Hydractive Suspension

[Guest jhmt]

Hi All,

Just signed up to get some informed opinions - hopefully! I've got an 'S'-reg 1.9 turbo diesel automatic estate with 168,500 miles on the clock. It's actually my wife's, passed on from her Dad, so I have very little experience of it. Other than being incredibly impressed with the performance the engine produces - as good as I remember my 3-litre Alfa giving! - while still returning 600 miles-odd to a tank; brilliant! Problem is, the hydractive suspension seems shot; no 'middle ground' at the front and no response at all at the back. It was my wife who actually took the car to the Citroen dealership in Inverness and they quoted in excess of £1200, I think it was, to sort it out, quoting links to the steering, the brakes etc. as part of the problem. That's the other problem - we live 60 miles NORTH of Inverness and there ain't a great deal of choice when it comes to garages! Can anyone recommend an independent garage in the Highlands that knows Citroens? Or should I just put her on ebay and get what I can? I can do a few things on a car - tyres, exhausts, hoses, the usual - but this is definitely beyond me :D , and so is £1200!

Any advice gratefully received.

Thanks,

Jonathan

[techbod]

are you sure its hydro active? difference is that's electronically controlled and the none hydro is driven by the engine via a manual pump, if its the none hydro then it sounds like the link arm connecting to the rear anti roll bar has snapped this gives you no height on start up but you can shift the lever to raise it up to full height ( the link arm is next to the height corrector driver side rear )

[Guest jhmt]

are you sure its hydro active? difference is that's electronically controlled and the none hydro is driven by the engine via a manual pump, if its the none hydro then it sounds like the link arm connecting to the rear anti roll bar has snapped this gives you no height on start up but you can shift the lever to raise it up to full height ( the link arm is next to the height corrector driver side rear )

No, not sure at all. Just got that from googling info on 'Citroen hydraulic suspension'...! Seemed that a '98 Xantia would have it but it was a fleeting bit of research, late at night, so I may well have misunderstood. Sounds beyond my capabilities anyway - esp when I've nowhere to work on the car and it's Highland weather out!

[techbod]

because its a 1998 doesn't mean it has hydro mine is a 2000 and still has the mechanical pump ( a quick look under the rear end will confirm this as the none hydro only has 3 spheres and the center one holds the suspension up when its left for any length of time not like the BX that sinks when its off hydro works when the key is in the ignition without the engine being on because its electronically controlled,

 

the part you need is about £20 and a simply replaced,

this is a picture of hydro type and ive put red arrows to the parts you need you will notice there are more spheres on the hydro type than yours so ignore them in the image yours will only have 3

 

http://i469.photobucket.com/albums/rr53/te...ntiahcupd-1.jpg

[Guest Colin Hunter]

Hi Jonathon.

 

The model of the car should give the game away. If it's LX or SX it will have the standard hydro/pneumatic suspension, and, if that's so then changing spheres is well within the average DIY scope of ability. For a step by step guide to changing them see my reply to Willie in this posting.

 

http://www.citroen-owners-club.co.uk/citro...?showtopic=4507

 

If the car is a VSX it may have the full hyractive and an "Exclusive" model will be hydractive. I don't think it will be one of those as they're about as common as Rockin' Horse manure! May be wrong though!

 

Hope this helps. Happy Motoring! :D

[Guest jhmt]

because its a 1998 doesn't mean it has hydro mine is a 2000 and still has the mechanical pump ( a quick look under the rear end will confirm this as the none hydro only has 3 spheres and the center one holds the suspension up when its left for any length of time not like the BX that sinks when its off hydro works when the key is in the ignition without the engine being on because its electronically controlled,

 

the part you need is about £20 and a simply replaced,

this is a picture of hydro type and ive put red arrows to the parts you need you will notice there are more spheres on the hydro type than yours so ignore them in the image yours will only have 3

 

http://i469.photobucket.com/albums/rr53/te...ntiahcupd-1.jpg

Hi techbod,

Hope u remember this 'thread' - is that what it's called?! It's taken me ages to secure a place to work on my car (btw, it is an SX so not hydro) but I now have somewhere but when I went back to yr link (yr very kind explanatory photo with red arrows), I found the image had "been removed"! Any chance of getting it again?

Thanks for yr help,

Jonathan

[techbod]

http://i469.photobucket.com/albums/rr53/techbod/xantiahcupd.jpg

[Guest jhmt]

http://i469.photobucket.com/albums/rr53/techbod/xantiahcupd.jpg

Dave, you're a star! But 4.15am??!!! I thought I was up late! My excuse is a 5-week old son who only sleeps in the car and 3.30am - 10am - waking for feeds! What's yours?

From the looks of the photo, I need to take a wing off to get at the parts. Or is that a view from under the rear end and that's the spare tyre we can see?? OK u're getting an idea of the limits of experience u're dealing with here! Sorry! Simpler, probably, to just tell me where the photo was taken FROM....

Thanks again, Dave,

Jonathan

[techbod]

no wing to take off and its the rear of the car so take the suspension to full height then jack it up and use Axel stands as its very dangerous when working on anything suspension wise with these cars.

 

i'm usually up at 4am just cant sleep later than that :blink:

[Guest Colin Hunter]

A good dram or two of Black Rum usually solves any sleeping problems!!!!!!

 

 

 

Cheers! (Hic!)

[techbod]

hehe no problem sleeping just not later than 4am, mind you I did sleep in once to 5am :blink: