Citroen Zx16v

[bxzx16v]

Well it's Zx to the rescue AGAIN , got into the doblo this morning to set off for work , turned the key and click tried again and click , i'm pretty sure it can't be the battery as it has had a new one on only a few weeks ago , I'm hoping it not the starter motor . What with the Egr valve playing up , I'm looking now at getting it sorted and selling it , the replacement I'm not too sure about , I may just run the Zx this year as that never let's me down , it's been stood for the best part of three weeks and it just fired up great . I may even look at another Xantia if I can find a nice one as I am pretty pee'd off with modern cars and all the electronic/emmisions junk they have on .

Mark

[Citroenmad]

Oh no It does sound like it might be the starter, hopefully an easy fix.

Im sure the ZX would be fun to use as your daily driver. Though I can recommend a Xantia HDi estate

Yes, modern cars are overrated, I quite agree. I've thought about selling my lot and getting something newish, had considered a C5III. But no, when you think about it what is the point in having a newish car? They are no more reliable (often less so), suffer huge depreciation and have far too many extra gizmos to go wrong. I'm going the opposite way ... My daily is soon going to be my Xantia HDi, with the 75 as mileage sharer/winter salt hack, for now.

[bxzx16v]

The doblo is going in tommorrow for it's diagnosis , I've tried it again and it's still clicking , the new battery seems ok so it certainly points to the starter , it's not going to be a cheap fix what with the Egr being at least £130 if it can't be cleaned and the starter at £100+ at , once it's running again I will look into selling it , but the replacement ? Who knows , I've seen a Xsara Picasso Hdi I might be able to get a good deal on , I might even look at a Xantia if I can find a nice clean example but it would really need to be an estate , it's just annoying I've spent more on the doblo in 6 months than what I have on the Zx in 2 1/2 yrs ! At least I should be able to get a good price for the doblo as I got it for a reasonable price last year .

Mark

[CitroJim]

I must say this Doblo thing seems an absolute paragon of reliability Mark.... It's a lovely irony it's recovered by a Citroen each time

[bxzx16v]

Tell me about it Jim , it's not really done any miles (55k) but doesn't stand comparison to my last one which had done 150k but didn't have the Dpf etc which is still one of the best vehicles I have had even with the silly mileage , the Zx just plain blows it away , once fixed it will be going .

Mark

[bxzx16v]

The doblo is now sorted for the grand sum of £20 , the earth strap had corroded away so that's saved me a few quid , I've also just got an Obd II code reader for £18 to reset the EML , I've reset it and it's stayed off , it was staying on due to an Egr fault , so time will tell if everything was down to a dodgy earth . I've had the light reset in the past and it's normally come back on after stopping & restarting so who knows

Mark

[CitroJim]

Wow! That was a nice result Mark Always good when it's something nice and simple and straightforward as well as cheap!!!

[Citroenmad]

Everyone loves a simple fix

Will the Fiat be staying now then?

[bxzx16v]

It's safe for the time being Chris , hopefully the Egr valve may be ok ? I'm really unsure what to get if/when it does go , Do I get another modern with dpf's/dmf etc or do I take a step back and get an oldie ? I've even considered making an offer for my old Hdi dispatch .

Mark

[CitroJim]

Go back to a simple oldie Mark. the HDi Despatch sounds perfect

It's come to something when we think of an HDi as simple hasn't it?

[bxzx16v]

It's crazy Jim , and they call it progress Never had any probs with my old xantia td , just disconnect the egr valve no problem , the cat on it started rattling so I fitted a non cat pipe , and it ran faultless . I'm very seriously considering a xantia estate

Mark

[Citroenmad]

I'm very seriously considering a xantia estate

There is a really nice Xantia estate on ebay which would just suit you: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Citroen-Xanti ... 257a68fcca" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

My Xantia estate is now my daily driver and I can't wait to start using it properly. Its why I got it, as I wanted to use a Xantia daily.

Yes, so much for progress! The only progress car manufacturers have made is that cars don't last as long! Which is ideal, as we then buy new cars which again last a shorter period of time, it would seem.

Cars can be prohibitively expensive to maintain now and are being scrapped due to needing maintenance repairs. A few weeks ago my dad was in a garage who had the body off a Range Rover Sport to replace the turbo, the bill was well into a few thusand. How long before they are scrapped due to needing such heafty work. Its the same thing on DMFs, who is going to pay £700-£1000 to have a clutch fitted on a car worth the same?

Go for an older and more simple design, seems far more appealing at the moment.

[CitroJim]

Go for an older and more simple design, seems far more appealing at the moment.

Indeed to goodness yes

It baffles me that in this age of ecological awareness and conserving world resources that cars, along with everything else, are made to have a very short and finite life with no hope of repair. It's totally wrong.

Everything, and especially cars, should be designed to have a lifespan of absolutely no less than 20 years and be infinitely repairable.

I guess all this reckless consumption will end when there's nothing left...

[Citroenmad]

I guess all this reckless consumption will end when there's nothing left...

Indeed it will, if only people realised that its now things need to change and not then

[bxzx16v]

A small update on life with the Zx , I thought I would give it a run on Thursday , so after refitting it's bosch battery back on it fired up without a hitch . I set of for work a good 1/2 hr before I normally do and had a cracking drive over to Langsett to stretch it's legs and once fully warmed up opened it up to blow the cobwebs off , I forgot how lively this little car is and once over 4000rpm it really does come alive . I think I will be using it a couple of days a week for the work run now that the roads are better . I have also come across a Zx16v which is being broken for spares so I may have a look at this and get the 16v specific parts off it ( or as much as I can fit in the doblo ) which will be quite alot , I will probably come away with the bonnet and doors too which I can store in the shed , I'll post up what I come across .

Mark