WHICH IS A BETTER BUY, C5 OR XSARA PICASSO

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Post by myglaren »

One here on the FCF.

Haven't time to look through the ads but there is no doseur on a C5 - Peugeot brakes!
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Post by CitroJim »

myglaren wrote:there is no doseur on a C5 - Peugeot brakes!
Maybe a reference to the Eolys system on the particle filter Steve? That kind of doses...
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Post by cachaciero »

rmunns wrote:(written from ignorance of C5's.................)

But there seems a lot of posts on here regarding problems about C5's.

Also, shouldn't we be mentioning the dreaded expense of the doseur? Seems to me a buyer of one might find him/herself suddenly with a big bill 'out-of-the-blue'
I suspect that there is a lot of post's ref problems on C5's simply because there are now quite a lot more of them being purchased at an age when they will start to give problems by people who are prepared to have a go at fixing them.
The problems that XM's Xantias et al have are by now relatively well known as are the fixes, not so the C5 that for many people (and garages!) is still a learning curve.

As regards large engine repair bills out of the blue well that is no more a risk with the C5 than any other modern HDi engine with all it's dependent electronics. The big problem for any body purchasing one of these is accurately diagnosing a fault when one occurs or finding someone who can accurately diagnose a fault.
I dread to think how many thousands of pounds have been spent on replacing the FAP unnecessarily on the 2.2 every time it comes up with an anti pollution message.

The 2.2 and it's FAP have passed into a legend for expensive failures yet I would hazard a guess that for every 10 reported case of FAP problems that have resulted in it being changed only in one of those cases was the FAP really the problem. (Based it has to be said on the experience of one car only and extensive reading and studying of the car and related forums).

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Post by Xaccers »

dawn78 wrote:maybe, but they are bloody ugly :P
This from someone considering a C5 or picasso? Tee-hee :P

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Post by CitroJim »

You could do a lot worse than taking a look at this.

The outfit mentioned in the post is known to a few of us, for good reasons.

A Xantia bloody ugly? :twisted: I know beauty is in the eye of the beholder and so on but...

It's a bloody sight more attractive than anything in current production.

And dare I say it, a better looker than the 406.

I'll accept a 406 Coupe beats it in the looks department!
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Post by tonupteabag »

dawn78 wrote:maybe, but they are bloody ugly :P
i have to agree the xantia was definately drawn using wood from the ugly tree!!!! but looks aside its a damn good car thats reasonable inside just close ya eyes when you walk towards it to get in :P
and yes i do own one so i reserve the rights of critiscism!!!! :lol: :lol:
whisper this quietly but i'm going to be looking at a newer one before long just waiting for the funds :wink:
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Post by Xaccers »

Such blasphemy! I'm going to have to take one of my pills, I feel quite faint ;)
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Post by tonupteabag »

Xac wrote:Such blasphemy! I'm going to have to take one of my pills, I feel quite faint ;)
i would never have considered buying a xantia apart from the fact that mine was on fleabay at £20 with no bids and it was reasonably local to me so i bid and bought it for £27.50 it needed a strut top (it wasn't speared just rotten) replaced that and front lower arm bushes and spheres and twelve months later i've still got her she's served very well so i mot'ed her again and she repayed me by passing first time and being extremely reliable
oh dear i better start taking my meds again!!!!!!! :lol:
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Post by Julz »

tonupteabag wrote: ..it needed a strut top (it wasn't speared just rotten) replaced that and front lower arm bushes and spheres and twelve months later i've still got her she's served very well so i mot'ed her again and she repayed me by passing first time and being extremely reliable
oh dear i better start taking my meds again!!!!!!! :lol:
how much did you need to spend on her altogether then, sounds a real bargain!
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Post by tonupteabag »

Julz wrote:
tonupteabag wrote: ..it needed a strut top (it wasn't speared just rotten) replaced that and front lower arm bushes and spheres and twelve months later i've still got her she's served very well so i mot'ed her again and she repayed me by passing first time and being extremely reliable
oh dear i better start taking my meds again!!!!!!! :lol:
how much did you need to spend on her altogether then, sounds a real bargain!
all told with the parts to fetch it up to mot standard and a full service with timing belt kit brake discs and pads £250 :lol:
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Post by ACTIVE8 »

dawn78 wrote:maybe, but they are bloody ugly :P
Well if that's what you think of it, then what do you think of its angular previous model the BX?
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Post by myglaren »

I always liked the looks of the Xantia and when I first saw a C5 thought "What the hell have they done here" and haven't really revised my opinion, just become a bit more accustomed to the thing.

There does seem to be a lot of C5 problems but on the other hand you don't often hear from people who are not having problems.

I haven't really had much to complain about with mine and it gets the worst sort of treatment - hammered for five minutes in the morning, five minutes in the evening with a few longer trips occasionally but not frequently enough to do the engine much good.
I find it pleasant enough to drive on both long journeys and short trips. The fuel economy could be better but I think mine is atypically thirsty at 32mpg around town but as said it does get hammered.

On a trip down to Jimland it returned 630 on 67 Litres which is quite standard for longer trips. Could be better I'm sure, perhaps the MAF?

It has never let me down and almost all passengers and borrowers seem to find it pleasant and comfortable enough, with the exception of #1 son who calls it the "Titanic".

Those who have borrowed it to drive find it big, which is largely the point of an estate, but visibility is pretty good all round with the exception of the A pillars being rather intrusive.

I will and often does lug a whole load of heavy stuff around without any indication of a complaint.
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Post by sijrayner »

just to chip in a personal point of view, i would rather shoot myself than buy another C5 2.2. i guess the giveaway is that not even haynes have managed to produce a manual to help with the multitude of problems with this model. i was told by an indie citroen garage that it was produced on the quick and they crossed their fingers that it would be ok. they were wrong. look at any forum you like and most problems are from C5 2.2 HDi owners. apparently when they work they are great. if i ever find one that does i will let you know.
why oh why did i buy a C5.
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Post by CitroJim »

sijrayner wrote:why oh why did i buy a C5.
Well, at least you found this forum :wink:

Looks like KevMayer has got you sorted :D

Whatever issues yours now throws at you, at least you know you're not alone with them....
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Post by cachaciero »

sijrayner wrote:just to chip in a personal point of view, i would rather shoot myself than buy another C5 2.2. i guess the giveaway is that not even haynes have managed to produce a manual to help with the multitude of problems with this model. i was told by an indie citroen garage that it was produced on the quick and they crossed their fingers that it would be ok. they were wrong. look at any forum you like and most problems are from C5 2.2 HDi owners. apparently when they work they are great. if i ever find one that does i will let you know.
Why would you expect Haynes to produce a manual that would actuallly be useful?, they havn't done so for the last fifteen years.
The last manual that Haynes produced that was worth anything was for the CX.
I fail to see why anybody would purchase the Haynes manual when flea bay is awash with perfectly servicable copies of the Citroen EPL which contains not just exploded parts diagrams but all of the Citroen maintenance procedures for the C5 C5 II C6 in fact most Citroen models post XM Xantia.

IMHO the real problem is not with the C5 but the people that maintain or attempt to maintain them without the equipment or knowledge to do the job and often end up turning a small problem into a big or at least expensive one.

I have a C5 2.2 Hdi as far as I can see from the history it's had four failures in it's 90K history upto the time I purchased it i.e a doorlock, heater blower, rear screen lock and rear arm bearings.
Since I've had it the only failures I have had has been swirl valve actuator, door switch, the lower wishbone bushes have been replaced and now I have a fuel leak.
All these problems have been relatively easy to analyse and fix and I regard them as all par for a car which is at the end of it's designed life and they are all as it turns out pretty common failures on all C5's (except the swirl valve 2.2 only) . This means that someone has probably been there before and relevant info exists in this forum and others, often only requires a bit of searching and reading to find a solution.

I rate it, not as much as an XM but close.

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