Valver back again

Tell us about BXs you have spotted on the road, or BXs/parts spotted for sale including eBay finds.
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demag
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Post by demag »

I'm amazed there was no interest at all!
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Philip Chidlow
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Post by Philip Chidlow »

That's me. I have been without BX's for so long, I don't seem to be able to resist!
• 1992 Citroen BX TZD Turbo Hurricane
• 2006 Xsara Picasso 1.6 16v
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cavmad
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Post by cavmad »

You won it then Phil? Is this the one you have been talking about buying for a while now?
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Philip Chidlow
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Post by Philip Chidlow »

Yes, I did win it, but no, it's not the one I've been talking about. This one is to replace our ZX TD, and our ex-Tim TRS Auto is filling a gap while I wait for the Ph. 2 16v to be made ready (a visit by 'Doc' is due) with a new MOT...

So what I should end up with in early February are a couple of 16v's - a 1988 Ph.1 and a 1990 Ph. 2.... :D 8)
• 1992 Citroen BX TZD Turbo Hurricane
• 2006 Xsara Picasso 1.6 16v
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cavmad
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Post by cavmad »

Cool! Have you collected the white one yet and, out of interest, is the seller called Adrian or something like that?
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Philip Chidlow
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Post by Philip Chidlow »

I collect it on Saturday, all being well. The seller's called Graham, actually :D

Just insured it fully comp for under £200, with a small excess, so not too bad.

It'll need new tyres but I do get a set of steels with reasonable tyres as an extra - and a VGC Monza interior, less the driver's seat. (Don't quite know what I'm going to do with it yet!).

Cambelt will be done asap next week.

At least the car's relatively near.
• 1992 Citroen BX TZD Turbo Hurricane
• 2006 Xsara Picasso 1.6 16v
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toddao
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Post by toddao »

Looks like a bargain that Phil. You've come out of the BX-less desert hard: 2 x GTIs! Was the experience of The Townace so bad? Or can a BX head never walk away? :D
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cavmad
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Post by cavmad »

Nice one Phil. I reckon that went very cheaply in the end and is worth keeping hold of.
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Philip Chidlow
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Post by Philip Chidlow »

The experience of TownAce ownership wasn't bad. It's just that we hardly used it. instead we bombed about in the TD ZX, which sort of made me miss the BX. We decided on 2 16v's for some reason... maybe because a good GTi is almost equally hard to come by, and also because we've never driven a valver.

I think I'll need a few hundred quid for tyres and stuff, a large tub of elbow grease, and possibly refurbish the Phase 1's alloys, but in the end, it should work out OK...
• 1992 Citroen BX TZD Turbo Hurricane
• 2006 Xsara Picasso 1.6 16v
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Philip Chidlow
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Post by Philip Chidlow »

Well, I picked the 16v up today.

Report: Body-wise it's pretty good for it's age, a bit of TLC and a healthy dab of elbow grease and touch-up paint should see it looking pretty special. Rust in the boot - but nothing too serious - a job for the summer. Some rust elsewhere - usual rear arches but nothing too bad and certainly will benefit from treatment/sealing and repainting.

Everything electric works - even the remote central locking and the sunroof (haven't tried the radio)...

The tyres are cr*p but the alloys aren't too bad and should clean up fine.I'm missing one centre cap, so if anyone's got a spare....???

I've also got a set of steels with decent Klebers on which I will use for the time being.

Now, the less than perfect news is the engine. It's all there and fires up OK. Tick over's a bit rough and on the road it is apparent that it isn't realising anything like it's full potential. It has been standing for a month - and it got me the 45 miles home OK, but it appears to have an intermittent misfire and a flat spot around 4k rpm (*although that was intermittent too). Pick up was not what you might call urgent and an 8v GTi would have left it for dead...

So, first things first: Cam belt this afternoon. Then a step by step check on the engine: Is suspect fuel supply (filter too) (I hope the injectors are OK) and the fact the leads, although newish, aren't up to the job - the plugs and air filter will be changed too. I will get the timing sorted when the belt's done.

There's a very slight blow from the exhaust joint up front, nothing to worry about at the moment.

And when left ticking over while stationery (I was chatting away, and didn't check) it got very hot. Luckily, just as a hint of steam and a flickering STOP light appeared, I drove off and the flow of air got it down below 90 pretty quickly. I suspect the fan didn't cut in. Or the thermostat needs replacing....

As you all know I don't get my hands dirty with the mechanicals if I can help it, but my guess is - to use a layman's vernacular - it just needs a bloody good tune!

Anyway. It's a car worth persisting with - especially as it is relatively rare and didn't cost much in the first place...

I might start a blog to keep you all up to date with progress...
• 1992 Citroen BX TZD Turbo Hurricane
• 2006 Xsara Picasso 1.6 16v
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Way2go
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Post by Way2go »

Philip chidlow wrote: Now, the less than perfect news is the engine. It's all there and fires up OK. Tick over's a bit rough and on the road it is apparent that it isn't realising anything like it's full potential. It has been standing for a month - and it got me the 45 miles home OK, but it appears to have an intermittent misfire and a flat spot around 4k rpm (*although that was intermittent too). Pick up was not what you might call urgent and an 8v GTi would have left it for dead...
Most likely the injectors not functioning properly in all modes. Ultrasonic cleaning and service will be the best money you ever spent, for usually dramatic results! :D

Take them off the car and down to your Lucas Centre (or Bosch). Mine are Bosch Injectors but Lucas did mine which included new filters and caps for £51 + vat. :D
1991 BX19GTi Auto
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Philip Chidlow
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Post by Philip Chidlow »

Thanks.

This is what's being done: The cam belt (tomorrow)... if the timing's out that'll be fixed by that. Then, over to Dennis - my Cit Man - for a step-by-step diagnose and replace/overhaul as necessary: plugs, leads, dizzy, sensors, filters and so on. He says he'll find out if the injectors are dirty too and I'll take your advice and get them cleaned... although he did mention he might have a new set (but I don't know how much he'd want)....

I'll let you know how it goes.
• 1992 Citroen BX TZD Turbo Hurricane
• 2006 Xsara Picasso 1.6 16v
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Way2go
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Post by Way2go »

Philip chidlow wrote:He says he'll find out if the injectors are dirty too and I'll take your advice and get them cleaned... although he did mention he might have a new set (but I don't know how much he'd want)....
Beware what garages tell you on this issue as I asked the Cit main dealer to sort out an erratic tickover and their solution was to bung in injector cleaner in the tank and I'm convinced that this made them worse after a while. Also the ultrasonic cleaning is not an external clean on a general machine but an internal clean on a special machine pulsing the injectors at the same time.
All 4 injectors are also tested for balance of liquid throughput after cleaning too!
Not likely to need new injectors unless the coil is burnt out, this process if done right makes them as good as new (better may be? :? ). :D
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Post by Kitch »

Congrats on the purchase Phil, but go easy....garages can very easily end up charging you money for nothing on these cars.
My advice with the misfire is to take the dizzy cap off and check both that and the rotor arm. Only three 10mm bolts, just remember where the leads went. The rotor arm is held on with three small (about 3mm IIRC) allen headed bolts. My car had exactly the same issues as this when my rotor arm spat a bolt through the dizzy cap! also, if the leads are old it's possible they've worn a hole through the casing and are arcing out under that cover (if put on wrong, it can pinch the leads and split the insulation).

Don't worry too much about the idle being lumpy. Aslong it's not struggling too much, it's perfectly normal. I have seen some which idle smoothly, but they never seem to go as well :lol: A combination of a fairly lairy cam and huge intake valves cause the lumpiness, and you get a sort of 'pulsing' feel from inside.

The leaky exhaust could be a cracked manifold. They're made of a form of stainless steel (IIRC) and are fairly fragile, while also being uber cool to look at! They're a pig to get off too, but hopefully it'll just be the sealing ring as you find on most BX's.

Once sorted it won't feel any quicker than an 8v GTi at lower revs; you really have to abuse them to extract the performance. It all happens above 4500rpm, and it happens even more if you fit a cone air filter :twisted:

Mines on the road again now, so if you're not too far I'm happy to come have a look if you get stuck.
Last edited by Kitch on Fri Jan 18, 2008 6:31 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Kitch
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Post by Kitch »

Oh and I meant to say, don't bother getting your injectors cleaned....I've got about 12 good ones sat around here aswell as numerous other spares!
One third of a three-spoke BX columnist team for the Citroenian magazine.

CCC BX registrar: The national BX register - click to submit a car!

1983(A) 16TRS (Rouge Valleunga)
1990(H) 16Valve (Rouge Furio)
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