C5 Estate, rear suspension drops when parked

torq · Post by **torq** » 15 Sep 2011, 10:14

Hi Guys,
I've just picked up a 2004 C5 1.9hdi 110 estate with 120k on the clock and a part from a 2.8hdi Relay (yea, i know it's really a fiat) this is my first foray into the world of citroen.

When I park up the car and leave it for a few hours the rear end drops and the front raises a bit, the low rider look may be popular in south central LA but in rural Ireland it's not really the way to go. Unlocking the car will restore the correct ride height and it can be adjusted from the forward controls and with those in the boot.
I'm sure this problem has been encountered and discussed many times on this forum but as I'm not up on the terminology of citroen suspension (yet!) my searches so far are drawing a blank. So would anyone like to point me in the right direction so I can get the spanners out and fix this issue.
Thanks.
Guys.

P.S. Have a feeling that I'm not getting the mpg I should, any pointers on what to look at. MAF, any sensor that fails regularly etc

Post by **Peter.N.** » 15 Sep 2011, 12:25

Can't help you with the suspension problem but if your engine is the eight valve Hdi the consumption should be pretty good i can get 60 or more from my 406.

Its got a lot to do with where and how you drive it of course but at a steady 60 mph you should be getting around 60 mpg.

Peter

torq · Post by **torq** » 15 Sep 2011, 19:57

No one?

dnsey · Post by **dnsey** » 15 Sep 2011, 20:33

Probably a just bit of leakage in the rear suspension units.
I wouldn't worry about it too much, but rebuild kits are available if you want to repair them.

cachaciero · Post by **cachaciero** » 16 Sep 2011, 11:18

Hi
You are correct this has been discussed many times on this forum as it seems to be quite a common occurrence although not with a common reason.
Do a search on suspension this will throw up many threads that discuss this that include pointers for elimination.

cachaciero

avin44 · Post by **avin44** » 19 Sep 2011, 12:46

I had the same problem with an XM with the 8 sphere set up, mine was cured by lowering the suspension right down and then opening a small valve right by the underneath of the radiator which released a small amount of air in the system ehich may have been caused by the fact all the spheres had been recently replaced at the same time, I did this several times and the problem was sorted, I presume the suspension set up is much the same on later cars and could well be the same problem

JohnD · Post by **JohnD** » 19 Sep 2011, 13:39

There was a time around two years ago when my C5 went through a phase of rear end dropping. I got quite worried about it. Suddenly it stopped doing it and it hasn't happened since.

torq · Post by **torq** » 19 Sep 2011, 14:53

dnsey wrote:Probably a just bit of leakage in the rear suspension units.
I wouldn't worry about it too much, but rebuild kits are available if you want to repair them.

I think that's what it is as the unit on the drivers side looked a bit damp when I was buying the car. Theres a non estate C5 in my local breakers and I might whip the unit off, rebuild and fit to my car. Acording to the citroen website the units have the same part number so there should be no issue with the swap.

Now all I have to do is find out how to bleed the system correctly!

addo · Post by **addo** » 19 Sep 2011, 14:54

I've never worked on C5 suspension but definitely the Xantia estates have a different rear cylinder to the sedans. Larger bore.

den169 · Post by **den169** » 19 Sep 2011, 18:20

I have a 2003 sx hdi estate knocking about i'm getting around 38mpg on a motorway run at about 65 i get 52mpg i doubt you will ever get 60mpg at any speed in a c5 estate.Forgot to mention thats with cruise control which does make a difference.

dnsey · Post by **dnsey** » 19 Sep 2011, 18:25

These units are designed to have a little internal leakage for lubrication. The fluid from this leakoff is collected in the gaiter at the end for return to the resevoir. It's not unusual for a gaiter to leak and therefore become damp, but it doesn't necessarily mean that there's anything else wrong.
If the seals wear and the bypass rate increases, you will probably be able to feel a quantity of fluid 'inflating' the gaiter Take care, though, to ensure that your hand can't be trapped if the suspension drops!. A bad leak can burst the leakoff hoses.

torq · Post by **torq** » 19 Sep 2011, 18:31

The citroen support site gives the following part numbers for the rear strut on both estate and saloon.
w/o hydractive 5272 69
manual adjust 5272 71

The book of lies (owners handbook) claims 62mpg extra urban and 38 urban. Cant be any worse than the Seat Alhambra 1.9tdi 115bhp and it's 43mpg that the C5 is replacing.

torq · Post by **torq** » 20 Sep 2011, 22:28

Here's a thought or two...

Do saloons suffer from the droopy rear end problem...

Do saloons have the control buttons in the boot to drop the rear end ....

..... see where I'm going with this?

Citroenmad · Post by **Citroenmad** » 20 Sep 2011, 22:57

I saw a C5 estate parked up the other day with its rear on the floor, it does seem to effect estates more often though I don't think its linked to the control button for the rear height.

There should be little stopping a saloon from having the rear button to operate its rear height alone, as sensors, height correctors etc are pretty much the same. I can't imagine it is to do with that but you never know.

While driving with an eco concious mind I have had 60 MPG from our C5 estate, though its a 2.0 16v HDi and they are more efficient than the 8vs. My saloon C5 has the same engine and does very close to 50 with my average driving (not driven for economy but lots of motorway miles). Our 110 2.0HDi 8v saloon does around 43-45MPG on average, a little better on a good run, around 50. However our previous 110 C5 estate was very juicy, it was a struggle to get 45 with careful driving and it was slower than a 110 should have been, replacing the MAF made some difference. They differ a lot in my experience.

torq · Post by **torq** » 21 Sep 2011, 12:08

Citroenmad wrote:I saw a C5 estate parked up the other day with its rear on the floor, it does seem to effect estates more often though I don't think its linked to the control button for the rear height.

There should be little stopping a saloon from having the rear button to operate its rear height alone, as sensors, height correctors etc are pretty much the same. I can't imagine it is to do with that but you never know.

While driving with an eco concious mind I have had 60 MPG from our C5 estate, though its a 2.0 16v HDi and they are more efficient than the 8vs. My saloon C5 has the same engine and does very close to 50 with my average driving (not driven for economy but lots of motorway miles). Our 110 2.0HDi 8v saloon does around 43-45MPG on average, a little better on a good run, around 50. However our previous 110 C5 estate was very juicy, it was a struggle to get 45 with careful driving and it was slower than a 110 should have been, replacing the MAF made some difference. They differ a lot in my experience.

My theory... is that it was a leak at the rear suspension unit I'd expect to see a loss of fluid to the ground. Also the problem would be far more common as it would affect the saloons equally.
Because of this I think that what ever valve the button opens to drop the rear is not sealing correctly thus allowing the fluid from the rear to return to the resevoir and causing the drop. The problem doesn't occur with the car running as it is constantly checking and adjusting the height and it is only when the car is switched off and this system of control is disabled that the drop occurs.

Not sure if she's 8 or 16v, haven't had a chance to have a look yet. All I've had time to do is put diesel in her and drive to work.

French Car Forum

C5 Estate, rear suspension drops when parked

C5 Estate, rear suspension drops when parked

C5 droop