Had a mishap in my xantia, can this be DIY'd?

[Duke137]

Basically this happened:





Basically looks like the lower balljoint has snapped, I was doing about 30mph at the time.

Can I DIY fix this, I have had to dump the car at a mates, it is impossible to move without a low loader.

Can I just slide the drive shaft back in, fill the gearbox back up with oil replace the lower arm and bent drop link and then go and get the tracking done?

Don't really want to have to scrap it or anything drastic as I think it is fixable. I know the tyre will need inspecting too.

Any comments/help/advice appreciated.

The car is a good example, I have replaced loads of parts on it including a very recent full exhaust so it's worth sorting for sure.

[citroenxm]

Any parts you need that are obscure shout..

But as long as the rubber hasnt tirn on the strut top.. drop link.. bottom joint.. and drive shaft and gear oil should see right.. check the strut return hose too might of pulled off the return.

I see why my mot man is keen on bottom joints.. scarey experiance.. far from needing scrapping that..

Bottom ball joints can be a pita to do.. for emergency you may want to consider just fitting a whole hub with a ball joint already in to get you going.. but that could be false economy too..

[Stewart(oily)]

OOH! Bugger! that looks nasty, if you could find a breaker that ought to be fixable, I would have my fingers crossed that the steering rack is okay.

[Mandrake]

The suspension shouldn't be too hard to fix, even if you end up having to swap lower arm, strut, strut top etc... and would be worth it if the car is otherwise a good example. Hopefully the roll bar isn't bent as I'm not sure how hard that would be to replace, as no-one ever replaces them...

I'd be more concerned about damage to the gearbox output shafts from having the driveshaft forcibly ripped out, potentially an engine/gearbox out job if any damage can't be fixed in situ. Is it a manual box ?

Steering rack would also be a concern. Once you've got the damaged bits out you'd want to do some very careful measurements of the geometry of whats left to make sure things aren't bent.

My Dad's Xantia had had a slight prang on the front left before he got it and the geometry was slightly out. Measurement showed the lower arm itself had been bent back by about 5-10mm at the balljoint relative to the other side - we replaced the lower arm which improved matters but the car never quite tracked like it should and without spending a lot of time and money on it to find out why we just put up with imperfect tracking.

[addo]

This should help.

[myglaren]

This should help.

Had that happen with my GS on a roundabout. New drive shaft needed as it sprayed needle rollers all over the place but it was an easy repair with no further problems experienced.

Also happened with my Renault 11, again on a very busy roundabout. That was terminal as there were other faults with the car that made repairs unworthwhile at the time although I do regret now not doing it as the car was insane and lots of fun.

[citroenxm]

The good thing about psa xu and dw drive shafts same witb diesels is they are just a push fit.. at worse a shaft seal in the diff would be needed at about six quid...

[RichardW]

Bet that was exciting - at least it happened BEFORE you went on the motorway!

Chances are the bottom arm is ok once you knock the remains of the ball joint out of it. Brake hose might need replacing, and it might have ripped the ABS sensor wire out. Inspect the drive shaft carefully - the splines are pretty fine, and look like they have been dragged down the road.

[Duke137]

Thanks for the replies, I am pretty confident it will be an easy-ish fix. It's just a bit inconvenient as these things always are.

Random question, where do you fill the gear box with oil?

[addo]

In the workshop, on the hoist.

[Stewart(oily)]

Now that you have the wheel off look at the end plate on the gearbox, one of the bolts there has a 19mm head, provided its a BE3 box then that is the filler/level plug, if its an HDI 110 or 2.1 then the plug is hidden on the rear of the diff housing.

[Hell Razor5543]

I found that the easiest way to top up the gearbox oil was through the reverse switch hole (the reverse switch is under the air box). Takes about 1.8l of oil. You want to get BV 75W80 (normally available from Citroen), about £16 for 2L. Don't use anything else, as the gearbox will like it even less than having the drive shaft pop out at speed!

[Duke137]

I found that the easiest way to top up the gearbox oil was through the reverse switch hole (the reverse switch is under the air box). Takes about 1.8l of oil. You want to get BV 75W80 (normally available from Citroen), about £16 for 2L. Don't use anything else, as the gearbox will like it even less than having the drive shaft pop out at speed!

Why can't I use anything else? Surely fresh gearbox oil of any brand will be better than 10+ year old stuff or in my case none at all?

[addo]

It's not hard to find, and does make a difference. Why do it twice, I think is James' point here...

[citroenxm]

The ml boxs are quite strong.. ive never changed the oil in mine and its probably done about 150k.. its still not moaning..

Any correct grade gear oil should do the job in a manual box.. Gear oil only of course.. get the stuff from your factors about 8 quid I THINK but dont quote me.