Xantia front brake hose

[citroDane]

Looks like there are 2 lengths - longer ones for the cars with the biggest front brakes (eg V6, 2.0T, 2.1TD, 2.0HDi 110) - 370 vs 355mm. Can't see the longer ones being a problem on the smaller cars - as long as the end fittings are the same!

Thanks Richard. It was my thinking also and enjoying the privilege of everyone's experience here I'm much more comfortable to go for it and that a 15mm difference in length should be inconsequential, as Jim stated,

[citroDane]

I had exactly the same conundrum a few weeks ago. GSF offered me two different lengths (15mm difference) that their parts system shows for the Green Lady. No explanation as to why two lengths. Opted for the longer ones on the grounds that 15 or 17mm extra length wasn't going to hurt but a faction too short might just give problems. No problems fitting (4th time I've done the job) - a run-through before posting the wiki page.

Thanks Old-Guy. Also my thinking i.e. a little longer is ok but shorter than spec can't be good! Btw since you've done the job before, how tough is the job of undoing the rigid pipe flare nut? It's looks like a rusty 11mm nut and pretty risky to go at with regular spanners. I don't have an 11mm flare nut wrench. But even if I buy that wrench, what's the best way of undoing the nut? I really want to avoid using heat on it to get it loose. Right now I'm just spraying it with lots of lubricant. Thanks again.

[citroDane]

Gosh, I'm wondering now how often I've put the 'short' hose on cars that strictly need the 'long' hose..

Hi Jim, Don't worry. I reckon you would have heard from some of those people if anything had gone south!

[CitroJim]

Gosh, I'm wondering now how often I've put the 'short' hose on cars that strictly need the 'long' hose..

Hi Jim, Don't worry. I reckon you would have heard from some of those people if anything had gone south!

True, and I'm still here

[superloopy]

Surely there's not a problem with getting the correct hose for the car. Why even consider the difficulties presented by fitting the wrong length. The correct hose must be readily available. Why would you fit anything else? I'm amazed.

As for the flare nut ... you'll be lucky to shift it with fluid alone. I remember having to chop the end off mine, it was rusted solid!

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[Old-Guy]

Thanks Old-Guy. Also my thinking i.e. a little longer is ok but shorter than spec can't be good! Btw since you've done the job before, how tough is the job of undoing the rigid pipe flare nut? It's looks like a rusty 11mm nut and pretty risky to go at with regular spanners. I don't have an 11mm flare nut wrench. But even if I buy that wrench, what's the best way of undoing the nut? I really want to avoid using heat on it to get it loose. Right now I'm just spraying it with lots of lubricant. Thanks again.

I've done the job once each on 3 different Xantias. Never had a problem undoing the flare nuts despite being rusty (the Green Lady is nearly 20 years old now) and I recently changed her hoses for the first time. All I did was soak all fasteners in PlusGas on one side after taking off the wheel, then removed the other wheel and soaked all the fasteners on that side before going back to the first side.

Surely there's not a problem with getting the correct hose for the car. Why even consider the difficulties presented by fitting the wrong length. The correct hose must be readily available. Why would you fit anything else? I'm amazed.

Mike, the OP asked which of the two offered is correct because after-market suppliers' databases produce TWO hoses of that differ only in length (355 or 370mm) for any particular Xantia without specifying why the difference.

service.citroen lists the longer (370mm) hose for V6 models and the shorter (355mm) hose for lesser models. My research was cut short by the site then refusing to show any parts lists! I'm sure Richard's post is correct - longer hose for the biggest calliper.

Perhaps after-market suppliers know that Citroen occasionally fitted the biggest brakes to cars which shouldn't have had them?

[superloopy]

Lots of salted roads up here ... rots everything ...

I've got a few xantias and if any need new hoses i'd check the length required and then buy, not the other way round to save a few pennies. The correct brake components are important items for me. I can't see any reason not to buy the correct length brake hoses. If there were differing lengths i'd
buy both and return the unused one but in this case we seem to be saying go ahead and fit a longer hose which is not right ... we should be advocating the right component not a fix. My opinion only [emoji9]

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[CitroJim]

Lots of salted roads up here ... rots everything .

You're not alone Mike, we have the same down this way.. I was staggered at the amount of rot on the V6 I broke for the V6 Activa Project donations...

[citroDane]

Thanks Old-Guy. Also my thinking i.e. a little longer is ok but shorter than spec can't be good! Btw since you've done the job before, how tough is the job of undoing the rigid pipe flare nut? It's looks like a rusty 11mm nut and pretty risky to go at with regular spanners. I don't have an 11mm flare nut wrench. But even if I buy that wrench, what's the best way of undoing the nut? I really want to avoid using heat on it to get it loose. Right now I'm just spraying it with lots of lubricant. Thanks again.

I've done the job once each on 3 different Xantias. Never had a problem undoing the flare nuts despite being rusty (the Green Lady is nearly 20 years old now) and I recently changed her hoses for the first time. All I did was soak all fasteners in PlusGas on one side after taking off the wheel, then removed the other wheel and soaked all the fasteners on that side before going back to the first side.

Surely there's not a problem with getting the correct hose for the car. Why even consider the difficulties presented by fitting the wrong length. The correct hose must be readily available. Why would you fit anything else? I'm amazed.

Mike, the OP asked which of the two offered is correct because after-market suppliers' databases produce TWO hoses of that differ only in length (355 or 370mm) for any particular Xantia without specifying why the difference.

service.citroen lists the longer (370mm) hose for V6 models and the shorter (355mm) hose for lesser models. My research was cut short by the site then refusing to show any parts lists! I'm sure Richard's post is correct - longer hose for the biggest calliper.

Perhaps after-market suppliers know that Citroen occasionally fitted the biggest brakes to cars which shouldn't have had them?

Thanks Old-Guy. Great, I think I'm ready to go. Albeit I am in need of acquiring the flare nut spanner for the job. I live on VERY tight budget down in Croatia and tool prices here are mad! To make a long story short I ordered a set for the price of one of those spanners here from ebay uk and I'm gonna receive it in a week. So sadly I'll need to wait till then. But on the bright side, this gives me time to keep spraying the thing a few times in the mean time. I will report back as soon as I have had a go at it.

[Stickyfinger]

I was staggered at the amount of rot on the V6 I broke for the V6 Activa Project donations...

Why ?, its an 18 year old car, covered every winter in salt spray and smashed by gravel and bunny heads weekly......it has never been washed of re-coated.

Remarkable they last as long as the have. Considering the methods and materials used to protect cars a few years younger I think the late 80's were a leap forward really.

[chinkostu]

plusgas until you're sick of the smell of it.

last brake hoses I did I was cacking it, the union was stuck fast (this is on the 206). I ended up molegripping the hose and using a gentle loosen/tighten motion with a flare spanner on the union nut. About 5 solid minutes of that and it came loose. This is on a car that is a rotbox at the moment! so a decently looked after Xant should be little issue. I used a regular spanner on the caliper end of the hose and it loosened easily

[citroDane]

I was staggered at the amount of rot on the V6 I broke for the V6 Activa Project donations...

Why ?, its an 18 year old car, covered every winter in salt spray and smashed by gravel and bunny heads weekly......it has never been washed of re-coated.

Remarkable they last as long as the have. Considering the methods and materials used to protect cars a few years younger I think the late 80's were a leap forward really.

I agree Alasdair. I've been living here in Croatia for the past 11 years and my Xantia has been with me through thick and thin, driving me from a to b and beyond, for a good part of that. Before that she lived Belgium. Both countries toss salt on the roads during the winter so she's been exposed to that anguish for 16 years straight and yet the only rust I see on her is on the rear suspension assembly. That, to me, is quite an impressive record.

[citroDane]

plusgas until you're sick of the smell of it.

last brake hoses I did I was cacking it, the union was stuck fast (this is on the 206). I ended up molegripping the hose and using a gentle loosen/tighten motion with a flare spanner on the union nut. About 5 solid minutes of that and it came loose. This is on a car that is a rotbox at the moment! so a decently looked after Xant should be little issue. I used a regular spanner on the caliper end of the hose and it loosened easily

Thanks.

They don't sell plusgas here in Croatia, so I'm using this Italian made stuff (helped me a lot in the past with loosening rusty nuts):
http://www.svitol.it/en/products/svitol ... -dispenser" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

My car in not rusty at all, so I’m hoping this would be relatively painless.

Btw, did you molegrip the flex hose because it was turning? I didn’t think it was supposed to that while sitting in the fixing bracket

[chinkostu]

Yea, the 206 hose had a sort of multipoint shape that's supposed to hold it in the bracket, but the rust had got it so it was basically round.

[Old-Guy]

Yea, the 206 hose had a sort of multipoint shape that's supposed to hold it in the bracket, but the rust had got it so it was basically round.

No wonder the hose needed replacing!

While you're waiting for your gland-nut spanner set (essential on a Xantia) to arrive, why not make yourself a brake-hose clamp like that shown in the Wiki. Then when you come to do the job, you can clamp off the old hose somewhere around the middle, cut off close to the calliper and then you can get a deep hex (not bi-hex) socket on the pipe stub.