c5 ride

jolittle · Post by **jolittle** » 21 Aug 2003, 11:01

I have just bought a demonstator C5 with 4,ooo km - traded for Xantia VSX, and still with a CX2500 - and find the ride somewhat bouncy by comparison with the Xantia. It feels like the suspension is too high. Is this a common experience with the C5 - and is there anything one can do to soften it?

alexx · Post by **alexx** » 21 Aug 2003, 13:12

I went to a test drive with C5 2.0 HDi SX, non-hydractive model (HA3) last week. The ride was very good, similar to that in non-hydractive Xantia MkII. Only - rear end is harder on bigger dips and bumps, because of different bump-stops, that are almost in contact with rear arms in normal position (see my question 'Is C5 riding on bump - stops', about 2 weeks ago'). I also measured heights in different positions (lowest, normal, raised, high), but can't find my notes right now. I'll post it in the evening or tomorrow, so you can check.

skypilot · Post by **skypilot** » 21 Aug 2003, 15:48

Go into a newsagents and find the lastest copy of "Car Mechanics". There is an item about the C5's ride. Seems as though there may be a design fault which Citroen know about. Take a copy of the article to your dealer and see what they say!

alexx · Post by **alexx** » 21 Aug 2003, 19:12

Can you tell us a little about it (I'm not able to get Car Mechanics here).

mbunting · Post by **mbunting** » 21 Aug 2003, 21:27

The suggestion is of duff spheres.

AndersDK · Post by **AndersDK** » 21 Aug 2003, 21:45

Would'nt the good old Citaerobics apply to C5 also - if by any chance air (or sphere gas) has contamintaed the hydraulic's side ?

mbunting · Post by **mbunting** » 21 Aug 2003, 22:35

I would have thought so.
I didn't realise until recently that the C5 was fairly 'normal' as cars go. The brakes and steering are as per a 'normal' car, it's only the suspension that we would now recognise as being 'citroen'.

blueboy2001 · Post by **blueboy2001** » 21 Aug 2003, 22:49

Having driven both, i reckon the HA3+ system is defintely the one to go for on the C5. It gives a really supple ride at low speeds, with the hard mode for more spirited driving. The standard HA3 system is a bit on the hard side at low speed and gives more body roll when driving fast.
The C5 is a big, heavy car and the true hydractive system is well suited to this.

alexx · Post by **alexx** » 22 Aug 2003, 13:20

Unfortunately, I didn't try HA3+, because Citroen dealer here has only one test car. But anyway, I was very satisfied with the ride in non-hydractive one, it was smoother than in my BX in most road conditions (say 95-98%).
Jolittle, here are the heights, measured from the road to the wheel-arch on its highest point, front / rear.
low: 64.0 / 63.5 cm
normal: 68.5 / 69.0 cm
raised: 73.0/74.0 cm
high: 76.5 / 78.5 cm
If your car has different tyres, this numbers will be 'shifted' up or down 1-2 cm. This one had 195/65 R15.
It's interesting that the normal position isn't at the midpoint between low and high, like in older Citroens, but about 2 cm lower. At least in this car. And another thing, raised position was 5 cm above normal, while Citroen paper says 4 cm. Tolerance is, according to Citroen paper, +/- 4 mm.

jolittle · Post by **jolittle** » 26 Aug 2003, 07:49

<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by skypilot</i>

Go into a newsagents and find the lastest copy of "Car Mechanics". There is an item about the C5's ride. Seems as though there may be a design fault which Citroen know about. Take a copy of the article to your dealer and see what they say!
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote"></font id="quote">
Thanks for the info. I am in Australia and do not get this journal. I have checked out their web site, but could find nothing immediately in their table of contents. Under what heading is the article?