C5 Body Roll Through The Bends

[marc125030]

Just purchased a c5 estate 2.0hdi estate with 315,000miles :rolleyes: To be fair everything still feels really tight and is a testament to citroen

 

Its the first citroen I've owned and am unsure if the suspension is ok, it seems to roll excessively through bends so much that I have to hold myself in the seat. Is this normal or is something amiss?

[Ronin]

Just purchased a c5 estate 2.0hdi estate with 315,000miles :rolleyes: To be fair everything still feels really tight and is a testament to citroen

 

Its the first citroen I've owned and am unsure if the suspension is ok, it seems to roll excessively through bends so much that I have to hold myself in the seat. Is this normal or is something amiss?

 

Welcome to the forums m8.

There is a general consensus of opinion that the C5 rolls in the bends more than most sprung cars but if the handling is still good and the ride comfortable, I wouldn't worry too much about it.

 

I know my Dad's C5 2.0hdi estate rolls a lot more than my C5 saloon but the road holding is superb on both. It's a matter of "faith versus bravery" really as the body roll on all C5 "apart from H3+ sport mode" takes some getting used to.

The handling will surprise you, trust me on that. One day you will take a country road bend a little too fast and think "oh crap!" then amazingly appear to have made it with not so much as whisper from the tyres instead of the usual "hell have no mercy screach" from the usual ford or vauxhall. You will get out the car at the end of your journey and tap the roof and thank the car with an impressed smile on your face, I know I did lol!

 

Please bear in mind though that a C5 is a comparatively huge car, especially the estate and can't really be expected to do the job of a sports saloon. Thus the seats wern't designed with much lateral support in mind. It's a shame really as it could do with it sometimes.

 

Just keep an eye on the fluid levels and do a weekly check by adjusting the ride heights. If there is a problem with the suspension it will soon show up and give you enough warning that something is amiss.

I hope this answers your question m8

[marc125030]

Thanks for your reply mate, didn't get any manuals with the car is there maintenance needed on the suspension, only one suspension fluid tank I assume which fluid is required to top up

 

Is there anything that needs replacing on the suspension over time??? Not over familiar with the hydractive suspension

 

Just seems to roll excessively even at relatively low speed's (30mph) I have to use the armrest to keep myself upright never experienced anything like that before, and have driven many cars and vans, especially bad when going round a right corner. One of the reason's I bought a C5 is my boss has one and it has done 140,000miles and it seems to handle alot flatter it's 1.5years newer but otherwise identical to my knowledge

[Randombloke]

Its the first citroen I've owned and am unsure if the suspension is ok, it seems to roll excessively through bends so much that I have to hold myself in the seat. Is this normal or is something amiss?

 

I have an H3+ estate and body roll, especially on roundabouts is very small.

 

H3 won't have the same amount, of correction, IMV, but the first place I would look is the anti roll bar links. With your mileage they may be worn.

 

In line with another thread here it might also be worth seeing if you can see the part number on the spheres and make sure that no one has retrofitted "comfort spheres" or spheres of a different volume/pressure.

 

The only other thing I would check would be the suspension bushes all round, plus top mounts on the front struts.

 

Suspension requires infrequent fluid changes, and filters sometimes need to be replaced as well. Spheres lose pressure and go hard, having the same effect on the suspension.

 

If you can't find any record of the last time the fluid in the system was changed, it may be time to get it done. Check also that it is orange LDS fluid.

[marc125030]

So could somebody comfirm that if the spheres de-pressurise over time will that make the suspension harder or softer?

 

In my view the gas leaks which causes there to be no absorbancy resulting in a car which would handle flat, eg similar to when you lower a car with springs

[Ronin]

So could somebody comfirm that if the spheres de-pressurise over time will that make the suspension harder or softer?

 

In my view the gas leaks which causes there to be no absorbancy resulting in a car which would handle flat, eg similar to when you lower a car with springs

 

I've never experienced a problem with the C5 spheres yet! lol

But I have had to replace spheres on my old xantia. The ride was quite hard and bouncy "like a learner driver and kangaroo petrol". I don't remember any excessive body roll though.

 

As Randombloke has suggested checking the anti-roll bar linkages is a good place to start m8.

 

After reading your further comment regarding hanging on to the arm rest when negotiating a roundabout It does sound as if something is not working the way it should. I know my Dad's C5 which is the same as yours doesn't roll as bad as that even when pushed.

 

It sounds more like a mechanical side suspension wear or fluid problem as apposed to a gas/sphere problem.

 

I always start with the simplest solutions first. Have you checked the tyre pressures m8?

I know you probably have but it's often a thing that people often miss.

 

 

Another simple check that is worth doing and can save you a lot of time and money in fault finding is use a small 4 inch spirit level. I did this before on my xantia and was quite accurate in giving me a place to start looking.

 

Does it roll more at the front or at the back of the car? Is it the same turning right and left?

Think a lot about it, I know this is going to sound daft, but the C5 suspension will always try to level itself out as much as it can especially front to rear in a bend to avoid front end dipping or rear end drag. It does this very well in comparison to coil springs so you need to test the system to see if its working as it should

 

Take a friend with you (while you concentrate on the driving at steady speed).

Find a large car park of ind,est and tape a small spirit level on the the passenger door frame ( seat belt area) Make sure it is horizontally level when the car is still. Start to maintain a steady speed on circles right and then left, your passenger should notice the bubble move to the front or back. This will indicate if the problem is front or rear. Do the same on the driver side now. Keep the speed down and constant though, a bubble that is forced to it's extreme end won't tell you anything. keep a note of what speed you were doing on the left circle and match that speed on the right circle. I had a bit of masking tape above the spirit level and my passenger quickly marked the bubble position, it aided in the comparison later.

 

Now try the spirit level on the centre console left to right and do the same test. does the bubble move more to the right or to the left at the same speeds. The object is to maintain a low enough speed while turning so that the bubble doesnt immediately get pushed to its outer edge. i.e if the bubble moves more at 10mph on a right turn but less at 10 mph on a left turn. The answer this gives you will tell you if its just a particular corner which would point to mechanical suspension issues.

If its the same all over then that would point to fluid/sphere/ ride height issues. Let us know the results and then we can advise a bit futher m8 ok.

[myglaren]

I have hardly used mine for the past week, just to the supermarket half a mile away.

Today I took a longer trip on some bendy roads with lots of roundabouts. My preferred driving technique involves not slowing down for bends and roundabouts and while I have never previously been aware of any significant body roll I didn't like to comment untill I had done the acid test.

 

My C5 sailed through it, literally. While I do have some criticisms of the car compared to the Xantia, body roll is a non-existant factor. I deliberately booted it through the bends and it was a stable as you could ask for, except perhaps for an Activa, which I have never experienced but understand is quite a revalation to geezers driving other 'sports saloons'.

 

I'd say get someone who is clued up to test drive your car and check the suspension out, sharpish.

 

Not a 3+, by the way.

[Randombloke]

My C5 sailed through it, literally. While I do have some criticisms of the car compared to the Xantia, body roll is a non-existant factor. I deliberately booted it through the bends and it was a stable as you could ask for, except perhaps for an Activa, which I have never experienced but understand is quite a revalation to geezers driving other 'sports saloons'.

 

Yes! I drive an Activa once, and it was AWESOME!!!

 

Something else in Xantia clothing.

 

The C5 has some slight body roll to appear natural, but the Activa from memory had none. I found a country lane with no cars in sight and did some mad swerving. No body roll.

 

What a car.

[Ronin]

I pushed my C5 hard the other day along a country road with a mixture of tight and long flowing bends just to see exactly how much roll it had. A nice steady 70'ish mph and I think I only touched the brake twice. My work mate was following me "or trying to" in his peugeot 407 2ltr. When we got to work he said how difficult it was to keep up with me and commented on how flat my car was through the bends!

He said his pug was very twitchy at the back end and a lot of tyre squeal from the front which didn't inspire him with too much confidence. The C5 just flowed from corner to corner without so much as a chirp from the tyres.

 

I honestly thought it was rolling a little but it was obviously me leaning instead lol.

The seat doesn't offer much support maybe.

That car is amazing for what it is and I would bet it would give my alfa romeo 156 a run for its money and thats saying something.

I'm well impressed and so is my work mate Paul. His car is three years old now and due for a change so he went to the local citroen dealer, had a test drive of a new c5 2.0 ltr, loves it so much he is buying one in two weeks lol :D

[Randombloke]

My work mate was following me "or trying to" in his peugeot 407 2ltr. When we got to work he said how difficult it was to keep up with me and commented on how flat my car was through the bends!

He said his pug was very twitchy at the back end and a lot of tyre squeal from the front which didn't inspire him with too much confidence. The C5 just flowed from corner to corner without so much as a chirp from the tyres.

 

And they are the same chassis AFAIK, so the difference was in the suspension!!

[Ronin]

And they are the same chassis AFAIK, so the difference was in the suspension!!

 

Yep exactly RB, the suspension is the only difference. Now I understand why citroen have stuck with it and so many citroen owners love it.

Going off what my dad says "he's owned citroen hydro-matics for 31 years now" "It's a perfect suspension system and can last ages but thats the problem.... it's that reliable that owners forget about it until and leaves it open to neglect".

The other problem is the fact that when something goes wrong, its gradual and can be left unnattended without a driver realising for a long time until it becomes more noticeable. The same can't be said for coil and springs really but thats the trade off. I know now which I prefer and can live with knowledge that it will cost a lot to fix eventually when it does start playing up.

 

What is good is that we have that many C5's now in our family now that we can drive each others and compare notes. that way we tend to notice the subtle differences and get problems sorted before it costs a lot more.

Maybe some of the guys who arent as lucky as me and my family should get together on the odd weekend and have a chat person to person, like a proper owners club. I am a member of the alfa romeo owners club and I can't tell you just how invalueable it is to run one. :D