Rear tyre wear.

[Jetjockey]

Hello.

Just been round to my tyre place to get the wheels swapped front to back. Rear wheels were removed and both were found to be worn down on the inner edge of the tyre and like new on the outer edge! Both tyres were worn identically.

The tyre fitters were scratching their heads and offered the suggestion that the rear tracking may be out.
Does the 2008 C5 Exclusive tourer 2ltr Tdi even have tracking, or might this be a problem with the hydrolastic suspension.

Anybody any ideas?

Thanks.

[Hell Razor5543]

Rear arm bearings could be on their way out.

[Jetjockey]

Anybody got a diagram? Is this a big job, special tools etc?

[Hell Razor5543]

I cannot say how big a job it is, as when I had to have it done I got a Citroen specialist to do it. One way to (possibly) diagnose it is to go for a quiet drive with the windows down (and the radio off) to see if you can hear any creaking. Mike (Michel, on this forum) used to call my C5 Mk1 "Old Shagger", as he said it creaked more than an old bed being used by an enthusiastic young couple!

[Jetjockey]

Heh heh!

Can’t say I have any of that, it drives very quietly.

[Hell Razor5543]

Have you driven her with all of the windows down, no radio, and a quiet (bumpy) country lane? I couldn't hear the creaking when the windows were closed, but I could when I matched the criteria.

[GiveMeABreak]

The C5 X7 is nothing like the previous C5 suspension. It is more akin to the C6, having a multi-link setup.

(5) Suspension upper arm.
(6) Rear pivot.
(7) Hub/bearing.
(8) Tracking adjustment rod.
(9) Lower suspension arm.

So to answer your question, yes, there is rear tracking at the axle:

Reference	Designation	Tightening torque
(1)	Bolt - Nut (Tracking adjustment rod / Crossmember) (*)	7,5 daNm
(2)	Adjustment locking screw on tracking adjustment rod	1 daNm
(3)	Bolt (Tracking adjustment rod / Pivot) (*)	7 daNm

Rear Camber: Not adjustable
Thrust Angle: 0° ± 0°30'
Tracking at the Axle: Adjustable, 0°34 ± 0°09'

[Jetjockey]

Hmmmmm. Very interesting.

Thanks for that. I think I need to look at these links to see if they are rusted solid, and if necessary free them up.
Next step will be to try and find a local tyre company that has the ability to actually set the tracking on the rear wheels.

The bit that has me puzzled is that they both appear to be out of kilter by exactly the same amount.
Possibly incorrectly set by a previous attempt at alignment perhaps.

Many, many thanks.

[Hell Razor5543]

I would use some Plus Gas on the threads, so if they need to be adjusted they should be able to be done with little effort.