Citroen Xanita V6 Help needed Please

[co04pow]

Hi,

It has been a very long time since I have been on this forum, I am looking for some help regarding my Xantia V6.

Very long story short it has been off the road since March 2011 and stored in my fathers garage.

For the first 4/5 years I would start it up every few months.

I since moved away and it fell by the wayside. So hasn't been started for approximately 8/9 years.

I am now back and want to get it on the road again, I put 10 litres of fuel in it and it turns over but will not fire up.

Any advise on where to start/list of things to look at would be much appreciated.

Thank you in advance.

Owen

[CitroJim]

Hi Owen and welcome back

Excellent to hear a V6 is being resurrected

First things to do is check for fuel and spark. Can you hear the fuel pump run briefly when you first turn on the ignition?

Check you have fuel in the rail by very carefully depressing the Schrader valve and covering it with a rag just after ignition switch-on.

Is the immobiliser warning light out?

Check for a spark if fuel seems to be present although admittedly, it's not easy. The rear bank plugs are the easiest to get to for such a test.

The engine bay fuse box is a known source of this very problem on the V6..

With the aid of the wiring diagrams - should be available here on the forum or I may still have them - will vastly assist diagnosis..

All the best with this and keep us posted

[co04pow]

Jim,

Thank you for the speedy reply, I will let you know how I get on.

Thanks

Owen

[CitroJim]

That's great Owen Also, I know how much rodents love nibbling Citroen wiring looms so that's something else to check. They seem especially partial to injector wiring

[co04pow]

Jim,

Managed to get down to the car yesterday.

Is the immobiliser warning light out?

I take it this is the square with a key symbol in the rev counter? If so this is going out.

Check you have fuel in the rail by very carefully depressing the Schrader valve and covering it with a rag just after ignition switch-on

So, I depressed the Schrader valve, and fuel came out, but it smelt old, I emptied it and tried the ignition again and depressed it again and no fuel, couldn’t hear the pump running. Also, no voltage at under bonnet 10-amp fuse 9 for fuel pump relay. So, I ran a piece of cable from positive lead on the battery to terminal 2 on the fuel pump. With ignition on the fuel pump runs. Depressed again and have fresh fuel at the rail.

Check for a spark if fuel seems to be present although admittedly, it's not easy. The rear bank plugs are the easiest to get to for such a test.

Only check I had time for spark wise was to check if the feed to the coil pack at the rear bank which had 12 Volts

So, what would be stopping the fuel pump from running when ignition is turned on, fuse box problem?

Thanks in advance

Owen

[xantia_v6]

Just to be sure that there is no confusion, the fuel pump only runs for a second or two when the ignition is switched on, and then runs again when the engine is cranked by the starter.

The fuel pump relay is one of the black plastic oblong things in the ECU box, and is energised by the ECU.

It wouldn't hurt to disconnect and reconnect the battery again, as I have known the ECU to get into a strange state after many attempts at starting.