What are we going to do about rare spares?

Anything about BXs
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MULLEY
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Post by MULLEY »

Some of the parts i've got seem to be for peugeots as well, perhaps they are still making parts for them, hence still for the bx?
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m_2975
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Post by m_2975 »

tom wrote:You've missed the point. Citroen stopped making parts for the BX years ago and supplies are running out. Even a good dealer cannot get what isn't available.
I know that they stopped making most things years ago. I'm not arguing that you can get parts that aren't available.

What I am saying is that you can get the parts that are still available.

Brake hoses for example, will be available for years to come; maybe not always from Citroën but from other aftermarket sources when the Citroën stuff dries up.

At the moment there's still lots of parts available and a good dealer can get what is available.

I have just ordered from my mate Jon at Duxford Citroën near Cambridge a few parts for my brothers very rare Mk1 AX GT Injection becuase it's faster then getting them ordered here and freighted over.

Trust me, he is happy to order for you as long as you pay for the bit up front (which I understand completely).

It seems to me that most of you are shy of asking.

I know for a fact that it makes it much easier if you just go and hand over a part number and say "I want one of those".
That's why there are members of this forum (me included) that have access to up to date part numbers and stock availablility. All you need to do is ask.

Michael
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Post by tim leech »

Since citroen cancelled the PR net in favour of one that charges for use, stupid when they are making money selling you the parts in the first place I have no access to part numbers, and rely on the local main delare to get the right bits, which so far they havent, not once!

I know your a citroen nut michael and good on you but unfortunatly as stated over here if you own a older bx then asides this great club we have your pretty much on your own, neither the dealers nor the CCC give 2 hoots about the bx! Fact!
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Baldbazza
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Post by Baldbazza »

If you think Citroen main stealers are bad, you should try Alfa Romeo - provided you can find one that Alfa hasn't sacked because even they eventually realised that the dealers were generally cr@p...

I understand what you mean though; I recently heard of someone who took his Xantia into a Cit main dealer, and they asked "what make's that then?".

But, on the plus side, Solent Citroen in Portsmouth last year were really helpful when I wanted some hoses - the (interested!) parts guy spent ages with me making sure the parts & numbers were correct, price-matched GSF for the octopus (which he had on the shelf), got one hose from a neighbouring dealer within the hour and the other from Citroen next day. Ok, they were at main dealer prices but a pretty good parts-buying experience nonetheless.
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docchevron
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Post by docchevron »

m_2975 wrote:
It seems to me that most of you are shy of asking.
The one thing I have never been accused of is being shy.
Obnoxious, demanding,challenging, rude, aggresive, arrogant, intimidating, The spawn of the devil, complacent, egoist...yes.
Shy...no.


Lets out this into perspective.
I know my part numbers. I do infact have part numbers for EVERY last nut, bolt and washer ever fitted to any BX ever.
But 12year old gimp on the parts desk says "they dont register on the computer".."It's a BX you say, how old is that?"...
After 6 attempts at getting some big end shells and being talked down to by said 12 year old gimp as if I had never rebuilt an engine in my life I grabbed the gimp by the throat and told him in no uncertain terms that if he got it wrong again, or talked to me like I was some dumb drug addict again I'd murder his family, burn his house down and remove his crown jewels with a blunt cold chisel.
3 weeks later a box arrives....guess what.....they were wrong. I threw the box at him at full force and walked out. Aint been back since.
Went and found a proper engineering shop who know what the hell they're talking about.

Whether or not parts are available, if the main stealer has naff all idea about what it is you want, you're f^&ked.
Smokes lots, because enough's enough already!

Far too many BX's, a bus, an ambulance a few trucks, not enough time and never enough cash...
tim leech

Post by tim leech »

docchevron1472 wrote:
m_2975 wrote:
It seems to me that most of you are shy of asking.
The one thing I have never been accused of is being shy.
Obnoxious, demanding,challenging, rude, aggresive, arrogant, intimidating, The spawn of the devil, complacent, egoist...yes.
Shy...no.


.

You forgot flatulant Doc! :D
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Post by Kitch »

The difference is that most parts places these days are full of 'order takers.' The days of a proper partsman have gone (unless you speak to the parts managers themselves....I do frequently). This means that the guy looking the parts up really can't be bothered as he has no interest in whatever you've driven up in and he probably doesn't want to be there. And if he works on commission, he won't be eager as most older cars' parts prices have been reduced to clear, eating into the profit margins. So even if he says they're not available anymore.....they are.

(e.g. BX 16v front bumper is STILL available from Citroen, but its £550 + VAT....unlikely he'd bother to look that up)

Infact my girlfriend works for a Citroen dealer. When I asked her to price up (using her awesome staff discount) some hydraulic tappets for the valver, she was firstly laughed at, and then told they don't have buckets, they have shims. :?

But BX spares being hard to get hold of? Nah....I'm not worried in the slightest.

The cars are scrapped on a daily basis, and when this enviromentalist era reaches it's peak, old cars will be banned from the road on a day to basis....again pushing more BX's into the scrapheap.

BX shares many parts with the AX, ZX, Xantia and XM aswell as the C15 and Visa. Then there are the 106's, 205's, 306's, 309's and 405's too. In fact short of the suspension and bodywork there isn't much to seperate them. Having worked behind a parts desk most of my working life, I'm not worried at all, afterall....they sold 2.3 million BX's worldwide. They didn't sell anywhere near that number of DS's and they didn't share parts with anything. But they're still going strong in big numbers.
One third of a three-spoke BX columnist team for the Citroenian magazine.

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Post by cauchoiskev »

Kitch wrote:..they sold 2.3 million BX's worldwide. They didn't sell anywhere near that number of DS's ...
They still sold 1 455 746 of them, which was not too bad...
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Post by Kitch »

cauchoiskev wrote:
Kitch wrote:..they sold 2.3 million BX's worldwide. They didn't sell anywhere near that number of DS's ...
They still sold 1 455 746 of them, which was not too bad...
Never said it was. That wasn't the point I was making.

The point I'm making is that less DS's were built, while being more costly and diffcult to repair, yet being arguably less durable and robust than a BX. So the odds are on the BX to outlast the DS.

Then consider that nearly a million more BX's were made in the first place, coupled with mass-production advances on the parts, coupled again with the fact that it shares many parts with other cars also produced in very large numbers with the same parts supply.....you get the picture.
One third of a three-spoke BX columnist team for the Citroenian magazine.

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MULLEY
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1992 TZD Turbo - Bluebell - SORN
1992 TZD Turbo Estate - SORN
1991 Gti 16V - Blaze - crash damaged, will get repaired - SORN
1990 Gti 8Valve SOLD - looks like it's been scrapped
2002 Mini Cooper S - SOLD - i miss this car
1992 TXD - Scrapped in March 2014
1988 CX 25 GTI Turbo2 - SORN
1996 - AX Memphis 1.5D - Dream - SORN
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Post by MULLEY »

I wonder what the % figures are for the total number of d's & bx's are left in the world against the production figs???

Oh, & can the club figs be updated as they are for 2005, must have come down by now significantly??
tim leech

Post by tim leech »

I bet were down to about 10% on each, the DS will probably have a higher survival rate purely due to its desirability.
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Post by Jaba »

I have been meaning to add my thoughts to this thread for some time.....

I too am with the << not worried about the spares >> faction. I run 3 BXs so I always have a spare car on hand.
I have driven 330,000miles in BXs since 1992 with only two breakdowns - a clutch and an alternator. I can see no reason to change them until a part I want is no longer available anywhere in the world. Because they are comfortable, reliable and cheap to run too, albeit a bit noisy.

Hence I trust the cars to get me where I am going. I do long journeys too as I live part of the year in S.E.France. Its a 14 hour drive from where I live in the U.K.

I am not normal though. Most motorists seem to want to invest £1000s in a depreciating shiny modern car that they cannot easily service themselves. That is contemporary motoring. My neighbours would never dream of going to their golf clubs in an old BX - Merc, Range Rover, Jag, BM, or Pratmobile yes.

Essentially the BX is now a car for the enthusiast to run and keep. Long may we prosper.
The Joy of BX with just one Citroën BX to my name now. Will I sing Bye Bye to my GTI or will it be Till death us do part.
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Post by ellevie »

I've got 3 BXs as well --- I really should cut it down to 2 but I just can't bear the thought of parting with any of them. I suppose it's a good idea to keep 2 BXs so that you always have an immediate source of parts if you need them. This is also quite useful for swapping parts to diagnose a problem.

There's no doubt about it, if you're prepared to get your hands dirty, with the help of this forum you can really save a small fortune on motoring costs.
David

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Post by kermit the frog »

I would just like to add to everything that has been said allready on this subject.
And say that i think in this environmentally friendly world.
Not buying a brand new overpriced and over complicated and heavy new car let alone a chelsea tractor that will never see a muddy field or puddle for that matter. :x

And keeping the good old BX's of this world alive and forever kicking is doing our bit to save the planet. 8)

We are not adding to the carbon footprint made during the production of a NEW car.

As was once said the making of a catalitic converter puts more polution into the atmosphere that the same cat will take out in it's lifetime!

Plus the fact that catalitic converters were designed specifically for the city of Los Angeles and they don't work properly here in the uk as the ambiant temperature is too low for most of the year.

Well thats got that off my chest and i feel a lot better for it!

Regards Kermit :) OK so i have a thirsty skyline but we all need a bit of fun DON'T WE :!: It doesn't come out very often.
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cauchoiskev
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Post by cauchoiskev »

I have just seen on the PRNET that top radiator hoses are no longer available for BX diesels.

I wonder what classic car people do to get round this kind of problem ?
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