Methinks the heater matrix or something related may have sprung a leak. Symptoms are coolant needing regular topup, vapour appearing on passenger side windscreen and today I found passenger carpet to be sodden . There is no sign of water dripping under the car at any time. Am I on the right track and what is the solution ?
The other niggle is when removing rad cap even after standing for a couple of hours there is distinct pressure in the system..... does this sound right?
Marty said: "Take some small comfort from the fact that the driver of the other car, having failed the breath test will even now be in a little cell, with luck they will double him up with some mean bastard who will be tattooing a fandango on his arse"
Ken, the rad does get hot all over & is relatively new, just thought all pressure would dissipate when cool!
I have a spare matrix still sat in another bx, what sort of job is it on a scale of 1 to 10, any tips to make it easier etc?
Swopped heater fans over today as mine worked only when it wasn't needed!
Very quick and easy but I reckon the matrix might make up for that!!
Marty said: "Take some small comfort from the fact that the driver of the other car, having failed the breath test will even now be in a little cell, with luck they will double him up with some mean bastard who will be tattooing a fandango on his arse"
Ed, the matrix aint no bad job really 4/10 ages since I've done one, think you need to lower steering column and move aside to get it out.
Cant remember if they damage on removal (I know XM does) but it wont cost anything to try.
It will cost about £35 for a new one.
I would normally fill water to correct level when engine is hot thus allowing for expansion.
There is a tendancy to overfill 19D rads.
I have this job coming up too - but we have forestalled it by adding a bottle of radweld in time. Have you tried this?
I've done this job on a ZX and it's long, fiddly and detailed. A BX may be more accessible. With the zed, it was a dashboard out and back in again, taking 12 hours over a weekend. My first ever maintenance job on a car.
To make it easier, I read the Haynes manual in order and marked up the pages in the order I would need them, as often they cross-refer to each other (i.e. “now take out the dooberifirkin as described in section 3.2.1.5.7 (see appendix)” and when you get to section 3.2.1 it refers you to section 8.9.6 etc. etc.). As I progressed through the job, I made very complete notes of what I did when and how. This served as a guide to reinstalling. It will help if you describe what sort of bolts, screws you are removing from where, as you will come across a wide variety of nearly-interchangeable torx-, phillips- and slot-headed screws etc., and if you can keep them seperately in old margarine tubs or glass jars.
Don’t forget to service the fan motor once you’ve got it out – see Tom’s notes. At the very least, give it a very good spray with WD40 and let it dry off before putting it back in, as chances are it will be damp (my fan motor casing holds about 2 pints of water!).
It’s not technically very demanding, just a lot of taking things apart and putting them back together again. A very patient helper who makes good tea will be a bonus.
(Red BX 1.7TZD ("Well, it is a style icon" - Tom Sheppard)) "Was", Tom, "was"
Water cooling is A Very Bad Thing. I've changed the rads in a Rover P6 and a Citroen CX, and flushed the rad on Pugs 309 and 106. My old Saab 99 used to overheat because the fan wasn't working (corroded fusebox leading to part-time electrics all round).
My Cars: 2007 Citroen Xsara Picasso 1.6 16V VTX 1982 Citroen GSA Spécial Estate - gone to a new home 1991 Citroen BX16 TGS Meteor - still out there somewhere!
Wonder if anyone's ever considered stuffing a GSA engine and front subframe in a BX... might be interesting when it comes to the question of gearbox mounts... amongst other hindrances!
I reckon that would be a sweet car, Mark. BX's are supposed to be lighter than G's, and I just love that engine. There's a Mk 1 BX with a knackered engine on ebay at the moment, fancy giving it a go?
I wonder if the guy who bought Sophie would sell us her engine? That car was a scrapper, believe me. I still feel guilty about selling her, to be honest. The engine was the only half-decent thing on it.
Pedal box comes out in about 10 minutes, held in with 4 (I think) 11m/m bolts and 2 Allen bolts. The clutch cable is a bit of a pain to disconnect so you might as well replace it while its off, the brake cylinder stays in its place with the pedal box removed.
. There is no sign of water dripping under the car at any time. Am I on the right track and what is the solution 
?
amongst other hindrances!
