My first Activa

[white exec]

Wonder if maybe Xantia rear brakes (like XM ones) don't do a lot of work in the normal run of things, so can be prone to seizure if not given a good jab now and again. XM discs are surprisingly tiny things!

OSR is (I think on Xantia too) the bleed screw which should be used first to bleed brakes/suspension system, as it is the longest 'dead leg' on the system, and releases the largest amount of air or aerated fluid. Certainly when bleeding XM, it can be necessary to draw off over a litre of LHM at this one before air-free fluid emerges. At all the other wheels, only a small fraction of this is needed.

[Skull]

white exec

Quite right it's the first in the full bleed sequence

Just checking part no's now rear discs surprisingly cheap @£ 40.32 for a set

0095651078 is the caliper but not left or right designated no price anymore even on NFP parts

[Skull]

It's all going on over at my ....it's like a mini blog

WANTED XANTIA REAR CALIPER thread

[Skull]

SUMMARY of WANTED CALIPER thread when I suspected the caliper was siezed after the telecoms with the MOT tester

Well I've finished at the rear for now, the OSR caliper was stripped, the pistons cleaned up with a cloth as good as new and I soaked the seals overnight - reassembled today without any problem and then refitted after cleaning the face and I used copper-ease on both metal surfaces with the grease proof paper 'gasket' on both sides. Whilst working in the OSR area I also removed the backplate bolts and greased them up and cleaned up the brake line and re-greased it.

OSR CALIPER MOUNT CORRODED/CLEANED

OSR CALIPER MOUNT CLEANED AND GREASE-PROOF PAPER GASKET

Edit to re-post photos

If you don't like sucking eggs you can skip the next bit

The bleeding went like this so far:
REAR sat on weighted wheels
SUSPENSION LOW - HIGH - LOW - HIGH
Engine running in HIGH with brake pedal pressure applied with a length of wood whilst bleeding the brakes.
It was fiddly aligning the hole to get the bleed tube on AND the 8mm spanner with enough swing to open and close the bleed nipple as the hole (wheel) rotates when changing suspension height settings JUST enough to ruin the access for the 'spanner swing'. Plenty of air from the caliper that was stripped which was to be expected but there was also a second splurge of air from the same side that I think was the problem all along
The NSR was next with less air from the caliper that wasn't stripped but again more air splurges than expected. They seem to have run clear within 0.5 Ltr each side .

A further confirmation that the brakes are more reactive was further tested by jacking each rear wheel clear of the ground and with an assistant operating the brakes I used the torque wrench on the wheel nuts to feel the on/off of the brakes being operated and also spinning the wheel by hand as fast as possible to see how quickly it stopped to sense the brakes were coming on quickly and releasing with the brake lever.

Thanks for all the responses to this thread hopefully I'll get the easier front brakes bled tomorrow for my peace of mind (OSF then NSF) basically for confidence because I missed the extra air hiding in the rear brake lines and hopefully get the MOT re-test sorted ....I'm pretty sure prior to a test drive on route to the MOT re-test that the car will now pass If she passes that will be an indicator to me that she MAY have just needed a re-bleed due to the unknown length of time that the car may have been run with damaged pipework

[Skull]

[REPEATED POST as last one didn't post on this thread]

Good news She's passed

MOT re-test went well and I saw 100 and 110 on the brake gauges, when I asked the tester about the previous readings he mentioned "a 40 and 60 and said they've come up a bit and it'll go through now" but we never discussed the work carried out/likely problem - he gave me the impression that he was just interested in the bare results - which is fair enough.

I'm pretty sure that it would have had a similar result if I'd bled the rear brakes more thoroughly in the first place

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

A few miles run since the test and the engine seems reluctant to rev
I haven't took it out of town yet so a little premature but should there be a 'kick' at certain revs on the 2.0 8v Turbo
At the moment my HDi feels faster and that is the one I'm using for the distance journeys at the moment.
Engine mount knocks/rattles when changing gear or easing off throttle.
Engine seems to get quite hot considering it's December but fans kick in and out so will just monitor that for now.
I tried to change engine oil and filter today but couldn't get the filter off without risking the car being off the road over Christmas (handy at the moment) so have only changed the oil for now.

Merry Christmas to the best forum out there

[admiral51]

Good news on the MOT
My old 2.0 16v used to run hotter than the 1.9td or my current 2.0 hdi Xantia and the fans were on more often than not.
Your Activa has been stood up for quite a while as was my 2.0 16v , it was fine doing the stationary engine running, but it takes a few weeks of proper running to get everything as it should be.
I would imagine it should be as quick as your 2.0 hdi in most scenarios, if not quicker but you will know if its not right the more you drive it, what you expect from a petrol and what you get are not always the same feeling after driving a diesel that has a damn good engine and pulls like a train for fun.
Do not have experience of the 8v turbo version but the 16v non turbo is in my opinion a classic engine and one i wish i could get back

[Skull]

Thanks for your feedback Admiral ....I will persevere for a while I don't want to break her too soon

Sounds funny to say it this way but IF there's nothing wrong with it I'll be DISAPPOINTED

[admiral51]

I get what you are saying, if i had any money i would bet it on you saying in 3-4 weeks of driving it and then going back to the diesel that the diesel has no get up and go

[Hell Razor5543]

My new (to me, at least) C5 was very lethargic, but she is now starting to regain some of her performance.

[admiral51]

My C4 2005 plate with a lawn mower engine gets overtaken by milk floats but it has yet to let me down...........................


Looking for something wooden to tough apart from its engine

[Skull]

[Skull]

I will give it a few weeks and see if she wakes up ......

[CitroJim]

Great news on the MOT Skull

[Skull]

Cheers Jim quite a relief

[daviemck2006]

Glad thats another activa on the road.