C5 X7 Hydropneumatic - Front Strut Replacement

[odin39]

Has anyone attempted front strut replacement on their (hydro suspension) C5 X7, if so are there any particular things to be aware of?

 

Mine has just failed MOT due to leakage.

 

The part (5217.L5 / L6) seems to be readily available on ebay.

 

Looking at the CitroenDoc (which calls it a 'suspension leg') it suggests (amongst other things) the steering rack joint needs to be pulled off, is this really necessary?

 

Any help/tips/watch-out points would be appreciated.

[paul.h]

I think the part no. you have given for the front suspension cylinders should be 5271L5 for left side and 5271L6 for right side.

 

Looking at Citroen's procedures, the strut is removed downwards so the driveshaft has to be disconnected from the hub to allow the suspension bits to be moved (after undoing lots of bolts/nuts) to give enough clearance to get the strut out. If it had been removed upwards it would be easy. Labour time is nearly 2 hours. The sphere is removed first so a tool is needed for this. Once the strut is back in place the various bolts/nuts are tightened with the end of the suspension arm 54 mm above a reference point at the inner end but from the picture it is not clear where this is. The driveshaft nut torque setting is 345 Nm so you will need a hefty torque wrench to get this right and when you first need to undo this it may be better to do this at the start with the wheels on the ground. You will need new seals for the pipe and sphere connections.

 

If you do not have the sphere tool and a torque wrench consider the cost of these against the cost of paying Citroen to do the job.

 

Out of interest, was it a Citroen dealer who failed the car on the MOT ? The front struts on C5s often have a misting of lds fluid on them but it is not enough to fail the MOT. It is normal though to wipe this off before the MOT but none Citroen garages may give a fail if not familiar with the C5.

 

You need to depressurize the front suspension but there is a warning to leave the lds tank cap undone if the car is raised on a lift and the wheels left hanging. There was a recent topic where this was not done when doing some work and the lds tank split. 

'ESSENTIAL : If raising the vehicle on a lift, wheels hanging, remove the cap of the LDS fluid reservoir. Refit the cap of the LDS fluid reservoir, once you have lowered the vehicle.' 

[odin39]

Many thanks for that, ok I have had a closer look and couldn't see any serious leakage - the bottom joint of the strut was stained (the dirt was a darker shade than the surrounding mud) but there was no liquid oil noticeable (and I have not seen any drips on the ground).

 

Should that be a pass or fail?

 

Attached photo shows the area once several year's mud was cleaned off.  Strut is behind the wishbone (for easy maintenance - not!) Like you say, seems no way of getting it out without removing the driveshaft.

 

Some more questions:

 

To release the driveshaft, does the bottom ball joint have to be removed first?  If so, does that have to be replaced as well?

 

Looking at how close the wishbone is to the body, it seems even with the driveshaft off there will not be clearance to pull the top section through.  Does this mean in effect you have got to dismantle most of the suspension so the wishbone is free hanging?

 

This is looking increasing like one for a main stealer?  :unsure:

 

 

[odin39]

Ooops, here is the picture...

[paul.h]

Was it a Citroen dealer that did the MOT ?

 

Initial thoughts without seeing the strut is it should probably have been a pass and it the MOT was not at a Citroen dealer then maybe you could get a second opinion at one.

 

The driveshaft is left/held in place at the gearbox end to prevent oil loss. All the bolts around the suspension swivel arm are undone including the link rod and steering track rod to allow the swivel to be moved out of the way. The procedures do not say to fit a new ball joint. The Citroen service box on 3 dvds with the procedures can be bought on ebay and are worth getting.

[odin39]

Many thanks, got the Citroen DVD but the explanations on there often aren't very explicit (like it will say "remove X" but doesn't fully explain how or what is involved) which is why I asked.

 

MOT was by a non-Citroen garage, so think I'll try the second opinion option first.  If they still say it needs doing then methinks they can have the ball ache pleasure of doing it.

[Johndouglas]

As Paul said earlier, C5 struts are prone to misting a bit at the top and under the shroud and many MOT guys who are not too familiar with Citroen suspension see it and assume it's leaking.   With my previous C5 when I did a pre-MOT look around, I always gave the struts a wipe and they always passed.   Give them a clean and get it re-tested.