Xac's adventures with Cassy (and friends + wife)

[CitroJim]

I fear it was my Activa spheres that set the rot into your sphere tool Xac!!

Don't suppose Dad's Taxi is free on Saturday morning?

No, unfortunately not I'm off to Somerset Saturday morning do deal with a few tasks Dad needs doing. Then I'm returning straight to a social engagement

Sunday is pretty clear at the moment but I guess you'll be otherwise occupied then

Pray why? Is a run to Derbyshire needed?

I'm sure we can work something out...

[Xaccers]

What a day!
Dad insisted in driving up in his Picasso hdi.
Seriously, did they fit girders instead of suspension???
I suspect his reluctance to take the cheaper option of driving Cassy is because before his picasso he had a Xantia Sensation, so knows all too well that he would be reminded just how bad the picasso's suspension is!
Anyway, 2 hours in an uncomfortable car with a cantankerous old git that is my father (lanes on roundabouts? not for him!) was not a great start, and his inability to follow his sat nav made us overshoot James' road, but we got there in the end.
The drive back was much more pleasant, with the car (no name yet) floating along beautifully on it's new front spheres.

It's in need of a little bit of TLC, the height correctors need a thorough clean and lube, and the LHM looks like it's never been changed, oh and the accumulator sphere is totally flat, which suggests the A/S is too, but that's all to be expected and not too difficult to rectify.
The clutch needs checking too, it's very heavy with not much movement (as though something is restricting the action) but doesn't slip/judder and gear changes are smooth so it might just need adjusting.

Off to London tomorrow.
I've got a friend living with me now (Netta) who's recently returned from Israel to study fashion design next year, and it's her grandmother's birthday so we'll be taking Cassy for a ride.
She unfortunately suffers from motion sickness, so rising up when the engine starts makes her feel queesy

[CitroJim]

What a day!
Dad insisted in driving up in his Picasso hdi.
Seriously, did they fit girders instead of suspension???

It's how they can sell them so cheaply. They save a fortune not fitting springs and dampers you know

So she passed her MOT then?

Pop round in the week for an accumulator sphere fitting Xac...

[Xaccers]

Brrr it's chilly outside.

A couple of days ago, Cassy's heater blower decided it didn't want to blow any more.
Not good as the wet and cold weather we're having steams up the windscreen!

Nearly two years ago, I did the relay mod, taking a 12v feed from the lighter.
It's been a bit tempermental in the past, where wire wiggling has brought it back to life, but this time, the voltage from the feed was only about 3v

So, thanks to RichardW's spreadsheet, I'm now taking the feed from the brown plug before the ignition switch, and the blower is working

[jgra1]

you may need the heater this weekend Xac

[Xaccers]

Got in Cassy this morning, no blower!
So I'll take a look when I go home for lunch, it's probably just one of the wires popped off the relay (I hope).

Oh and whoever thought it was a good idea to put teeth between the grips of a pair of pliers needs shooting.
Got a blood blister on the tip of my thumb now

[Xaccers]

Decided to transfer Cassy's accumulator sphere to the other estate this morning and fit her new one.
I'd borrowed Jim's tool but no matter what angle I tried, I could not get it to fit.
So back to old faithful, even if it is a bit beat up.
Fitted my tool, started rotating, got a run of green blood.... down the center of the tool's shaft.
Hang on a minute, I thought, it shouldn't do that just from a sphere being undone, the lhm should be coming from the sphere, down the outside of the tool's shaft.
It was a real "oh bugger" moment.
The end of the tool had caught the main feed to the pump and split it.

A quick phone call to Jim to confirm that garden hose would do as a replacement and I jumped in the other estate to set off.
Except it wouldn't start.
There's an electrical leak somewhere that flattens the battery.
Added to that it's previous diet of waste veg (tut tut) and the primer bulb was solid.
Removed the new battery from Cassy (£54 from Halford with trade card, one of those calcium ones, and only £3 more than the other type), connected it with jump leads and coaxed the other estate into life.
Headed off, with the K light coming on if I floored it, and gave it £25 worth of V-power which seemed to do the trick.
Then to halfrauds for jubilee clips and the last 3 bottles of LHM (no trade card with me this time so over £10 each!) and B&Q for garden hose.

Replaced the damaged pipe, filled up with the 3 bottles of LHM and proceeded with citrobics while setting to work removing the acc sphere from the other estate.

If I didn't know better, I'd say someone had used a tool to fit it.
Removing some of the air intake pipes, I managed to get Jim's tool on with the shaft pointing upwards against the rad.
There was no way I could get enough force on it, and with no handy scaffolding bars, I used part of one of my axle stands.
Had to whack it several times with a lump hammer too!
It was very hard work but I managed to get the damn thing off.
While Cassy's old acc has the date (2006) clearly stamped on it, the dead one is covered in about 1mm of solid grime. It doesn't look like a genuine one so it has been swapped in the past, probably the distant past.

So job done I set off in Cassy, only to find the powered steering lacking in power.
Repeating full lock to full lock seemed to help, and it was only tough when initially making a turn.
Double checked the LHM level and it was showing low.
Topped it up and checked both ends of the garden hose, to find a small pool of green lhm around the pump end.
Tightened this up, and the LHM level now shows above the line, but the steering is light as a feather and the ride is improved.

A new A/S for Cassy and transfer of her old one to the other estate will be next, along with doing a hydroflush on the other estate.

Need to sort out the blower on it too as it has a bypass switch in the passenger footwell which is the only way to get it to turn on (cassy had something similar).

Oh Jim, before I forget, the other estate has a plastic tray on top of the gearbox for the pipes etc despite being an R reg.

[CitroJim]

Oh dear, what a palarvar Xac

One of the risks of doing thiese sort of jobs in the cold weather. The pipes will be a bit brittle because of it

So, the Pleiades tool failed you

When you called, I was under the bonnet of my old sinker, giving it the once-over and my friend's lad heard the 'phone. He just missed picking it up. He came back and siad "It'll just have been one of your Xantia friends calling you for advice Jim!"

He was so right

The garden hose should just be seen as a pro-tem fix and the hose should be replaced with a pukka one soonish. I don't think they're particularly dear from the Stealers.

So the veg had solidified in the primer bulb then Must have been cold!

Interesting on the trays. lazy mechanics must leave them off

[Xaccers]

The pleiades tool requires some of the air induction pipes to be removed and seems to only fit with the shaft skywards up by the rad, not giving much room for leverage. Could do with the shaft being another foot long.
It did the trick though on the other estate's sphere which felt like it was welded on!

Cassy's bulb never gets that hard, so it must be the remains of the previous WVO that had been used. Will have to check the fuel tank mesh for blockage too.
At some point I think I'll remove the tray too, access and visibility is so much better in Cassy without it! So lazy mechanics perhaps, but perhaps smart mechanics too

Going to swap all the door switches with Jenny's as I think one of them is the cause of the electrical leak.

[Xaccers]

Been really busy sorting out xmas presents and working lots, so not had much time to post.

Had a late night note put through my door from Joan who's been driving the new estate.
No heat from the blower.
I took off the carpet and removed the radio etc and frankly was shocked to see the hatchet job someone had done under there.
So I swapped the flat tyre on Jenny and handed the keys over to Joan. Now she feels spoilt because Jenny is so much better!

Cassy is running well, haven't had time to replace the hose pipe with the proper part, but I'd noticed it was getting quite pinched where I'd run it in roughly the same path as the original.
So I replaced it with a longer piece which I've taken over the top of the engine to the resevoir and it's holding much better.
Steering is now light as a feather

Popped down to London yesterday with Netta (housemate who's returned from Israel and is keeping me company) to see her family.
It was my first chanuka party and great fun, so much food!
We're off to my parents' on the 25th so I think I'll be needing larger trousers for the new year!

[Xaccers]

Well, didn't make it to my parents for xmas lunch, mum phoned me on the morning of xmas eve to say they were both suffering from the winter vomitting bug.
So, with the supermarkets rapidly running out of food, and my cupboards empty, in a bout of madness I invited my neighbour and her kids over for xmas lunch!
Managed to get some food from mum and dad's while taking them lucazade, and Tescos had a gammon and half leg of lamb still available.
So, I ended up cooking a rather successful meal for 9 of us!

Anyway, on to car things, Joan next door is still killing batteries.
I've bought a charger and charged both spare batteries (spare in that Cassy doesn't use them).
While Cassy's old battery was on charge, I fitted Jenny's old battery, and the following Sunday I got a phone call from Joan to say Jenny had gotten her to the cash point on the way to church, but wouldn't start.
So off I trotted and found that the positive clamp wasn't sitting tight.
Swapped the battery for Cassy's old one and all seems well now (although I had a missed call from Joan this evening so who knows!).

On the Cassy front, spent an hour this evening and replaced her faulty ABS sensor, so now I have no warning lights on her console.
Now she's ready for her MoT

I have to do the same on Jenny next.

[jgra1]

well done for the cooking Xac

[red_dwarfers]

On the Cassy front, spent an hour this evening and replaced her faulty ABS sensor, so now I have no warning lights on her console.
Now she's ready for her MoT

I have to do the same on Jenny next.

Xac, any chance its a rear ABS sensor your doing?
Only I could do with some photos for the writeup

[Xaccers]

On the Cassy front, spent an hour this evening and replaced her faulty ABS sensor, so now I have no warning lights on her console.
Now she's ready for her MoT

I have to do the same on Jenny next.

Xac, any chance its a rear ABS sensor your doing?
Only I could do with some photos for the writeup

No sorry, its the fronts.

[Xaccers]

Drove down to the south coast with Netta this weekend to visit Kate, and thought that my tyres may have been a bit low as the steering was a bit wobbly at speed.
Managed to find somewhere with a working pump and they were fine, but down to about 2mm.
So 3 months and I've gone through a pair of Michelins by the looks of things
Anyone know what tyres rally car's use?
Will also get the tracking checked.

Tomorrow I've got to book Cassy in for an MoT, Mr Clutch are offering them for £25 with production of a pay and display ticket from the town centre, so unless Jim's heard any horror stories, I'll give them a go.

Need to replace the ABS sensor on Jenny too, and get her booked in.
Anyone know if a flashing air-bag light is a pass or fail?