2.1 TD Xantia on a budget

[Hell Razor5543]

Does your Xantia have the anti-sink sphere? If you are not sure, pop her on high and take a look at the rear sub-frame. If there is one there *near the height controller) I would change it at the same time as the accumulator sphere, as it does the same job, but at the rear. Other than putting it onto a pressure tester there is no way to test the anti-sink sphere. Most people swap the accumulator and anti-sink spheres at the same time.

[Skull]

Hell Razor5543

Yes have ordered anti sink sphere today (10 day order delay) .... once fitted, then all 6 spheres will be new and I would hope that will sort the ride out.

Noticed tonight that the front brakes must be dragging very slightly as the brakes were pretty hot, so that will be another job to sort .... it was supposed to have new discs and pads all-round but after stripping the front brakes for the MOT I know that the fronts are not new ...

[Hell Razor5543]

You might want to check the brake cables. They can wear out at the first guide loop from the hub carrier, which then lets in water and causes them to rust and bind. Another thing to check is the handbrake lever on the calliper. Recently Gracie failed her initial MoT due to a binding NSF brake. I found that the lever wasn't returning properly, so I popped off the gaiter and found the grease had turned to glue. I cleaned that up, re-greased (with copper slip), and she got through the re-test.

[Skull]

Hell Razor5543

Cheers

I had to strip and grease them up for the MOT retest as they were binding badly - improved for that and passed the MOT but they must still be binding or at least not releasing fully the handbrake cable and lever seemed fine and the pistons wound back OK they are pretty badly worn and there can be no doubt that they weren't replaced last year as the previous owner stated ...

I need to confirm what size discs they are and see if they have the right offset on them as I believe there are 2 versions that were fitted to my model.

Starting to feel like I've bought a bit of a dog as more and more problems are coming to light

Only being used for local trips at the moment until the remaining new spheres are fitted

blimey is that the time .... good night

[Hell Razor5543]

That is not that unusual (buying a dog!). I have had to do a lot on Gracie, but as I have managed to do all of it so far (either by myself or with the assistance of the FCF members (Thanks, everybody!)) I have managed to keep the cost down, and to learn while I fix her.

I have recently bought new seals for her front brakes, £29 for the axle set. I may not need them (planning on re-furbishing the front brakes), but if I didn't have them I would need them. I got them from Bigg Red.

[Skull]

Spheres arrived and fitted Suspension all sorted now, the front suspension spheres were easy after all the problems getting the rear suspension ones changed and the ride is now much better straight away. I've also changed the rear anti-sink sphere which went OK but a little messy. The Mrs is impressed by the difference and is starting to enjoy the car ... for now

Many thanks for the supersticky thread with CitroJim's tips helped me cope with the job and saved time and money.

In hindsight I probably should have done all the spheres in one go and saved a bit of time getting her up and down the ramps and saved a bit of LHM as I have depressurised the system 4 times now but I was trying to do it on a budget and didn't want to replace parts that didn't need replacing. Most on here will probably agree that it's hard to know which parts are tired and which parts might be effecting the performance of other related parts.

I imagine the suspension is one of those things on Citroens that can degrade gradually as you own it and you may not necessarily notice the firmer ride developing over time.

I wouldn't recommend buying a 'non-runner' unless you are more experienced than most but If I buy another Xantia I will know that even with the engine not running there should be a decent amount of give in the suspension.

Problems remaining:

Front brakes binding slightly.
Excessive misting of windows (likely heater matrix)

£399.13 Purchase (£330 delivered) and repair (osf brake pipe £47.34 (4886 70) (5 Ltr LHM £21.79)
£30.15 24Hrs Insurance (for MOT and retest)
£35 MOT fee
£3.54 bulb (ventilation panel / illumination) (611260)
£17.50 sphere tool (ebay)
£52.67 2 x rear suspension spheres (527234) (plus ltr of LHM always handy)
£31.91 1 x accumulator sphere (95 666 763)
£46.80 2 x front suspension spheres (95 666 857)
£24.11 1 x rear anti-sink sphere (529303)
.95p 1 x 4.5mm seal for above (from GSFcarparts.com)
£641.76 It's not easy to do these on the cheap
£993.25(Including + £126.49 for 9 months Insurance transfer + £225 for 12 Months Road Tax)

[KP]

That's not too bad going

My td is coming upto about £800 all in once i get the mot on her but £250 is the bodywork getting done and I know I'll be making a loss when she goes up for sale at £750 but she will make someone a good car for a good while yet as all the major bits are sorted and she has some tax on her as well

To be honest unless you get the car for free when it's a non runner you'll be not far off your final sums for most as you've found spheres are the big one that's often neglected and rusty pipes as well

[Skull]

KP Cheers

The bodywork has gone a bit flakey in the arches and the rear door sills but probably the worst part is a scabby rear passenger wing as these only have a small arch liner for some reason

[KP]

If you want to keep it then get a wire brush on the scabby bits ASAP and get it back to bare metal and well treated before this winter kicks in as the rust, especially in the door jambs seems to be becoming more common and while it seems a way to waste a day its well worth it, though in this weather get an old hair dryer and use that to speed up the drying process on any stuff you apply but I'd recommend some zinc coats first and then something slightly flexible so it wont crack easily and something thick ontop for the surfaces subject to road grime

[Skull]

I do intend to keep her - hopefully get 3 years out of her but the cosmetics aren't that important to me ... there always seems to be someone that puts their door into mine when I'm not looking ....One of the reasons I buy 2nd hand is that most of them already have some scarring. I could repair it but it will probably be more noticeable once I've finished repairing it

[KP]

Ahhh I'm not on about perfect but stopping the rust getting too bad before it takes hold.

[Skull]

6 Months and 2,500 miles later ...

Not really much to report, just done a 790 mile round trip and all was going well (with the exception of a few nobbers on the M1) averaged 50.53 MPG on that run mostly loaded and 85% @ 70 MPH (ish)

Last 150 miles was touch and go with a leaking radiator, but as the car only usually does a local journey I have the time to sort that (most of the things that I was told were new on the car seem to have been the subject of bullshit )

Outstanding list:

Radiator leaking
Front brakes binding slightly.
Excessive misting of windows (likely heater matrix)
slow puncture x 1
driver's mirror not heating
dim fuel gauge / temp gauge left side of instrument panel (bulb)
Heater works on low or max not much variable inbetween

Whilst the ride has been sorted to a satisfactory level I'm not convinced it's like the 'magic carpet' I imagined (having never driven in a new Xantia) but overall she's behaving herself.

I'm looking at treating her to a basic service once the radiator is sorted which will probably only involve oil & filter / replenish the coolant

In the back of my mind I'm wondering whether to do the cambelt/pulleys/water pump and auxilary belt (done the belts on my previous 1.9TD Xantia but can't say I enjoyed it)

If I go this route I will obviously do the coolant change once I've completed the water pump.

This is mainly due to the bullshit factor previously mentioned.

I have to say that the 2.1 TD engine is a nice lump but if I get another Xantia it will probably be another Estate version as the hatchback fails to swallow my dog cage in any configuration (except collapsed for storage ) which fitted in the rear of my Saxo and still allowed the single rear seat to be used.

Overall but a little

[KP]

Iirc on a 2.1 you don't need to worry about locking the pump just the cam and crank

Makes life a little easier

[Skull]

I'm all for an easier life KP

[RichardW]

2.1TD is old school IDI tech, and the pump DOES need to be timed. 2.0 HDi is modern CR tech, and the pump DOESN'T need to be timed. Jim covered the 2.1TD belt replacement here: http://www.frenchcarforum.co.uk/forum/v ... 11&t=23908" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;