Citroen Picasso

[Mash]

So what’s the attraction with these hideous machines? They must have made literally millions of the damn things; I see them everywhere and they're starting to annoy me .I was talking to a car dealer a couple of weeks ago and he had a dozen of them lined up on the forecourt, said he couldn’t get enough of them.We had one as a company car at the last place I worked and I always found it a thoroughly horrid thing to drive and actually a fairly useless piece of kit; neither nowt nor summat Discuss…

[pogweasel]

1. They have three, full-size, independently tipping seats in the rear. If (like me) you can't keep it in your pants and have three kids needing varying stages of kiddie seats, they are ideal2. They are pretty frugal in diesel form. Even my leaden-footed Mrs can't make it average less than 50mpg. This pleases me.3. From next year the road tax on the dizzlers is dropping down to some pifflingly low amount, owing to it having a "small carbon footprint". Whilst this may or may not be bollocks, stinge-bagging a few quid back into my pocket also pleases me. 4. They are relatively comfy and quite relaxing to drive, lolling about in big squashy captain's chairs....5. Because Citroen boshed out so many, at pretty low new prices, they are very affordable second-hand, compared to other family orientated fayre.aside from that, they are very dull, look like a 4-wheeled lemon, crushingly embarassing to be seen in and have a dashboard that is almost totally incomprehensible during daylight hours. Oh and have the usual "high quality" fit and finish that we have come to expect from PSA over recent years.

[Guest]

I made my comments in another thread, but from what I can remember.....- No rev counter, ever. I don't think that's acceptable on a car of that size nowadays. To be honest with the amount of soundproofing on modern cars it seems daft that anything should go without.- Instruments in a silly position so you have to keep glancing left to see what speed you're doing.- Odd ergonomics.- Pretty cheap feeling. (probably fine on the cheap ones but this was either top of the line, or not far off, and still felt quite grim inside)I wouldn't say the driving experience was awful, it drove alright from what I recall, but I couldn't see the appeal.Now, if it was a tatty old Townace "Royal Lounge" approaching headgasket time it would be a different story. Especially if it had a wine red interior and enormous 4WD stickers on the side. Definitely on "the list".

[wuvvum]

They cost less than ten grand to buy new. 'Nuff said.

[Mr_Bo11ox]

you dont need a rev counter on em cos the engine management doesnt let you get anywhere near doing any damage. I reckon you could put a brick on the throttle and just let it rev away for a fortnight and it'd be OK.

[pogweasel]

They cost less than ten grand to buy new. 'Nuff said.

Well the pez ones did anyway. I think they were knocking them out at about 8 large at one point. The dizzlers have never been as super-cheap as the petrols, largely because no one in their right mind would buy a 1.6 petrol that will struggle to top 35mpg when you can have the super-thrift 2.0HDi which will probably be quicker to boot.

[Milford Cubicle]

I guess when the only competition at the price is a Kia Carens you don't have much choice.

[r.welfare]

They are surely better than a Scenic (if only because they are cheaper). If WelfJnr no.2 gets hatched in the future though, I will surely buy my wife an 850R and LPG it rather than suffer either, or any of the alternatives.Incidentally one of my local "gravel, Portacabin & bunting" (you know the type) dealers has gone over to 100% Scenic stock, and still appears to be making a living...wonder whose warranties he sells?

[Mr Lobster]

The main reason for the Picassos success is down to price. Car rental companies love them as Citroen sell them amusingly cheaply and resale is easy so they buy loads.As Pog says they are cheap to run, relaxing and pretty damn comfortable and make a lot of sense as budget family wheelz. Its just that they are unremittingly bland to look at and do make the sort of statement that 'my life is over now I have children' in the same way as a Scenic / Modus / Meriva et al.But if you must have one they aren't that bad, especially in diesel form.

[Richard]

Do they really offer any more space than a Mundano type estate car? I suppose they've gone out of fashion a bit now but used Picasso prices used to be very high in comparison with traditional estate cars- especially when you consider the low new prices.

[Mr Lobster]

Do they really offer any more space than a Mundano type estate car?

Surprisingly, yes! Well, they have a good side boot and the taller cabin means they carry big stuff easier but the main advantage to many is that you can get three child seats on the back seat, most cars won't manage that!

[Father Ted]

Personally I prefer the Blingo (same underneath - fuglier body, but more usable I think) But as the clinic is flogging their two 1600 HDi SX's in a few months I can see one entering my life quite cheaply (esp as they paid less than 8K each for two SX's 2 and a half years ago on some business fleet initiative.) Pog - vasectomy time - it doesn't hurt (much) Otherwise its Espace time next

[Guest]

Kids these days get it too cushy, I often used to ride in the boot (and occasionally front passenger footwell) of cars. Don't remember ever having a child seat. Hell, it wasn't until I was about 7 that we even had a car with rear seatbelts!Nowadays they can smugly sit in their childseat in a Picasso, or sit in a Meriva with their headphones on. It's a national disgrace, etc.

[Richard]

I drove home from mine.I looked at Blingos when I got my Xantia estate but the ones in my price range represented astonishingly poor value for money at the time. I don't mind driving a van with windows and no toys but I don't expect to pay a hefty premium for the privilege.

[Father Ted]

I looked at Blingos when I got my Xantia estate but the ones in my price range represented astonishingly poor value for money at the time.

I was lucky - a 3 year old HDi for £3K - but thats only because I bought at trade in price - its sister car wound up on the forcourt of the local Citroen Stealership for £6.5K just 3 weeks later. Oddly Picassles do seem cheaper second hand - FIIK why.Xantias are now given away free with packets of Sugar Puffs owing to the "ooooh, its got them funny hydraulics" syndrome - BTW have you replaced the clutch cable clip on yours yet? Thats a FUN job

[Richard]

My estate had a light clutch, hydraulic I think. The new one, which is older, had the clutch clip replaced before I bought it the first time round. I no longer regard French kit as hard to work on since I had a late model Escort- the car that cured me of the Ford habit.I expect there's a major over-supply of Picassos because they sold so many and the kind of people who bought them have moved on to something else.

[Milford Cubicle]

Richard, how do you rate the Xantia? Any foibles?I quite fancy owning one as a comfy daily driver, especially now they're so cheap.

[Ross_K]

They're fine. Check the struts or you could end up with something like this:

 

Yeah yeah, I know that's an XM but Xantias can go the same way...

[Milford Cubicle]

Does the Xantia have suspension that's adjustable by the driver (great for instant slamming and off-roadin') like the XM?I like the look of this onehttp://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll? ... 0284230809

[Ross_K]

It does indeed. GR8 4 BOUNCING UP AND DOWN AT TRAFIC LITES.That Xantia looks not too bad. It's still got the original alloys and the tail lights haven't frosted over. A year's ticket too...I'd definitely give the strut tops a good check over on a Xantia of that age though.There's an epic thread in the Citroen section of the FCF as regards what to look for...

[Richard]

Ask the seller about the strut tops, the heater matrix and what kind of state the spheres are in. It does sound like a reasonable example.Spheres are easy to replace but that one has 8 (not all of which have to be replaced together) and at £25 each it's an expense you don't need. They should be reasonable if it's got a fresh MOT though.The heater matrix is the only other Xantia problem- apart from the usual old French car stuff.

[Father Ted]

Matrices last OK IF the coolant has had a regular change (2 yearly) then the corrosion inhibitors do do their job OK. Most owners though fail to do this. The coolant change / flush is also a good way of helping CHG longevity on the TD donkeys.

 

Height correctors can and do fail, but the most common cause of the "arse in the air" problem is the little nylon linkage clips that fail - £1 from GSF and 10 minutes at the most to fit. Check the state of the LHM - it should be bright green, not brown or black - the latter points to a neglected Xantia and problems can arise as a result.

 

On the whole (aside from the suspension) its just a 405/406 in drag with funny bits and are quite simple to work on (except the bloody clutch cable clip)

[chaseracer]

The heater matrix is the only other Xantia problem...

Ah yes... the bit they hung from the factory ceiling, then built the car around it

[j-j]

The Xantia is a fine shite mobile in simple diesel form - I ran mine on veg oil with no probs at all, Apart form the impossible to remove heater matrix it's easy to fix and reliable. Max height suspension Gr8 for getting through floods better than the £40K German 4x4 nazi mobiles - leaves them standing over speed bumps too. Surprising amount of personality too. N reg Xantias seem to be the most common victims of the corroded front struts problem. Definate near future shite but nothing compared to the great shite o BXBuy buy buy

[Mr_Bo11ox]

 

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/1986-HONDA-CIVIC-GTI-WHITE_W0QQitemZ220272563018

 

IVE BEEN TOLD THIS CAR IS WORTH £2000 PLUS WITH A BIT OF PAINT AND A RECON CLUTCH

Oh yeah, who by?

 

[Guest]

What's that got to do with Picassos?

[Mr_Bo11ox]

Nothing at all, like a tard I seem to have posted it in the wrong thread.

[r.welfare]

Being a Cit novice....what causes the rock-hard, bouncebouncebounce suspension ailment? Is it the spheres or the accumulator? I have seen plenty of frankly unloved Xantae with this issue.RW may own a Xant one day - m'colleague at work has a P-plate 1.8 that refuses to die (est. 160k on the clock - mileometer stopped working for a period and is now functional again), and I've told him I'll give him 50 quid if it fails an MOT...

[Richard]

It's the spheres. I'll explain my understanding of it, which may or may not be correct.Inside the sphere is a bladder filled with Nitrogen. This acts as the spring. As the car goes over bumps the incompressible fluid compresses the compressible bladder, giving suspension travel. Over time (3-5 years) the Nitrogen escapes, progressively reducing the suspension travel to zero.The accumulator sphere stores pressure for the hydraulics to work, and the pump kicks in to recharge it every so often. As the sphere goes flat the pump has to kick in more often until it's on virtually all the time.If you were offered a bouncy but otherwise perfect Xantia it would cost about £150 and take about an hour to replace all the spheres.

[Mr_Bo11ox]

Exactly the same thing happens to BL hydragas units, except theres no means of recharging the nitrogen on those.