Suspension Ride Height

[kennybrown]

Alright Lads,

 

I'm having a bit of bother with my '96 1.9TD Xantia.

 

The suspension seems to operate fine when you select the max or min ride heights but it will not 'find' the two driving settings in between. To drive it at the moment I have to select the max height, then select the min height and while the car is sinking I put the height selector into the lower drive height setting.

 

This lasts for about a day and the car will sink lower and the suspension will get very harsh.

 

Anyone got any ideas?

[techbod]

if you look at the rear height corrector you will see a connecting rod going to the anti roll bar chances are its broke £21.00 all in from Citroen it holds the suspension at the normal driving hight

[kennybrown]

if you look at the rear height corrector you will see a connecting rod going to the anti roll bar chances are its broke £21.00 all in from Citroen it holds the suspension at the normal driving hight

 

Thanks, now that I think of it its more the front that doesn't go the the correct level. Is there a height corrector for the front or is that controlled by the rear one?

[techbod]

yes there is its below the driver side but I doubt its that because the way you explain it it has to be the bar on the rear because that's what happens when it breaks you only get the lowest height and the highest, its a simple fix and in the Haynes manual

[kennybrown]

yes there is its below the driver side but I doubt its that because the way you explain it it has to be the bar on the rear because that's what happens when it breaks you only get the lowest height and the highest, its a simple fix and in the Haynes manual

 

Perfect, cheers man.

[techbod]

just checked the price again its £21.35 with vat and you don't get a bolt with it so ensure you get the old one out without damage or buy a new bolt ( tight sods ) ;)

[Guest Colin Hunter]

£21.35 sounds a bit steep or is that the price with a new height corrector? A similar thing happened to my 2.0 HDi (S plate) and it was just the wee plastic link bar which goes between the roll bar and the height corrector. It was only pennies from our local dealer here in Shetland and took only a moment to fit. Problem I had was that the ball that it fits on on the corrector end was rusty and worn and wouldn't hold the link on. The recognised "Fix" here in Shetland is to make a small "L" shaped piece of steel about an inch wide, and tack weld it to the height corrector arm to stop the link dropping off. A couple of small tacks are all that's needed to ensure the heat doesn't damage the height corrector.

 

Cheers. ;)

[techbod]

I would have done a quick fix as you mentioned but it wasn't my car lol and the part was a few things which clamp on to the roll bar and everything else connected to the height corrector as it was all shot and second time Ive done it first time I took a part from a scrap car and it lasted 2 years so not bad and the guy wanted a new on this time

[kennybrown]

I would have done a quick fix as you mentioned but it wasn't my car lol and the part was a few things which clamp on to the roll bar and everything else connected to the height corrector as it was all shot and second time Ive done it first time I took a part from a scrap car and it lasted 2 years so not bad and the guy wanted a new on this time

 

Either way i'll take a look at the height corrector and call it from there. I have a welder at home so I might try the quick fix. I only have the car a few weeks so the suspension system is all new to me.

[techbod]

a quick fix is ok in my book and that's what these sites are all about ( not referring you to the dealer ) and diy go to a dealer if you can afford it if not learn what the site is all about, I do it cheap and in most cases free so compare that with the dealer? ;)

[Guest Colin Hunter]

Hi Techbod.

 

I thought after my last post that it may have been the anti roll bar arm thingy. I daresay the height corrector is MUCH more! I noticed when I did mine (Now 3 years ago and car sold on with no probs there at least) that the link bar has a wee clip which holds it onto the ball on the roll bar end but not on the corrector end. It seems odd that the end which needs the clip didn't have one! Will it fit the other way? My Xantia is now history (To me anyway) so I can't try it out.

 

Cheers :)

[techbod]

yes that was the older type and made out of cast iron the new ones are plastic ( just the link arm ) and the cup on the ends has to be pressed on to the ball so no clip required they have a washer made from material that lubricates the joint where the older one had a plastic insert which wore away and the link arm would drop off or snap, its an area that people forget to lubricate and we now know the result,

the underside of the car is as important if not more so as polishing the nice paint work

[kennybrown]

Hi guys,

 

Looked under the car last night and the lever wasn't broken. I take it that I'm looking at the right thing.

 

http://i249.photobucket.com/albums/gg227/kennybrown/Cars/DSC000382.jpg?t=1218036233

 

Sorry for the poor quality of the pic.

[techbod]

yep there is the problem the height corrector is stuck due to obvious reasons, nice pictures by the way and others should consider this ;) other Wise how can I diagnose the problem ;)

[kennybrown]

yep there is the problem the height corrector is stuck due to obvious reasons, nice pictures by the way and others should consider this ;) other Wise how can I diagnose the problem ;)

 

Thanks, I take it that you think its corroded solid, I might try to take it off tomorrow and free it up.

 

I took the pics with my phone which is why the quality is rubbish. Only thought of it while I was under the car.

[techbod]

don't remove it just spray it with wd 40 and clean with wire brush till its loose then put lots of grease on it, you could lightly tap it with a hammer to free it up but not too hard

[kennybrown]

I eventually got a chance (in between downpours :) ) to have a look at the rear suspension height corrector. It was free enough, I loosened the collet on the anti-roll bar and moved the link bars. Everything seemed to move alright.

 

Unfortunately it made no difference:

 

http://i249.photobucket.com/albums/gg227/kennybrown/Cars/DSC000452.jpg?t=1219177788

 

This is what happens when I move the height selector from the lowest setting to the lowest driving setting.

 

This is the connection between the height selector cable and the height corrector, is this right?

 

http://i249.photobucket.com/albums/gg227/kennybrown/Cars/DSC000443.jpg?t=1219178071

 

Thanks again guys

[Stekelly]

£21.35 sounds a bit steep or is that the price with a new height corrector? A similar thing happened to my 2.0 HDi (S plate) and it was just the wee plastic link bar which goes between the roll bar and the height corrector. It was only pennies from our local dealer here in Shetland and took only a moment to fit. Problem I had was that the ball that it fits on on the corrector end was rusty and worn and wouldn't hold the link on. The recognised "Fix" here in Shetland is to make a small "L" shaped piece of steel about an inch wide, and tack weld it to the height corrector arm to stop the link dropping off. A couple of small tacks are all that's needed to ensure the heat doesn't damage the height corrector.

 

Cheers. :)

 

 

Hi colin. Any chance there is a part number or name for the part? I'm having the same problem as Kenny, started today. Will a Citroen dealer know what I'm on about if just tell them the plastic rod between the height corrector and the anti-roll bar?

 

Dont suppose GSF stock the part?

 

 

Does anyone know what section in the Haynes manual I'm lookig at for this? Is it in the height corrector section?

 

I had a quick look under the car there, not entirely sure where I should be lookinjg, is the part obvious (and obviously broken when it is?)

 

 

Thanks.

[Guest Colin Hunter]

Hi There.

 

Yes the Citroen people should know the part you mean. I don't think GSF will have it and, to be fair, it costs very little (a pound or so!) from Citroen anyway. If you go into the parts department they should be able to show you the assembly drawing on the computer (or microfiche if they still exist!) so you will be able to spot it. It fits between an arm which is clamped to the anti roll bar and the lever on the height corrector. It's quite easy to see and get at under the car. The height corrector is to the nearside of the rear centre (anti sink) sphere. You will see the control rod going forward from it to the control lever on the tunnel. The plastic link will be obvious if it's fallen off and can actually be seen from the rear looking past the spare wheel.

 

Cheers. :)

[techbod]

height corrector/ stabilizer link arm, your second picture is a disaster but the 1st isn't, the height on the rear end is too high.

the books says how but difficult to understand so here is how it works,

the stabilizer arm is linked to the anti roll bar and it can be adjusted ( on the anti roll bar ) it has one clamping bolt so you can rotate it but by minimal degrees for results ( one millimeter and you will be surprised at the height correction ) so don't go mad like your lowering the car and keep to the correct settings ie: front equals the rear in height,

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in your case the link arm has broken cough I should have been more clear :) but the info above is valuable and the part is about £20 ish from the dealers

[kennybrown]

height corrector/ stabilizer link arm, your second picture is a disaster but the 1st isn't, the height on the rear end is too high.

 

2nd pic as in the pic of the connection between the height selector cable and the height corrector? Whats wrong with it?

 

I'll adjust the clampbolt and see how I get on.

 

Stekelly, I have the Haynes manual on the xantia and its next to useless.

[techbod]

the clamp on the anti roll bar breaks and the fitting between that ( plastic ball joint fitting ) locates the height corrector to set the height if the clamp on the anti roll bar breaks you can only have two settings and that the lowest and highest and no in between which means the stabilizer is not working and that's the plastic link ( in most cases its the clamp round the anti roll bar that's broken

[techbod]

your second pic shows nothing so perhaps you could add yellow pointers to the area your on about

[Stekelly]

Stekelly, I have the Haynes manual on the xantia and its next to useless.

 

 

Yeah I've never been able to find anything outside the basics with any degree of ease in it to be honest.

 

Went to a citroen dealer today here in Dublin today and the guy didnt know what I was on about. He was a parfts guy in a suit in front of a computer so I doubt he ever got his hands dirty and the cars are pretty much just part numbers to him.

I got a number for a local old schoold citroen garage off a guy on another board. Gave him a ring and he knew straight away what was wrong. Long story short he is doing it for me tomorow for €35 +vat , so around stg£34 . I'm happy eoungh with that.

 

Cheers for the help (again :-) )guys.

[kennybrown]

Fixed the car yesterday lads, thanks for the help.

 

There was nothing wrong with the rear height corrector (apart from me not putting the anti roll bar clamp back on properly). I then took a look a the front one and after clearing out a bucketfull of muck from the front subframe I noticed that the plastic link had come off. Popped it back on and the car settled back to the correct height once it was started.