Stripey Technical

[vulgalour]

I'm getting to know stripey (1.9 NA Diesel) a bit better and to find the niggles. I want to keep everything maintained to a high standard to hopefully prevent big bills later on. I may be about to ask some stupid questions, feel free to tell me if they are.

Sometimes, there's a cold starting issue, sometimes there isn't. Sometimes you have to manually prime and sometimes you don't. What should I replace/repair/look for to resolve this? Dollywobbler has already told me, but I have both forgotten and cannot find the info at the time of writing this because I'm a derp and should probably be in bed rather than being a slave to my insomnia.

Sometimes, the rear end drops within 2 hours while the front doesn't budge. Sometimes it doesn't move at all. It always sinks to the floor overnight if left in high or normal suspension position. Is this normal? If not, what's wrong? There is a minor LHM leak on the front driver's corner which is likely the return pipe, but it's very minor, could this be related to this issue?

The ride height selector is very stiff and doesn't stay in the designated notches with the exception of normal ride height. What can I do to make this less stiff and, more importantly, stay in the other notches to be sure it stays at the correct height should I want it to? It only just jumps out of the notches and seems to do the trick with where the lever stays. Could something be bent or badly adjusted?

Finally, all the manuals I've found thus far only deal with the petrol engine, is there a diesel engine manual out there? I could really do with one.

[Mothman]

Hi bud,

i can answer a few of your poins. Firstly, there isnt a book on the diesel BX per se, only the engine, another Haynes book of lies but it will help a tad. Will be one on ebay.

If you are having to prime her to get her started i suggest that there is an air leak in your fuel lines somewhere which is allowinf fuel to drain back into the tank, had this on Gloria recently and it thankfully was a loose jubilee clip.

The height corrctor lever problem is usually caused by the rear end of the rods at the back of the underside of the motor being stiff and gunged up. Its a small selection of moving parts which should move freely. Malcolm will probably advise you better here. Had this problem on one of mine and sorted it quite easily. Over to Malcolm.

Andy

[Defender110]

If you are having to prime her to get her started i suggest that there is an air leak in your fuel lines somewhere which is allowinf fuel to drain back into the tank, had this on Gloria recently and it thankfully was a loose jubilee clip

As this /\ ; Depending which fuel system you have on there is also a one way valve built into the filter head and or primer. These can get stuck slightly open with grit etc.or become deteriorated allowing fuel flowback. If you have the primer that is a rubber balloon check this after a run to see if it has sucked itself in which they can do when the side walls become week which creates a vacuum in the system causing bad starting.

[citronut]

STIFF height levers,
NEVER%20GO%20UNDER%20A%20HYDRAULIC%20CITROEN%20WITHOUT%20IT%20BEING%20ADEQUATELY%20SUPPORTED%20

hanging from the underside of the rear axle cross tube there is a bracket which the front to rear height rod hooks into, this bracket should pivot freely on its threaded spindle/bolt, it woll almost certainly be seized up on the thread,

soak it in penetrating fluid duck oil diesel fuel or the likes "DO NOT USE THAT W STUFF",

you might need to heat the nut up that pivots on the thread, if you do do not point the blow torch at the fuel tank as this is plastic,

sometimes it helps to unhook the front to rear height rod to allow you to move the bracket enough to free it off

regards malcolm

[citronut]

OOOOH EEEER what append there / \

[vulgalour]

Right, this can be the Stripey Technical thread where I ask all manner of stupid questions about a car I barely understand. New thing, looks like from reading about and info that I've found that I need to do a lower ball joint. It also looks like this is a MISERABLE job requiring removal of the hub, a special socket, a long bar, some profanity and some heat to get everything freed off before replacing the offending part. Am I worth doing both sides, or is it the norm to just do one?

Happily, it looks like an affordable job and it looks like it's only just started to go judging by the wear on the tyre and the fact that I didn't think there was anything wrong with the steering until my brother drove the car, so I think I've probably got a bit of time before it NEEDS doing, but I'd rather do it sooner than later to prevent anything else getting damaged.

[mat_fenwick]

It can be an absolute bastard of a job, but it can also go fairly smoothly. You feeling lucky? If you do the job in situ without removing the hub, the special tool is of little use unless you also have the means to prevent the hub from twisting. You may be able to unscrew it by tapping it round with a heavy chisel and hammer, after bending back the locking tab(s). In which case no extra tools are needed, apart from a ball joint splitter - I've find the wedge type quickest but tends to ruin the rubber boot. I can't get my cup type in on the BX, so a scissor action one is probably best.

If it's failed due to a split boot, there's no reason to think the other will need changing unless the boot is in a similar state. If it's failed due to wear then the other will probably need doing reasonably soon, but may be fine for several thousand miles more so I would still leave it for now.

Don't bin the heat shield if still present - I've come across 3 recent failures of newish ball joints after only a year or so, and on all of these the shield was missing. Coincidence? Possibly, but I fitted two of the same make to mine (which has shields) and they have lasted much better so far.

[rabbercelt]

There is a useful video on youtube by one of my fellow countrymen on doing balljoint in-situ.
" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[BX Bandit]

Matt, what was the failure of those ball joints? Perished boot?

[KevR]

Are the heat shields still available, does anyone know? Most of mine are knackered. Could make some new ones I suppose, but if they're still available probably easier to go that route.

Ball joint change - it'll either be really easy to change in situ, or it won't. If it's not, then give up straight away, take the hub off and do it on the bench. It'll be quicker in the long run. If you're in any doubt about the wheel bearing, might be worth changing that at the same time. Or at least trying to get some grease into it.

[BX Bandit]

/\ Just checked, yes they are available, part. no. 3623 06 for a princely sum of almost £5 each!

[KevR]

Ouch - oh well, the originals have lasted 20 years or more, so maybe it's worth investing!

[mat_fenwick]

Matt, what was the failure of those ball joints? Perished boot?

The two I saw which had failed (unknown make), the rubber had perished but not holed. If heat from the brake disc contributed to the failure, my theory is that the grease dried out and caused faster wear. The third was a Lemforder BJ I fitted to Timex, which was an advisory on the next MOT 10 months or so later. I don't know if Mike has changed it yet but would be interested to know what the boot looks like. The guy I was talking to at the garage said they are normally fairly crumbly, so he just bins 'em...

[citsncycles]

I've not got round to changing it yet, although the front is knocking a bit more than it was now. I have added both ball joints and possibly a wheel bearing to my ever growing list of things to do while Timex is off the road this summer!

[KevR]

I can recommend getting a spare pair of hubs, cleaning them up and fitting new bearings and ball joints at your leisure, then just pulling the old hubs off and fitting the new ones whenever it's convenient. Then refurb the old ones and stick them on the shelf for next time.