Want to change the oil

wotsupnow · Post by **wotsupnow** » 18 Jun 2004, 19:56

but can't get the cover off under the engine.........
The captive nuts, aren't!
Can you buy these ? if so I can possibly chisel all the heads off and start again.
Is it best to have engine hot ? ie if you stop after a run and raise the suspension then leave it overnight, won't the maximum amount of old oil now be in the sump the following day when you drain it ?.
Pete

Kowalski · Post by **Kowalski** » 18 Jun 2004, 20:01

There was a convenient flap that you opened on my Xantia that you opened and your socket would go straight onto the sump plug. The oil drained through this flap happily too.
What sort of car / engine do you have?

JohnD · Post by **JohnD** » 18 Jun 2004, 23:06

The same with my Xantia. There's a drop down flap just under the sump plug, however on daughter's HDI Xsara, the tray has to be taken off. On my Xantia, I've fitted all the holding bolts with wing nuts, so they're easily removed.

rg · Post by rg » 18 Jun 2004, 23:42

You may need "Angle Grinder Surgery" for the "captive" (!) nut bolts.
A few well-placed self-tappers may be a suitable replacement.
HTH
rg

np · Post by np » 19 Jun 2004, 03:01

I used to have to take the tray off on mine,as if i drained it through the flap,it just used to flood out & and miss the hole!
I say used to,as the under tray deceided to part company with the car doing 110mph!(private road of course!)Have`nt botherd replacing it as gave up trying to find one.

KevMayer · Post by **KevMayer** » 19 Jun 2004, 04:50

I lost my undertray too. In flood water during flooding in recent past. I raised my suspension to the notch above normal. I kept my speed down to about 15mph and used to drive through floods that others turned around at. It was great.
But, somewhere along the line my undertray was ripped off. The only place I could find a supplier of a new tray was Citroen main dealers at 120 quid.
My friendly Citroen garage told me not to bother to replace it as its only fitted to diesel engined Xantias to reduce the engine noise reflecting off the road surface.
So, I didn't replace it.

np · Post by np » 19 Jun 2004, 05:07

Same as i was told.Good to have though if you have any oil leaks!My Dad wont let me park on his BIG drive when i visit,as mine drops a drops a spot of oil ONCE a week!!!
Cant seem to get them 2nd hand as most have been lost on other cars.

Tebster · Post by **Tebster** » 19 Jun 2004, 16:19

You can buy these from citroen main dealers, I bought a bag full for a couple of quid, the three front and the two on the subframe will need drilling out if rusted up though, replaced all the captive ones on my xantia with the push on type, remember to grease them well prior to refitting.

nick · Post by **nick** » 19 Jun 2004, 18:09

Until quite recently I didn't realise Xantia diesels were suposed to have undertrays. The undertray was already missing from mine when I bought it at just over 2 years old.

Kowalski · Post by **Kowalski** » 21 Jun 2004, 15:24

My 97 Xantia has no undertray, the 95 does. The 97 is a lot quieter even though it has no undertray, the mileage may have something to do with that though.

wotsupnow · Post by **wotsupnow** » 21 Jun 2004, 17:32

NP said "I used to have to take the tray off on mine,as if i drained it through the flap,it just used to flood out & and miss the hole!"
Was that because your oil was very thin ( which I suspect mine will be ) or because the car wasn't on level ground ? If I can do it without removing the cover it'll be much easier, or then again perhaps I should just lever it off over the freely spinning bolts and then forget about it.
Pete

mark_sp · Post by **mark_sp** » 21 Jun 2004, 17:40

My Xantia has an undertray with a flap (although originally I didn't notice the flap). The oil drains through the flap when the car is on level ground or a slight incline. What I have found though is that when the oil filter is removed the oil runs down the block and around the sump and onto the top of the undertray. To avoid this I make up a cardboard shield to channel the oil forward of the undertray and into the container.
Mark

Post by **RichardW** » 21 Jun 2004, 18:56

Undertray is easily removed with an angle grinder...
I used to replace mine, but can't detect any difference with out without, so it is without now. If you leave it off, make sure you bolt / tie up the wing liners at the front inner corners or you get a "The car's making a funny noise" phone call.....
Most annoying thing about the oil change flap was that it was front hinged, so I had to prop it up with a bit of stick in order to get access to the sump plug when not using a lift to change the oil.

paranoid · Post by **paranoid** » 21 Jun 2004, 19:26

Just remember to put the flap back securely when you have finished, Drove home very slowly one dark night thinking the gearbox was about to die, What a relief the next morning when the flap was noticed[:D]

np · Post by np » 22 Jun 2004, 01:40

I do use a thinish oil,10/40 semi synthetic.Its just that i found that when you remove the drain plug,the inital surge of oil used to miss the hole.I always took the tray off.It only took a few mins,but my bolts were ok.