Hi Folks...new To Citroens And Need Your Help.

[Mark1973]

Hi folks my name's Mark, just bought a Xantia 1.9 TD SX, I have to admit that this is my second French car and I vowed never to owning another due to the problems I had with my previous Frenchie a Renault Megane Coupe (engine and gear box went after only 2 months!!)...anyhoo this Citroen came up as a one owners FSH super clean for little money and I have to admit.....its excellent!! But.... I have a few niggles, these being.....

 

1. In order for the key fob to open the doors I have to be standing more or less next to the drivers door, I replaced the batteries thinking it could be that but still no joy?

 

2. When I close the door and activate the central locking all is well BUT if I deadlock the system after a few minutes the alarm goes off??

 

3. For a French car the headlamps seem a bit dim especially compared tro the Megane, they where super bright!!

 

4. Although I have FSH with every concievable workshop receipt etc, I never got the owners manual nor did I get a service book and the ones that I spotted on Ebay I missed out on, so was wondering if I could get them from Citroen if so would they be expensive and would you suggest keeping an eye on Ebay?

 

any help would be reatly appreciated.

 

kind thanks

 

:D

[Guest Colin Hunter]

Hi Mark.

 

In order to answer your questions correctly I need to know whether the car is Mk1. or Mk2. as they differ in some important aspects.

1. Mk1s have Infra red remotes for the locking which means you need to be reasonably close and aim the plip at the dome above the mirror. Mk2s have radio keys which work from a greater distance.
   
2. The alarms on ALL Xantias are a bit sensitive. To lock the car without setting the alarm, lock it with the key in the door rather than the plip. The car can still be deadlocked by turning the key again.
   
3. The headlamps on Mk1s are not as good as the MK2s, especially on dip. The ones I had were OK on main though.
   
4. Can't help you with the owners manual although I'd have thought that a Citroen breakers should have had some lying about. Ebay is as good a place as any.
   

Cheers. Hope this helps. :D

[Mark1973]

Hi Mark.

 

In order to answer your questions correctly I need to know whether the car is Mk1. or Mk2. as they differ in some important aspects.

1. Mk1s have Infra red remotes for the locking which means you need to be reasonably close and aim the plip at the dome above the mirror. Mk2s have radio keys which work from a greater distance.
   
2. The alarms on ALL Xantias are a bit sensitive. To lock the car without setting the alarm, lock it with the key in the door rather than the plip. The car can still be deadlocked by turning the key again.
   
3. The headlamps on Mk1s are not as good as the MK2s, especially on dip. The ones I had were OK on main though.
   
4. Can't help you with the owners manual although I'd have thought that a Citroen breakers should have had some lying about. Ebay is as good a place as any.
   

Cheers. Hope this helps. :D

 

Hiya Colin,

 

thanks for the swift response - I checked the car and it has the dome between the sun shades.

 

do you have any advice with trying to get the lamps to be a bit brighter? Also is there a way of stopping the alarm being so sensitive?

 

thanks again :D

[Guest Colin Hunter]

On the mk1 Xantias the headlight glass can be removed from the body of the headlamp and replaced separately. All you need is some of the seal strip to replace the old stuff when you re-assemble the unit. The reason I am telling you this is that you can take the glass off and remove the hood on the dip beam lamp. I did this on my L reg MK1 and it made things a lot better. The P reg seemed OK when I bought it so it may already have been "done". Another way is to put in higher wattage lamps but the high power ones you can buy are not street legal. Doesn't seem to bother some people though. The only problem you MAY come up against with them (Other than Mr Plod that is) is that they will draw almost twice the current and the wiring and switchgear may not be up to the task longterm.

 

That much being said I ran a Montego some years ago which had poor lights. I replaced the 60/55 watt (H4) standard lamps with 100/80 watt and had no problems, either with current draw or maddened flashing from other motorists. There are also standard wattage Xenon lamps available which have a blueish tinge to them. They claim to be brighter and you'll probably find some in Halfords. They are also available on Ebay. Your choice!

 

As far as the alarm goes I'm not sure how you would make it less sensitive. There is a button in the car which you can use to disable the ultrasonic sensors and leave the doors protected. You have to do this every time you exit the vehicle though. I can't remember the exact procedure as I don't have my Xantia (Or its handbook) any more. A trip to your local dealers should furnish an answer if no-one else writes in. They may be able to adjust something for you but I really don't know for sure.

 

Cheers! Hope this helps. :lol:

[Mark1973]

On the mk1 Xantias the headlight glass can be removed from the body of the headlamp and replaced separately. All you need is some of the seal strip to replace the old stuff when you re-assemble the unit. The reason I am telling you this is that you can take the glass off and remove the hood on the dip beam lamp. I did this on my L reg MK1 and it made things a lot better. The P reg seemed OK when I bought it so it may already have been "done". Another way is to put in higher wattage lamps but the high power ones you can buy are not street legal. Doesn't seem to bother some people though. The only problem you MAY come up against with them (Other than Mr Plod that is) is that they will draw almost twice the current and the wiring and switchgear may not be up to the task longterm.

 

That much being said I ran a Montego some years ago which had poor lights. I replaced the 60/55 watt (H4) standard lamps with 100/80 watt and had no problems, either with current draw or maddened flashing from other motorists. There are also standard wattage Xenon lamps available which have a blueish tinge to them. They claim to be brighter and you'll probably find some in Halfords. They are also available on Ebay. Your choice!

 

As far as the alarm goes I'm not sure how you would make it less sensitive. There is a button in the car which you can use to disable the ultrasonic sensors and leave the doors protected. You have to do this every time you exit the vehicle though. I can't remember the exact procedure as I don't have my Xantia (Or its handbook) any more. A trip to your local dealers should furnish an answer if no-one else writes in. They may be able to adjust something for you but I really don't know for sure.

 

Cheers! Hope this helps. B)

 

many thanks Colin :lol: