Some (many) questions about a Xantia

[OneRandomBX]

My dad just bought a 2001 HDI 90 Xantia Break, it's overall in pretty good condition but I've got a list of questions.
I've tried researching online, but there seems to be very little about the Xantia out there.
It's going to be a long post, thank you to whoever has the patience to read through it and maybe give some answers.


-The car has no A/C button, but I had a look under the hood and saw that the A/C compressor is there. The button on the right side behind the steering wheel is blank, and then it has a fog light button and the hazards button. (the car is LHD)
In the door I found the little plastic button cover with the snowflake that goes on an A/C switch, and when disassembling the dash to change the instrument cluster bulbs I saw the the connector for the hazards switch is blue (does the color mean anything?), and that the wiring to it has been messed with, loads of electrical tape and such. I'm wondering if someone rewired what previously was the A/C switch for some reason.

-When you turn the ignition on, it lets out a solid 20 second, extremely annoying, continuous beep. A little key light flashes on the instrument cluster for a while. There is no keypad, just a red bulb on the plastic to the left of the steering wheel, to which I noticed the wires have been cut. It starts with no problems, I would just like the beeping to stop.

-The rear wiper doesn't work, it's stuck half way. I hear the pump working when I try to spray it. I found threads here suggesting the motor is seized, so I'll probably take it off to try to rebuild it if the wiring to it is fine.

-Suspension seems pretty good overall. It's very smooth on bumpy roads, but the front seems to be very harsh over speedbumps and similar large bumps, compared to our BX and C5 X7, which seems strange. Maybe the height needs adjusting. I'm pretty sure it's regular hydropneumatic, no suspension mode button inside, but looking under the rear I saw a third sphere in the middle, I'm guessing that's the anti-sink one?

-The airbag light on the dash flashes continuously, and what I assume is the side airbag light (buckled up guy with an oval lump next to him) is on all the time. Is there some common fault that could be easy to fix?

-The tacho shows around 1050 rpm at idle, and the throttle is weirdly sensitive, it revs high with little throttle input. The idle is steady and the engine doesn't randomly surge, but there does seem to be a delay when taking the foot of the gas before the engine stops pulling. EGR? Vacuum hoses?

[xantia_v6]

It is difficult to diagnose based on the information available, especially as the wiring has had unknown modification.

The common problems with the airbags is due to bad connections in the connectors under the seats. It is often recommended to cut out the connectors and solder the wires directly.

We have access to most of the Xantia wiring diagrams for RHD cars, but we only post individual diagrams on request.

I would recommend that you buy or borrow a Lexia/Diagbox clone to get some proper diagnostic data.

[Estately]

Hi,
As already said regarding the airbag light, the first thing to do is unplug and plug in the connections under the two front seats with the ignition off, to try and clean up the contacts as I believe the current is very small. Ignition off - you don't want to risk an airbag going off.

Rear wiper, provided the wires have not broken by the tailgate hinge and the motor hasn't burnt out you may find that a screw and locknut to prevent play on the wiper shaft has strangely tightened to the point that the motor will not operate. Readjust the locknut and you should have an operating rear wiper.
Try and operate the wiper with an assistant before it is all put back to make the job easier.

The under dash wiring could be the result of the blower motor contacts overheating due to the motor resistor and control giving up.
Prepare to have your brain fried trying to work that lot out.

Good luck and hope that helps.
Andy.

[Armidillo]

Hi,
As already said regarding the airbag light, the first thing to do is unplug and plug in the connections under the two front seats with the ignition off, to try and clean up the contacts as I believe the current is very small. Ignition off - you don't want to risk an airbag going off.

...

Good luck and hope that helps.
Andy.

Are you sure ignition off is sufficient? I always disconnected the battery, just to be sure. While you've got the battery disconnected, remove the lower cowling from steering column (held in by 2 torx screws - sorry can't remember the size). This will give you access to the two steering wheel airbag connectors. Disconnect, spray with contact cleaner, and hopefully the light won't come back on for a few months.

Xantias delivered to Australia did not have side airbags, although Pug 406s did, so I guess it's possible you have them.

My Xantia wagon has the airbag warning light on. A previous owner had soldered the under-seat connectors. I haven't tried soldering the steering wheel connectors, but when the disconnect and clean treatment stopped working, I concluded the problem was almost certainly in the clock spring.

The key symbol flashing on the dashboard is normal, while it communicates with the chip in the key. Series I Xantias have the keypad, Series II have the chip in the key. The chip reader should surround the front of the ignition switch. Can't help with the continuous beep - it should give a two-tone beep until you get hydraulic pressure up (ie after starting the engine).

We didn't get the diesels over here - hope you can sort out the issues as it sounds like a great car!

Cheers
Alec

[wheeler]

If the immo light is flashing flashing & getting the beep but the engine still starts this could be a sign that someone has bypassed the immobiliser.

[OneRandomBX]

Thank you all for the suggestions, I'll get to work over the weekend and see what i can sort out.

And yes, the beep starts when I turn on the ignition, and I can start the car normally while it's beeping. It stops after a while whether I start the car or not.

I really would just like the sound to stop, if there is a way to disconnect the actual speaker that would be nice.

Another thing, I can't find the threads on rebuilding the rear wiper motor assembly, I read a good guide on the whole process a few days ago, now it's like it's disappeared. Does anyone have a link?

[xantia_v6]

Another thing, I can't find the threads on rebuilding the rear wiper motor assembly, I read a good guide on the whole process a few days ago, now it's like it's disappeared. Does anyone have a link?

This one? viewtopic.php?t=44909

[Estately]

The viewtopic refers to adjusting a hex nut for whiplash on the worm gear and that was what I was trying to explain.

For whatever reason the one on our wiper motor had tightened such that the motor would not operate. It was adjusted, greased and did not require attention again.

Once you remove the plastic trim etc off the tailgate there is a plastic sheet stuck on to keep water in the right place. You should be able to only partially remove it just to gain access to the motor, you should be able to re attach it using the sealant present, no need to cut the plastic.

As already said the first thing to do before the above, is check the tailgate wiring for breaks, a visual inspection in the rubber conduit where the wires are flexing when the tailgate opens should reveal any problems.

Hope that helps.
Andy.

[OneRandomBX]

Another thing, I can't find the threads on rebuilding the rear wiper motor assembly, I read a good guide on the whole process a few days ago, now it's like it's disappeared. Does anyone have a link?

This one? viewtopic.php?t=44909

I've finally found it, after much googling, it was linked in the first result that pops up... It's this one: https://www.frenchcarforum.co.uk/forum/ ... 11&t=32120

I'm pretty sure that the problem lies in the wiring at the boot opening, as I pulled the little rubber protective hose back and saw some stripped/crimped wires, but I had no time to investigate further, hopefully I won't need to actually rebuild the motor.

I'm surprised that no one commented on the fast idle issue, is it not as big of a deal as I thought it was?

[Armidillo]

My 16V petrol Xantia was very slow to drop revs when I took my foot off the go pedal, and I think had high idle as well. Don't think I did anything more complicated than cleaning the throttle body & idle control valve, and lubricate the throttle cable.

May not be any use for a diesel...

[CitroJim]

My 16V petrol Xantia was very slow to drop revs when I took my foot off the go pedal, and I think had high idle as well. Don't think I did anything more complicated than cleaning the throttle body & idle control valve, and lubricate the throttle cable.

May not be any use for a diesel...

Although the HDi is 'fly by wire' with electronic control of engine speed, it's still worth checking the mechanical bowden cable linkage (throttle cable) from the accelerator pedal to the throttle pot (the thing that turns the mechanical movement of the pedal into an electronic signal) and the pot itself. After all these years the pot may be starting to fail and it would certainly give the symptoms you have.

If it were anything more serious, the engine performance would likely be compromised and you'd invariably see the Engine Management Light illuminated.

That said, a Lexia diagnostic session would be valuable and may shed some light.

[OneRandomBX]

Although the HDi is 'fly by wire' with electronic control of engine speed, it's still worth checking the mechanical bowden cable linkage (throttle cable) from the accelerator pedal to the throttle pot (the thing that turns the mechanical movement of the pedal into an electronic signal) and the pot itself. After all these years the pot may be starting to fail and it would certainly give the symptoms you have.

That is what I've been suspecting. When I had a quick look under the bonnet last week, I didn't see the throttle potentiometer, where is it located in the engine bay?

[CitroJim]

Although the HDi is 'fly by wire' with electronic control of engine speed, it's still worth checking the mechanical bowden cable linkage (throttle cable) from the accelerator pedal to the throttle pot (the thing that turns the mechanical movement of the pedal into an electronic signal) and the pot itself. After all these years the pot may be starting to fail and it would certainly give the symptoms you have.

That is what I've been suspecting. When I had a quick look under the bonnet last week, I didn't see the throttle potentiometer, where is it located in the engine bay?

I can't remember now If it's like the 2.1TD then it'll be well buried and hidden down in the vicinity of the ECU box on the inner wing not far off the bulkhead. Have a look at the cable as it exits the bulkhead and it should lead to to the spot. I seem to recall the cable is quite short.

That's from dim memory so I may be talking total rubbish!

[OneRandomBX]

Thanks for all the help.
Just one more thing. I would like to measure the ride height, it looks a bit too high in the normal position.
Could you help me find the measurimg guide (bottom of the subframe etc) for my model? 2001 HDi Estate.