More High Mileage Questions - Paul Robinson
With mega high mileage (125,000+miles), 3-4 year old ex-fleet cars worth very little at auction. What would people pick as the most likely to run for a further 3 years & 50,000 miles without major expense?
Re: More High Mileage Questions - lotusandy
I've just paid £4200 for an ex company R reg Passat TDi with 126000 miles on the clock, it's a bit of a gamble how long it will go for but no real problems so far....I do about 12000 miles a year, so i am hoping to get4 years or so out of it.
Re: More High Mileage Questions - honest john
Make sure you change the fuel injectors on that Passat TDI or it may not get past 150k.

HJ
what goes wrong with the injectors? - Ben Chapman
I vaguely remember reading you reccomend a reader of your HJ column to change the injectors at 80k miles in his VAG TDi engine. I trust this is good advice, however im interested, what happens to the engines if the injectors are left to deteriorate?

Ben
Re: More High Mileage Questions - Simon
I know this is not typical fleet matter, but I bought a Citroen ZX TurboD with 95k on the clock three years ago. I have added nearly another 50k since then, a mix of motorway and town driving, and it has been great. They are thrown away at auction, (practically) and the only major expense I have had is the power steering pump. Average mpg is 45 in all conditions. I suppose that following HJ's filters and fluids change every 6k has helped!

Therefore, I would presume The Xsara is roughly the same....

I know you were thinking something Mondeo sized, so all the toys like a/c were on, but it's only another suggestion.

Simon
Re: what goes wrong with the injectors? - honest john
The spray pattern progressively off leading to washing out and ovaling of the bores over 60,000 miles or so. Engine then turns into an oil burner and needs a rebore.

HJ
Re: what goes wrong with the injectors? - peter charnley
I have a Zantia turbo diesel that has done 90,000 miles. Does the injector advice for VW apply to it?

Cheers

Peter
Don't worry with the Xantia. - David Woollard
Peter,

You have the same car as me at the same mileage. While all diesel injectors will benefit from a clean/exchange at something over 75,000 miles the Citroen/Peugeot do not have a specific problem. I know of many over 150,000 on the original injectors.

If you do suffer any performance/economy/smoke problems then it is worth giving them a look.

Do you like your Xantia, has much gone wrong with it?

David
Re: what goes wrong with the injectors? - Nick Ireland
What about injectors in Rover's own 2 litre diesel, as fitted in P reg 400. Any info or comments much appreciated. I am just coming up to 90K
Re: what goes wrong with the injectors? - Ian Cook
Having had considerable experience of Peugeot - Citroen XUD diesels my advice on injectors is to leave them alone unless:

a. The car smokes excessively (or fails MOT)
b. The fuel consumption is deteriorating

I had a set reconditioned in my 205 by an approved Bosch agent because I thought smoke was a problem (I could see it at night in the rear-view mirror with a following car's headlights). The fuel consumption was slightly worse after the servicing and the smoke was the same - it turns out nearly that all diesels show visible smoke in the way I've described.

Net result was about 70 squids out of my wallet (and a day off work to do the job).
Re: what goes wrong with the injectors? - Alan
I am tired of 26 mpg from my 2.3 Scorpio auto estate.
I have just been offered a year old Diesel auto Zantia estate with 18K miles.
I do 20k miles pa what problems have you had with your Zantia & what mpg can you get.
Re: what goes wrong with the injectors? - Chris
The main problem Xantia owners have is that people keep spelling it with a Z.

;-)
Xantia overview. - David Woollard
Alan,

I'm biased about the Xantia. Have owned various Citroen's over the past 20 years and always had more pleasure than pain. Now have this early Xantia TD which is worthless but a brilliant family car. TD fuel consumption in 38-48 mpg range but I have no personal experience of the HDi auto.

HJ's comments are broadly fair in the "Car by Car Breakdown" on this site. They depreciate at a wicked rate right over the price range so never pay top/retail money, even if the dealer tells you the auto is rare......just wait till you come to sell it and find it hard to place.

What are you thinking of paying...about £11,000?

David
Re: Xantia overview. - peter charnley
Dear David

I have had my Xantia for a year. i bought it unseen, ridiculous I know. It came from the fleet of the company I worked for. When i got to it I found that the clutch was very stiff and needed replacing. soon after the battery and the lead from the ignition went. I was becoming dissolutioned. I was lucky to find a man that worked in a citroen garage to fix things at the weekend.

Since then it has been great. The economy is great. Now i pay for my own fuel I take it easy on my 70 miles daily commute (55-60 mph) including freewheeling down hill ! i get 48-50+ MPG. I love the ride and that is one of the key reasons that i wanted a Xantia. All in all a good machine (touch wood) and rather underrated. I would buy another. Pity the C5 is so plain to look at.

Peter
Re: Xantia overview. - John Slaughter
Peter

Given that most fuel injected cars have overrun fuel shut off you actually use more fuel freewheeling down hill than you do by coasting down on a closed throttle in 5th!

regards

John
Re: Xantia overview/Overrun - Mike Humpherson
That is certainly true of a non-cat diesel, but don't modern engines (petrol and diesel) leave a bit of fuel flowing on the overrun to keep the catalyst warm?

Mike Humpherson
Re: Xantia overview/Overrun - John Slaughter
Mike

I believe not - most completely shut the fuel if the engine's doing more than about 1500 revs on a closed throttle.

Regards

john
Re: Xantia overview. - Darcy Kitchin
Peter,
Couldn't agree more re: C5 looks. All the big Citroens I've owned in the past have had 'something about them', but the C5 seems short of that indefiable quality 'presence'. IMHO it looks like an inflated Xsara, which is no great looker anyway.
AND has no-one in their marketing department heard of Clive Sinclair? If you're going to copy some manufacturer's model designation, you should at least go for something a bit more successful than C5.
Re: Xantia overview. - Stuart Bruce
Darcy Kitchin wrote:
>
> Couldn't agree more re: C5 looks......but the C5 seems short....

Anybody else agree that the wheels look too small on the C5
Re: Xantia overview. - Simon Whaites
There seems to be to much of a gap between the wheels and the body and then too much metal above it top make it look right. And also I think the wheels are small compared to say the Mondeos
Re: Xantia overview. - dave mckenzie

RE ; CLUTCH ON XANTIA

YOU MENTIONED YOU WERE LUCKY TO FIND A KNOWLEDGEABLE MECHANIC.

WHERE ARE THESE GEMS ?

PERHAPS YOU COULD ENLIGHTEN ME ON ONE IN LONDON


REGARDS,


DAVE M.