Citroen Xsara Dashboard Electrics - again

[xsaras4ever]

Hello to all.

We sold our 306 and are back in a Xsara _ yippee.

Dash problems need solving - any advice welcome.

We have checked all fuses.

1.) Heater fan not working - its a aircon model - when its a normal model it is usually the resister near the wiper motor but fans still work on 3 (or is it 4 ?) but this model is a variable speed fan and does nothing.

2.) Rev-counter is dead - we will replace the sensor and its wire into the gearbox but bet its not that simple....

3.) Low on cooling-fluid lit. We have replaced the sensor into the little heater tank - still the same. Can anyone tell us what the voltage or resistance across the 3 wires is supposed to be and can we short them to pass the current back so that it thinks there is sufficient liquid ?
This one is strange because on other Xsaras when they were low on liquid the light didn't illuminate anyway !!!!!

Once again, thanks in advance

[xsaras4ever]

Some success.

Lucky things like this don't often happen to us.

Just a little bit of back-round about this car.

We saw it advertised , lowish km , very cheap because the engine could not be guaranteed. The owner said that it began to clack after his mechanic had changed the accessory belt.

We bought it , trailered it home and the next day undid the accessory belt - but the engine still clacked.

We went into the timing , saw a new belt, pulleys and water-pump (owner never mentioned this), checked the timing - out by 1 tooth on the injection pump (its a 1.9td)

Re-timed it, closed up, put on the accessory belt and it ran sweet as a nut. 3 hours work in all . Success.

Passed its CT (french MoT) first time - well pleased.

Now , back to the posting.

We have just discovered that the 3 pin female plug for the rev-counter and the cooling-liquid sensor are identical - just different colours.
Also , the rev-counter sensor in the gearbox has a moulded cable and goes over the gearbox , under the diesel pre-heater/filter and arrives to another connector - GUESS WHERE - yep - back of the injection pump - less than 10cm away from the header tank.

The previous genius mechanic had mixed the connections - we swapped them and now have rev-counter and coolant level working.

Just heater fan to go.

We gotta find this chap's premises and maybe stalk his dis-satisfied customers..............

[Paul-R]

When the heater motor went in my wife's Xsara (a Phase II model) it turned out to be the transistors in the speed controller on the motor. I ordered a kit of a seller on Ebay and fitted them quite easily - I'm quite at home with a soldering iron. It's the same as on the Xantia so have a read of this http://frenchcarforum.co.uk/forum/viewt ... =3&t=41428

[xsaras4ever]

Hello Paul and thanks for the posting.

Was it an Aircon model - just wind the dial around to increase the speed, of the normal type with 0,1,2,3,4 ?

If the same as ours, did the motor turn a little, or not atall ?

[Paul-R]

It was an aircon type. The fan speed dial had an auto position but, when it went wrong, only the max speed worked and then nothing did.

Actually that's not quite true, there was a period when it was faulty, then it healed itself and then it went terminally wrong.

[xsaras4ever]

Hi Paul , thanks for the link to that posting.

We have started back on this problem again.

Same set-up , big red wire, big black wire , brown block which contains 4 wires - large red and large black , small orange and small white.

Both large black wires are to earth and they are perfect.

With engine running and fan on max we have

0.00 on individual red
0.00 on red in brown block
1.24 on orange
13.24 on white.

As its a xsara and not a Xantia, as in the posting , we will have to track down the correct fuses and relays.

To test the fan, we put a direct feed from battery to individual red and nothing....

Must check it to red in brown block.

Thanks in advance.

[Paul-R]

I still think it's probably the transistors. I took a long time to convince myself so I know what you're going through.

[xsaras4ever]

Hello again,
2 problems here - possibly.

Took blower out - connect 12v "+" and "-" directly into blower, it springs into life.

Connect 12v to 4-wire brown block, nothing.

Also, there is no power at Fuse 20 with ignition on.

When we force 12v into fuse 20 with a temporary link wire, still nothing on the big red wire at the blower end.

Will check the relay next - is the the green one under the steering column with the green base ?

Thanks to all