Jump to content

Recommended Posts

Posted

My original rear box finally gave up the ghost after 17 years and 170,000miles. In fact, it was not the box but the rear hanger which rusted away. So, I have researched replacements and give an account below.  In summary, the Polish brand Polmo appears to have cornered the cheap exhaust market currently, but be cautious of the fit.post-8475-0-37062600-1525647378_thumb.jpgpost-8475-0-53308800-1525647413_thumb.jpgpost-8475-0-67230100-1525647648_thumb.jpg

 

Ignoring the ridiculously expensive Citroen part (I don't need an exhaust to last another 17 years!), the cheapest after market item appears to be the Polish brand Polmo (made by Polmostrow). Indeed, it would appear this brand is currently "the" cheap exhaust.  It is the only brand supplied by ETS (European Trade Syndicate), who are Polish themselves (they are owned by 2 Poles).  ETS appear to be solely a Polmo outlet although they don't identify the brand they sell!!. Other exhaust specialists also may not identify the brand, but if its around the £30-£50 mark it WILL be Polmo.

 

Having double checked both the on-line catalogues of Polmo and ETS, I bought the correct item clearly specified by both sites.  I bought it on ETS' Ebay shop for better consumer protection, complete with 2-piece clamp and 2 hanging rubbers for £40-ish. Later, I noticed the same exhaust is quoted on their own website for £15 less!! It arrived via Germany a few days later and it fitted..... "ish".  First the plus side - the input pipe matched the diameter and flange of the car's exhaust. The 2 piece clamp is very much easier to fit than the single piece. On the down side, there was a 2cm gap between the mating flanges. Moreover, the hanging spigots on the ETS box are 12mm diam whereas the Citroen originals are 15mm. The hanging rubbers ETS supplied were identical to the Citroen originals ie to take 15mm spigots! So the 12mm spigots on the ETS exhaust were very loose in the 15mm rubbers that ETS provided with it!!. Or in other words, the rubbers needed to fit the ETS exhaust would have to have a 15mm hole and a 12mm hole - I doubt such items exist??However, this slack allowed me to take up that 2cm gap, and hence the box "fitted". It appears secure and has done 250 miles without issue.

 

However, I contacted ETS to tell them my findings (for warranty purposes) who cross-checked the number stamped on the exhaust and said "its the wrong exhaust" and "we don't make one for your car"!! They asked for details of my car and then got stroppy over the difference between "saloon" and "hatchback". I described my body shape as "5 door saloon" (Citroen's official designation). First they said, "the item you ordered fits the estate". Then they said  "you ordered for a hatchback, not a saloon, they are different".  So I said they are the same, but they refused to accept this for a week of email exchanges. Even the fact that the rubber hangers they sent did not fit the exhaust they sent didn't seem to bother them. They tried to charge me for a return, but they finally accepted my demand for full refund and free return.

Now, Citroen don't help.  The rear box specified for all 2.2HDis of that vintage is 1726XC.  Admittedly, the Polmo exhaust above is claimed to be equivalent to 1726X6, not 1726XC.  Now, Citroen do list a 1726X6 but neither I nor my experienced Citroen dealer could identify from Citroen's online parts catalogues (Public or trade versions) which model the 1726X6 actually fits! Also, anyone ordering from Citroen a 1726XC WILL NOT receive the same as the original. You have to cut the pipe from the DPF to a specific length  and use a sleeve (not a ring clamp) to joint the two together. Hence, the Polmo exhaust with the original flange fit is an advantage.

Sorry if that all seems a bit complicated!!

 

Posted

Have you put another exhaust back box on or put your old one back ? One option might have been to keep the Polmo one and then cut the intermediate pipe and then fit the Citroen sleeve, if it would have the same effect as extending the intermediate pipe.

 

You can get universal brackets to replace the Citroen silencer box hangers when they rust through but not from Citroen.

 

I am not too keen on aftermarket exhausts apart from being a lot cheaper than Citroen ones. I fit a eurocarparts Klarius one to a C3  saving about £200 but then found it resonated at normal road speeds around 2000 to 3000 rpm which spoilt the car.

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
×
×
  • Create New...