Servicing ZX TD's

IanD · Unread post by **IanD** » 10 May 2004, 00:58

I've just bought a very nice Volcane TD & am wondering how often I should change the air filter? Should I do it at the same time as the oil & filter ?(which I'll be doing every 6,000 miles).
Also, which oil is best to use? The car runs really well & has done a genuine 120k with FSH. Should I be using a semi-synthetic?
Cheers,
Ian

Unread post by **philhoward** » 10 May 2004, 01:09

I think the air filter is a 36,000 service item, but it won't hurt to do it more often! As for the oil, there are many answers; the Total Quartz seems to be the favourite

jeremy · Unread post by **jeremy** » 10 May 2004, 01:36

haynes suggests every 18,000 miles or 18 months for both normal and turbo's. Turbos draw a great deal of air into them and it may be worth checking the filter earlier, especially as some (BX for example) are in the crankcase ventilation path and can suffer from deposited oil (blackens the first 1/2 inch or so).
Jeremy

Unread post by **RichardW** » 10 May 2004, 12:43

I do my air filters (and diesel filters) every other oil change, and by then they are usually looking pretty dirty. As long as you buy them from GSF and not Citroen, they don't cost the earth, and only take a couple of minutes to change.

IanD · Unread post by **IanD** » 11 May 2004, 16:26

Thanks for the advice guys[:)]
Phil Howard,
Where do you get the Total Quartz oil from? Also is there a best "thickness" of oil for these cars (eg. my last car was 15w50 fully synthetic but that was petrol). Do you have the same kind of ratings on diesel engine oil or is it one size fits all type thing? LOL
Cheers,
Ian

Unread post by **philhoward** » 11 May 2004, 20:06

I think GSF stock it, or a Total Petrol Station; Jon will tell us! There is a different grading system for Petrol and Diesel oils, but virtually all oils supercede the standards required by Citroen when the car was built!
There was a big discussion on best oils for the 1.9TD (along with talk about synthetics and HDi filters) not so long back; have a browse through the forum for the subject.

arry_b · Unread post by **arry_b** » 11 May 2004, 20:19

Gulp! Don't buy it from a Total petrol station, it would be cheaper for drive to the Gulf and dig it out of the ground!

IanD · Unread post by **IanD** » 11 May 2004, 20:28

Thanks Phil & LOL @ arry b[:D]
Had a quick browse using the search engine on here the other day for oils but didn't find much, maybe I need to widen my search a bit. Will have a go tonight [:)]
Cheers,
Ian

Unread post by **RichardW** » 11 May 2004, 21:07

Ian,
Everything you never wanted to know about engine oils:
http://www.chris-longhurst.com/carbible ... bible.html
I think the XUD Turbo engine requires an oil to C2 spec, which most mineral 15w-40 will be these days. Better to use a semi-synthetic to C3 spec, which will probably be 10w-40. GSF sell semi-synth oil to C3 for about £10 / 5 litres. I had both in my garage recently, and I was surprised at how much thinner the 10w-40 was than the 15w-40.
Most important of all is to change the oil regularly, and use a good (eg Purflux, from GSF!) filter. Jon uses the higher spec HDi one on his ZX and extends the oil changes to 10k miles (see recent thread on here).

bxbodger · Unread post by **bxbodger** » 11 May 2004, 21:19

If you live in the south collect the Sun tokens and have a day trip to France; quality brand oils in the Auchan or Carrefour hypermarkets are much cheaper than here; along with the Booze and oil I usually pile some LHM and multipacks of sump plug gaskets in as well.

Unread post by **Jon** » 11 May 2004, 21:22

Hi all
Great info on Total Oils from this part of their website
http://www.total.gb.com/webkit/lubes/pr ... Automotive
Quartz 5000D; and Q7000 semi synthetic are fine for the ZX TD, I have not used the Q9000 fully synthetic in the Zx as its more suited for "Multivalve and high pressure direct injection engines" which the old 1.9TD is not.
I usually change the diesel filter at every service along with the oil and filter, and leave the air filter until the service after as mine rarely seems that dirty, just unclip the bottom of the housing and let the leaves etc fall out!

uhn113x · Unread post by **uhn113x** » 11 May 2004, 22:01

<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">If you live in the south collect the Sun tokens and have a day trip to France.<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote"></font id="quote">
But, bxbodger, someone I know might see me buying the Sun [:(]
You'll be asking us to drive V*l**s next [;)]

Stuart McB · Unread post by **Stuart McB** » 13 May 2004, 01:12

I always found that the usual oil kept on the shelf at my local GSF was OK for my old ZX td. Also I chanegd the air filter at the same time as the oil filter, about every 6 months. It only cost's a couple of quid to do an oil "n" filter change using GSF.