Coolant Drain Points..

[son-of-seaton]

hi.. my new (to me) xantia's been sat idle for a good year or more.. and after replacing the heater matrix i'm going to flush the rad etc.. drained the radiator, and the haynes says there's another drain point on the back of the engine block.. there's 3 drain points underneath, and they all seem to be depositing oil rather than water.. any clues?

[coastline taxis]

just undo the bottom radiator hose and it will drain in completly

[Johndouglas]

Some Xantias have a drain plug in the bottom left hand corner of the radiator.   Use that but if there isn't one, remove the bottom hose.   It'll help to open the bleed caps on the hose close to the matrix and on the thermostat housing.   The only other drain plug is on the back of the cylinder block.     Unless it's opened, the block won't empty completely but during the years I owned XUDs I never bothered, instead giving the system a flush through before adding new antifreeze.

[son-of-seaton]

great, thanks for that.. tho i must admit i've no idea where the drain plug IS on the back of the block.. but seems like its not essential anyway if it gets flushed through the radiator hose..

so.. why does there seem to be 3 sump plugs?.. one at the front, and 2 at the back of the black box-y thing underneath? (stop me if i'm getting too technical! lol)

[Johndouglas]

why does there seem to be 3 sump plugs?

Is there an undertray fitted on your car - it will be a semi-flexible plastic tray clipped onto the inner wing panels - but if not, you'll be able to see the ground when looking down on the engine. There's only one engine drain plug and that is on the bottom of the sump towards the rear. It may have a hexagon head or a round plug with an inset for an 8mm hex bit. When draining the sump it helps to have the front wheels raised slightly. The only other drain is for the final drive. The level plug is on the end of the gearbox - the slightly larger bolt at 4 o'clock (approx.)

[son-of-seaton]

ooh.. level plug?? whassat??.. think i may (ignore 'may') have loosened then re-tightened that when it didnt spill coolant onto me..

 

no, no undertray, tho it could do with one as there's the odd drip, (think its coming from around one of the injectors, doesnt seem bad tho).. but on the sump theres 3 hex plugs with the allan key inset; one at the front, and 2 at the rear, one directly above the other

[Johndouglas]

on the sump theres 3 hex plugs with the allan key inset; one at the front, and 2 at the rear,

Can you post a picture of them

[son-of-seaton]

https://imageshack.com/i/p33onrQsj

https://imageshack.com/i/palREs7Kj

https://imageshack.com/i/pbxazataj

 

 

ok, unless i've made serious errors i think i may have got the photos up here

[son-of-seaton]

first pic in the plug at the front, other 2 are trying to show the 2 plugs at the rear of the sump

[paul.h]

Just checked your posts and none give the car year and engine but if you provide these we can look at the parts diagrams to see what those plugs are for. I did try to open the photos but my browser (IE9) does not support opening them and I do not wish to install another one or an updated one.

[Johndouglas]

Those two plugs look as though they are in castings whereas your sump pan will be pressed steel

[son-of-seaton]

its a xantia estate 1.9 td '99

.. sorry, had no idea how to get a url for the pics so just on image shack

[paul.h]

A look at the parts diagrams shows 2 different sumps. Without air con it looks like a pressed steel sump with a drain plug under the sump and at the front a temperature probe. With air con it looks like a cast sump with a temperature probe at the front and at the back 2 plugs, one above the other but the lower one does not seem to be at the bottom so when draining oil it may not get it all out. The upper plug does not seem to be for anything.

 

You can look at the parts diagrams as a free service on the service.citoen site if you register as another professional and a member of the Citroen Owners Club. Use your VIN (VIS) at the top left to get your car. You can see the sump under Mechanical / Lubrication / Engine oil sump filter probe. http://service.citroen.com/do/changerParametres

[son-of-seaton]

ok great, thanks for the info