Advice need on genuine Xantia Brake Discs please.

[Rhothgar]

Afternoon!

I've been advised by addo from memory that the OE supplier of brake discs for a S1 Xantia is Brembo.

Question is -

Has anyone ever bought OE discs from Citroen and do they have any stampings on the discs to state Brembo or otherwise?

I have been offered some cheap discs all round for the Xantia so was going to try it to a belated Xmas brake rebuild all round.

I don't want to buy cheap discs purporting to be genuine and find they're not. The company selling them is a Citroen Garage but they say there are no markings on the discs which I find a tad strange.

[Peter.N.]

I know it doesn't answer your question but I have always used aftermarket brake discs and never had a problem, my most recent have come from ebay and were very reasonably priced.

Peter

[kenhall1202]

Hi,

I would agree with Peter having bought several sets of XM discs reasonably cheaply via ebay both OEM and aftermarket versions. Typically the only info is stamped on the circumference or the hub and gives the wear limit thickness for the disc but no manufacturer's name.

[xmexclusive]

A number of Citroen garages have been disposing of Europar branded components including brake disks.
About 4 months ago I tripped up to North London and collected about 40 disk sets amongst other items for a Cit/Pug Indy that had bought them.
The reason I was given for disposal was simple.
As soon as Citroen decided to withdraw from Europar branded spares these items lost Citroen warrenty.
Citroen then required dealers to cease fitting these particular components.
All stock on shelves to be disposed off and not permitted to be used on customers cars.
This despite the fact that virtually all items were OE just in now non approved packaging.

Check with your supplier if the disks on offer are Europar.

John

[Rhothgar]

Thanks all for the input.

I've not looking for cheap primarily. I am looking for genuine because I have faith in the longevity of original equipment as opposed to afermarket. I suppose one could argue that there would be no difference with brake discs but I am guessing the grade and quality of steel would be better on OE.

John.

I guess the subject of OE is a complex one as Citroen do not actually make many of the components themselves rather than source them. Presumably the source changes from time to time.

I am not clear why Citroen would require dealers to cease fitting this parts. Are Europar branded discs sub-standard as compared to Brembo (whom I believe are OE). Or are you saying that Europar were the OEM?

My supplier is a Citroen garage and I believe they are still in a Citroen box. Perhaps they are Europar but they have said that there are no markings on the discs. Is there any identifying label on the box which would make it clear if they are Europar?

[addo]

PSA have their secondary line of service parts with an "E" prefix, aimed at economical repairs to vehicles over five years' age.

Spheres, brake bits, oil filters, spark plugs etc etc - you can buy them in either "E" spec parts or the original coded form (which is superior by inference). It doesn't mean they are both from the same supplier, or conversely that they may not be the same supplier!

[kenhall1202]

A quick look at service.citroen.com confirms John's statement that Citroen has ended it's affiliation with Eurorepar based on the fact that there are no longer any part number options listed starting E****** (at least for the XM anyway). During the time that Citroen offered Eurorepar parts I understand that the parts were covered by exactly the same warranty terms as genuine Citroen items which I interpret to mean they were equivalent in specification and quality.

Note that Eurorepar is still apparently a going concern and operates a chain of non franchised all make repair stations throughout Europe - see http://www.eurorepar.fr" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

My older copy of Citroen DocBackup has the Eurorepar options listed and here are a couple of examples for front discs:

XM 2.1 TD 95661813 (or 4249L3) and E169006

S1 Xantia 2.1TD 4246L8 and E169005

Let me know if you require the identification of any Eurorepar part numbers and/or Citroen equivalent part number.

[xmexclusive]

Hi Rhothgar

Ken has checked the detail and summed up the situation with regard to Citroen's split from Europar.
When implemented it had an immediate effect on all Europar stock on hand at Citroen dealers and possibly wharehouse stocks.
While sat on the shelves these items ceased to be OE overnight just because of the branding on the packaging.
They became scrap and were disposed of accordingly.
With regard to OE supplies it is standard practice for any manufacturer to at least dual source with different suppliers.
This allows an agressive attitude in purchasing to obtain minimum supply price without risk to price, delivery schedules and quality.
I would be very surprised if PSA used a single brake disk supplier.

John

[CitroJim]

My only experience of using Brembo discs on a Xantia was not good. they looked nice but were more warped than my sense of humour after only 10,000 miles....

Never had a problem on any other replacement discs I've used - normally sourced from GSF...

[Rhothgar]

Hi Jim

Got the discs yesterday. Genuine Citroen - £50 delivered. Front and rears.

Just deciding on whether to rebuild the calipers. GSF do not sell brake rebuild kits stating that it is against EU legislation. Citroen, however, still list them but they are awfully expensive. I suppose if it ain't broke don't fix it springs to mind!!!

I just wish Citroen Graham with the mint truck had had all calipers for a Xantia when he was giving them away at Stratford. I hope you put that £10 in to the Forum Fund I gave you for that V6 caliper, Jim. Cheap price to pay. I daren't check Citroen to see how much that would cost.

[Rhothgar]

Just noticed that when you type Citroen into the forum, it spells it correctly. How do they do that?

[HDI]

Just deciding on whether to rebuild the calipers. GSF do not sell brake rebuild kits stating that it is against EU legislation. Citroën, however, still list them but they are awfully expensive. I suppose if it ain't broke don't fix it springs to mind!!!

.

Unless there is an actual problem I wouldn't bother ! Remember that Citroens with powered hydraulic brakes use LHM as brake fluid, this isn't prone to absorbing moisture like conventional brake fluid so there will be very little chance of corrosion in the brake system. Thing to do is bleed a little fluid off each caliper every year or so to circulate fresh fluid into the caliper.

[Rhothgar]

Fair comment, HDI.

Some damn good advice there regarding bleeding off a little fluid. Shame I didn't have the car from new!