Dean's Activa/XM/V6 and now Talbot blog

Deanxm · Unread post by **Deanxm** » 30 Dec 2010, 23:25

not the best looking car in the world from the outside is she.
Theconvertable is ok but the Xantia coupe........no...a Xantia Activa coupe

oh yes.

D

Unread post by **CitroJim** » 31 Dec 2010, 13:38

Deanxm wrote: Xantia Activa coupe oh yes.

So sad. What became the 406 Coupe started off as the Xantia Activa. One Xantia that was well and truely Puggerised

Just imagine the looks of a 406 Coupe with Activa suspension. Heaven on wheels

Toby_HDi · Unread post by **Toby_HDi** » 31 Dec 2010, 14:00

CitroJim wrote:
Deanxm wrote: Xantia Activa coupe oh yes.
So sad. What became the 406 Coupe started off as the Xantia Activa. One Xantia that was well and truely Puggerised

Just imagine the looks of a 406 Coupe with Activa suspension. Heaven on wheels

One day....

Deanxm · Unread post by **Deanxm** » 03 Jan 2011, 11:42

started off with a little look over the boost control system this morning, it seems the boost controller is one of the bleed valve types which i dont like the sound of really, i would idealy like a ball bearing type but they are hard to find an in car one.
There was a big split in the map sensor line that couldnt of been helping things, also after actually having a propperr look it seems the bleed boost controller is plumbed in in series with the solenoid controller, profesionaly fitted by a local tuning company of course

so this morning ive removed the solenoid and tucked it into the ecu box and plumbed it up how i think it should go.
I have left the bailey piston type DV in place for the moment but i think what i really need is a re-circ bailey piston type, £100 though so i will leave that alone untill i can drive it, then i will decide if it needs a re-circ or not and if this boost controller is any good at all.
Ive also ordered a new cam belt kit and water pump as the belt on there is way over tightened and sings as the engine expands, also the tensioner is worn and rumbly but that should be here wed or thursday at the latest.
Just got to get back out there and change the strut tops and the N/S leg so i can take it off the axle stands and have it looking like a car again rather than an old wreck propped up in the corner

Advise on boost controller experience's most welcome, are blled valves as bad as everyone says?

D

Deanxm · Unread post by **Deanxm** » 03 Jan 2011, 13:48

just came in for T

strut tops are changed and so is the leaky leg, had to rob an xm gaitor to use as the n/s one on the activa was soaked in oil and had rotten out in the middle, dispite everything else being totaly different between the two cars this part wasnt.
I will get some pictures of the strut tops when ive finnished some other bits but although they may have soldiered on for a while they were in a bad way.

D

Deanxm · Unread post by **Deanxm** » 03 Jan 2011, 18:09

heres my strut top pictures, the first is of the new and the old showing delamination and the following one is of the tearing of the rubber on the other side of the same strut top (there wasnt a whole lot holding it together

)
The other strut (N/S) although not pictured here has bad rust/hole issues rather than rubber trouble. oh and try not to worry yourself too much

.

CIMG3177 by Deanxm, on Flickr

CIMG3179 by Deanxm, on Flickr

D

Unread post by **CitroJim** » 05 Jan 2011, 21:45

Cor! You were lucky there Dean. They were suffering a bit of advanced decay

Time to send them to Lithuania now and see what our Strut Top friend can do with them!

Gareth's yer man for boost talk!

davetherave · Unread post by **davetherave** » 05 Jan 2011, 22:28

Those struts do look rather grim dean!

Deanxm · Unread post by **Deanxm** » 05 Jan 2011, 22:52

Yes they were grim, i posted these pics up in the strut top thread on CXM but was beaten hands down by Steelcity, he had a really bad one!!!

I will be getting these repaired, but i will have the xm ones done first, its getting on for 20years of age now and every other rubber component has needed replacing, they look perfect but a sudden tearing of the rubber could easily happen with no warning after so many years of use.
The new Activa ones (pictured) are good but the rubber is still old, even being rust free they may not be spared other failure modes.

Still waiting on the cambelt kit and im waiting for the auction to end on my water pump, it willl be early next week before all the stuff arrives now which is good as the this evening ive started one the final bits of tiling in the kitchen and i need to get it all finnished...... the kitchen i started before the CXM meet mind you!!!! well, its best not to rush these things

D

davetherave · Unread post by **davetherave** » 05 Jan 2011, 23:06

Hmm youve got me worrying about the rubber on my stashed good strut tops now.... and the car. Its fine my cars only.... 16 years old

I saw the pics on steelcitys, and they were rather scary!

Deanxm · Unread post by **Deanxm** » 18 Jan 2011, 22:05

A little update

The Activa project has ground to a halt recently, i did put the cambelt and tensioner on this evening, and got the bottom cover and pulley back on and timing pins removed incase i forget they are there. It was a lovely day but the kitchen is niggling at me so i came in and gave it a final coat of paint and plastered the window reveals, then started tiling the final splashback around the sink, i have been fairly lazy with it if im honest but nearly there now.

Then of course im getting married on the 5th of february which is looming over us now, i think we will be rather glad when its all over, organising seating family in a way that prevents any arguments on its own is very tricky indeed and is adding pressure, i may just take my riffle to the reception and sit at the top of the table pointing it at unco-operative family members:lol:

The xm is behaving itself with no problems to report, she will be ferrying bridesmaids after the service with my best man at the helm, i think he is a bit more nervy about driving the XM than anything else

, and to be honest i dont think i have let anyone drive it in all the time ive owned her!

My plan to replace the rear droplink still needs investigating, it is the same setup as the XM front droplinks but they are too long and much thinner, i think i may have to bite the bullet and get a new one which is the scary side of £80 but then the car has cost me very little so far and has been a great winter project so i think she deserves it, especialy since the winter ram weep syndrom has stopped

D

Deanxm · Unread post by **Deanxm** » 20 Jan 2011, 17:42

Came home early again today and the Activa is now running on its new cambelt, and is much quieter for it too, i still have a slight management problem i need to get to grips with but all in all its running sweetly, the interior is dry and free from curry

.
It would seem there isnt enough lhm left in the system to rise above normal height after all the hydralics work so i couldnt do citrobatics or bleed the brakes and the new lhm intake filter turned out to be broken and the replacement wont be here untill monday but thats no worry.
There is also a badly adjusted front height corrector as it sits too low at the nose, not had it taking its own weight yet as its been on axle stands due to poor strut tops.
Also the back seems too high by a long way but thats easily sorted.

Also, is it normal for an Activa to rock to one side when the ignition is turned on and then rock back when its turned off? im thinking not but untill i have no play in that rear droplink i dont want to mess about with this side of things or i could be going in circles. also need to get the air out as this does wird things.

D

Deanxm · Unread post by **Deanxm** » 22 Jan 2011, 20:26

Managed to get some lhm in it today, but the suspension was not co-operating.
I timed it and it took 2 minutes for the back end to rise from normal height to max, the front was on the deck though and took just over 4 minutes to rise to normal height in, at this point i knew citrobatics were going to take a fair while

The warning light was on most of the time and the previous owner said he had problems where the low pressure warning would come on randomly whilst driving.
Steering assistance was fine so im assuming at this point i have a pressure switch issue.

After more working of the suspension the rear started to move within a minuite or so, which seems like far too long still so i decided to give the height correctors a clean as the cars history points to many hydrorincage sessions in the last 7 years from lots of reputable garages so i assumed it was bad in there

Removal was straightforward although there was no dogbone which threw me, i thought this was the rear Activa crrector but it seems like there is only one at the front as there is no other corrector on the back end.

height corrector clean4 by Deanxm, on Flickr

now the pictures of the filth, there was massive dry waxy deposits in the corrector that dispite being surrounded by oil and a light covering of black were totaly dry inside, certainly not the usual gunk which has got me wondering if something has been in there that shouldnt of been, it was exactly the same as white candlewax???

height corrector clean1 by Deanxm, on Flickr

sorry about my photos, i thought i had macro on but obviously not, note the oil and something in it thats seperated in it like water but its not.

height corrector clean3 by Deanxm, on Flickr

The LHM in the system is actualy rather clean and new though so i dont know, i will be taking the front one off tomorrow and doing the same, give the linkages a good clean and grease too.

Also my management problem seems to be getting worse, it runs fine but if i try to lift the revs to say 1500 it would just get to 1500 and then die, releasing the throttle asap just kept it running and it would smooth out so it seems like a fueling issue, i do have a management light on for a few seconds and it lingers after startup.
Does anyone know if the EM ecu will send blink codes if i found the correct wire on the diag plug under the dash? its £50 to take it to citroen and then it depends on the monkey pressing the buttons too, also its cheating

D

Unread post by **CitroJim** » 23 Jan 2011, 15:31

Ahh, that just goes to prove that Hydraflush is not like Heineken, it does not reach all parts... Gosh, looks like a coal mine in there Dean!

No white link

There should be! How did the height corrector communicate with the moving bits?

The Activa is a little different in that the height corrector does not directly link to the Anita Roll Bar; there is a torsion bar that runs between each trailing arm in the place that a conventional Xantia would have an ARB just to operate the height corrector. From this torsion bar there should be a normal clamp and white link.

Your symptoms are almost the same as Gareth has on his but this low pressure light coming on worries me. Sounds like the pump is a bit weak if all spheres pass muster. Have you had the pressure gauge on it and have you tried bouncing it at the front whilst idling to see if the pressure falls sufficiently to invoke the anti-sink valve? You'll know if it has because the front will leap up and go very hard.

For the light to come on the pressure is falling drastically. It means the security valve is closing and one thing it feeds is the Activa system. A weak Activa Accumulator or balancing sphere could cause it, along with a very leaky activa electrovalve, particularly if it is leaking back and dumping a lot of pressure back into the return line.

This is getting a common problem on Activas now and harks toward the problem Harard in Norway is having.

Sadly no, the ECU won't send blink codes and only a Lexia will read it. Sounds like a problem with the MAP or Oxygen sensors to me. Else that, an inlet manifold leak.

Are there no Lexias on the Island Dean?

Deanxm · Unread post by **Deanxm** » 23 Jan 2011, 17:40

Hi Jim

The rear corrector connects to a spring loading mechanism at the rear and where the corrector usualy has a ball joint bolted to the end of the shuttle valve this one has an offset bit of flat metal bar with two square holes in it, one has the arm of the spring loading mech through it and the ither locates over a pin, there is a dogbone but it links the huge spring mechanism to the sort of signal arb, unclipping it wont do anything for releasing the corrector.

I have tuned the pressure regulator back from about 130bar to 170bar so i know thats good, the pump is a little slower than im used to but then anti sink is all new to me and so is the 6/2 pump but the pump was new 2 years ago i assume trying to solve this problem of the warning light.

Now today after cleaning both correctors she is going up and down at a reasonable rate, maybe 1 minute from minimum to max but the front seems a bit sluggish still

I have not tried bouncing on the front, do you mean making the front correct and use the reserve in the acc sphere? i take it it should not trigger the security valve then?

The only thing that strikes me as odd is after turning the engine off the E/V by the radiator (which i presume is the arc one) hisses like mad and the car starts to do the activa shuffles, this is without the engine running, with it running she doesnt shuffle at all now really.

Also where is the pressure switch that brings on the warning light mounted on the Activa?.

D