that seems overpriced, i wouldnt be paying that for the LX spec, but its overpriced anyway. LX is a good spec, it has climate control (not dual zone as the S1 C5s or better specs in the facelifts though), electric windows etc. However they feel a little bare. They have 16" steel wheels with trims, black exterior rubbing trims etc.

The spec to go for in a 1.6HDi would be the VTR spec, this is a very nice spec and is the one we have. These get: Dual zone climate control, automatic lights and wipers, cruise control, a plusher interior, chrome touches, 16" alloy wheels and its all colour coded. Nothing wrong with the LX, but they are usually a similar price to the VTR, which is the one to go for in my opinion. Exclusives have even more spec, turning headlights, cd changer, but i think these get a bit of an odd interior trim. I really hate the seat fabric in the S1 C5s, though i cant think what the facelift exclusives are like. Little difference in the spec with the VTR really, which has all you need.

VTR replaced the SX in the S1 C5, no facelifts are an SX. The VTR improved on the SX spec before the facelift, and after it improved again. All facelift C5s have 16" alloy wheels, LX has steel wheels which look massive with the bin lids stuck on, but the 16" alloys on the VTR and baove sit very nicely on the car.

Id say no more than £5500 at the very most for that particular car, for similar money you can get a higher spec example.

The 1.6 is economical, most have FAp filters, which usually seem ok until nearing 100K when they might start to put the light on the dash, requiring the fluid to be topped up or the filter changed. However ive got no experience with these.

Our 2.0HDi 16v 138 - the later engine which was brought out the same time as the 1.6HDI, returns around 44-48MPG, depending on how you use it. Its always driven carefully (my dads) but over the last 600 miles its averaged 48MPG (- actual, car says 51MPG) which is carying a lot of very heavy boxes around. So on a good run with less weight it would be 50 im sure. Not quite as good as the only 2.0HDi, but very little in it. My 2.0HDi returns about 42-44MPG actual, always making good use of the loud pedal!

We bought our 2005 2.0HDi 138 VTR estate a few months ago for £5400 with 45K miles. Mint condition with full service history. To be honest it was a bit of a bargain, just a good find really .Its a very classy looking car in its grey colour and with the crhome touches and dark interior. It does show the one your looking at to be a bit over priced, but not too far off. Though id hold out for a VTR spec.

Ive not driven a 1.6 in a C5, it offers the same BHP as my 2.0 8v but a bit less torque, so i cant imagine its quite as nippy. Though it delivers more economy and the 2.0HDi 8v isnt available in the facelift. If i was looking at replacving mine with a facelifted hatchback, id probably go for the 1.6, but thats mainly for insurance reasons.

If you can find a 2.0HDi 138 then that would be a nice car to have too. The 6 speed box on them is very nice and offers effortless cruiseing abilities. There is no need to change from 6th either, it pulls very well, and throughout the gears. Very good engine.

As far as the sport button goes, very few C5s actually have this, it was never available on the 2.0HDi 90 & 110 (S1) or 1.6HDi (facelift) The Exclusive 2.0HDi 138 (facelifts) Do have the sport button.

For info: The only facelifted C5 diesel without a FAP filter is the 1.6HDi Design. This was a special edition C5 facelift which was based on the LX. It still had black exterior rubbing trips, but it had the earlier VTR 16" alloy wheels and electric rear windows added on.

So yes, id buy a 1.6HDi, but get the best spec you can.