bordercollie Posted August 11, 2010 Posted August 11, 2010 I have a 2000, "W" Registered, 1.9l Xantia lx, running on both petrol and lpg. The ride has recently become 'bouncy'- even uneven road surfaces are causing the car to bounce up/down 2 or 3 times before stabilising again. It was only MoT'd 4 weeks ago, and passed ok. The suspension is rising ok after starting the engine, and the height is altering ok, and staying at the set height, either high OR low, without any sinking. Doesn't seem to be any leaks of fluid anywhere, certainly around the front spheres (incidentally which look fairly new compared to other components) Brakes are working fine with no loss of power too. The only difference I've noted is the suspension seems to be sinking back down, more quicker than it used to be, after turning the engine off. A silly question as I'm into computers, not cars- where exactly is the lhm reservoir under the bonnet- how do I recognise it? (Photo would help) and how do I check if the fluid needs topped up? (Told you I was thick!) If it is the spheres that need replaced, how much would it cost to buy new ones- do I need all 4 replaced, or just the 2 rear spheres which I suspect may be the root of the problem? Finally, if I got my local mechanic to replace the rear spheres for me, and assuming I had got hold of a set of spheres elsewhere, anyone an idea what the average cost of doing this would be? Any advice would be appreciated, thanx. Quote
Johndouglas Posted August 11, 2010 Posted August 11, 2010 If you lift the bonnet and look towards the back of the engine bay, towards the right of centre you'll see a flat square tank about 12" square with a number of pipes attached to the top - You're looking at the LHM reservoir. There's a little float dome there as well but if you remove the rubber cap and push a finger in, you should just be able to touch the surface for the level to be correct. Over-filling won't hurt - it's just messy. The colour of the fluid should be bright green. If it's yellowy-brown, the system has been neglected and requires cleaning. When you push down on a corner of the car, it should push down easily and recover without bounce. Sounds as though you need some new spheres. It's most important that the new ones match the car. Many others will fit - but they won't ride correctly. Get them from GSF and they should cost around £25 each. They're easy to change - but can be difficult to remove the old ones. You need to be underneath the car to remove them but don't attempt to go under without adequate support. Once the fluid pressure is released the car could drop suddenly. Quote
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