Is C5 riding on the bump-stops ?

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alexx
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Is C5 riding on the bump-stops ?

Post by alexx »

Yesterday, I was inspecting my BX from underside, because its exhaust pipe needs some repair. In the meantime, a guy parked his C5 beside my car. After a while, I noticed a strange thing on C5 - a distance between rear arms and bump stops was only 1-2 cm. I think it was on the correct height in normal position, since rear wheel was exactly centred inside the wheel arch. On my BX, this distance is 8-9 cm. So, is this normal - are you riding on the bump-stops in C5, or the car was too low?
It was 2.0 Hdi, non-hydractive model.
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AndersDK
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Post by AndersDK »

Alex -
My guess is that it could be different locations of the bumpstops - related to the rear arm's pivot point - on these 2 cars.
alexx
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Post by alexx »

I think they were on the same place like in BX, touching rear arms near their ends, but they were bigger and probably softer.
BX also has another rubber element, touching rear arm somewhere in the middle. I didn't see it in C5 (at least didn't remember). Otherwise, rear suspension looks very similar. Spheres are grey instead of green.
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AndersDK
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Post by AndersDK »

Ok Alex -
Seems the old gang on BX/CX (where I belong) has a lot of small surprises awaiting - once we ever get the chance to move on to "next" generation [:D]
Any chance Gabor's tech ref gives a clue ?
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Post by alexx »

Well, things changed since '82, when BX was introduced. In Xantia, Citroen moved towards lower pressure in spheres, which means stiffer springs. And also, it moved from 1:1 compression/extraction ratio in dampers towards higher value. That setup has its advantages - better roadholding and smoother ride over small, sharp bumps. The drawback - 'falling' into dips is more dramatic and the ride is more bouncy.
Also, role of bump-stops changed, like in other cars. They are now softer, acting like 'supplemental springs', when the car hits bigger bump.
But anyway, I'm wondering was this distance between the arm and bump-stop (or whatever) normal. Maybe Blueboy can tell us, what's the situation in his C5?
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