My Xantia HDi - Minor Electrical Question!

[Supernaut]

Well, otherwise I can just stick it on normal and use my trolley jack. It's just a wheel change anyway so may be easier to do that.

[Richard]

You should put it on high and leave it there for jacking. If you have the lever in the "running" position the height correctors can kick in unexpectedly and tip the car off the jack. Ask me how I know, as the cool kids say. It's really easy to jack up from high anyway.

[dollywobbler]

Far less likely to come down and trap the jack when you lower it again too. High is a service position. 

[Supernaut]

Oh well, I swapped the wheel over on normal height.

 

Turns out this thing has 5 different brands of tyre on it, and when I put the spare on (which has far more tread on it than the offside rear I took off) it was at 45psi!

 

This prompted me to check and set all the tyre pressures. Glad I did, they were all over the place!

 

I find myself considering my long-term plan with this car. Do I spend out more on it getting a full matching set of tyres and try to restore the paintwork (or go over it with matte black), or do I just do minimal servicing and drive it as it is then get another banger when it expires? I'm leaning towards the second option.

 

Could always do an activity at shitefest - paint Supernaut's Xantia matte black!

[Lacquer Peel]

Keep an eye out for decent wheels and tyres that fit on Gumtree, that's what I do.

[Supernaut]

  On 26/05/2016 at 19:11, Lacquer Peel said:

Keep an eye out for decent wheels and tyres that fit on Gumtree, that's what I do.

 

 I saw some 15" Peugeot 307 alloys with decent tyres for £60/70 on t'bay recently. Somewhere in the middle of Englandshire though. I guess I could do a shitely on a set of wheels though, or even pick them up on the way to shitefest.

[Lacquer Peel]

Ah you're on the case already!

These have been up for a while, worth making a sneaky offer?

https://www.gumtree.com/p/wheel-rims-tyres/peugeot-16-alloy-wheels-4-x-tyres-205-55-r-16-91v-arrowspeed/1170340373

[beko1987]

Chalkboard paint, lots of chalk then some cans of lacquer at SF?

 

Could live stream that too...

[Tayne]

  On 26/05/2016 at 19:16, Supernaut said:

I saw some 15" Peugeot 307 alloys with decent tyres for £60/70 on t'bay recently. Somewhere in the middle of Englandshire though. I guess I could do a shitely on a set of wheels though, or even pick them up on the way to shitefest.

I know where there's a set of Peugeot 17s, recently refurbed with tyres that are less than 6 months old.

 

They look like this but are dark grey.

 

[Supernaut]

  On 26/05/2016 at 19:23, Lacquer Peel said:

Ah you're on the case already!

These have been up for a while, worth making a sneaky offer?

https://www.gumtree.com/p/wheel-rims-tyres/peugeot-16-alloy-wheels-4-x-tyres-205-55-r-16-91v-arrowspeed/1170340373

OMG they'd look amazing on it!

 

Tayne, I think 17s would be a bit much.

[Tayne]

Ah well, they were only about 5 minutes from your house.

 

I do agree that those Peugeot 6 spokes will look good on the Xantia though.

[Supernaut]

Gumtree seller in being a mong shocker.

 

I offered them £110 for the 6 spokes (cheeky, I know).

 

So they repied asking me "£210?"

 

I replied "They're only advertisted at £160..."

[strangeangel]

  On 27/05/2016 at 07:59, Supernaut said:

Gumtree seller in being a mong shocker.

 

I offered them £110 for the 6 spokes (cheeky, I know).

 

So they repied asking me "£210?"

 

I replied "They're only advertisted at £160..."

 

To be fair that's pretty much the response lowball offers get from me...

[Supernaut]

Well ok. Besides the wheels, I have another question...

 

Roughly how much paint do you reckon I'd need to cover the whole car?

 

The paint work on this is so fucked I'm seriously considering going over it with matte black.

[DodgyBastard]

2.5 litres should cover it.

[JJ0063]

I really really like these. They look great at slammed height!

 

Would love an XUD one.

[Supernaut]

Maybe it's the cider talking, but... I really like the idea of getting those Peugeot 307 6 spokes, painting the whole car matte black, debadging it and putting pressed plates on.

 

DEATH WEDGE OF LOWS.

[Supernaut]

It appears the same seller also has these available too:

 

https://www.gumtree.com/p/wheel-rims-tyres/peugeot-16-alloy-wheels-4-x-tyres-205-55-r16-/1170338092

 

I think I prefer the 5 spokes. That, and the fact they're cheaper.

 

I've got their number saved and I'm going to go pick up 17-Coffees then phone the seller and see what's up.

[bub2006]

Ive just read through the thread. Regards height, with mine if i put it to low it is slow on the back end to go down going up though the front is lazy. Mine shouldnt sink but it does a bit on the back end. If mine is in low i have to go to high to raise front up. I dont rev the engine though. It seems to lift the rear at idle irrelevant of load in boot or if van is hitched up. Ive just done nearly 1300 mile since last sunday. Took it to newquay. It was just as happy on country lanes as it was at 70 on the motorway. It is the only car ive done long distance in that i can get out of again without feeling sore.

[dollywobbler]

Sounds like your front height controller might be a bit sticky. It should lift the front without you having to do anything, though these anti-sink Cits do seem to take longer to rise up if you've put them in low.

[bub2006]

I dont know how they work but ill read up on the hbol

[GoGently]

Look on the bright side the seals are good  

[17-Coffees]

Surprised he has't posted it yet...

 

I gave a hand with the service & front brakes to speed things up, and the fact I'd gotten a lift home from Supernaut  (I was originally picking up a set of axle stands which i keep at the parents then driving to his, but hit a deer on the way to the parents and the car is now on there drive...) 

 

All went well for the work, only hassle was the securing pins on the front calipers, seized in place and never had a proper punch to use. But once off was a doddle. New pads in and some 'liberal' amount(I.E, totally covered) of copper grease solved the squealing noise.   

 

He owes me a few beer tokens for it... 

[Supernaut]

Updates an' tings:

 

- As seen above, we serviced it on Saturday. The oil that came out was as black as death, so it definitely needed it.

 

- The more I look at the car, the more I realise I don't want to paint it matte black, and instead I just want to leave it in all its shabby glory. Mr Coffees made the point that if I painted it matte black it would attract attention, of the wrong kind. As it stands right now it blends into the scenery, which I rather enjoy. I've not got any aggro / tailgating twats in this car yet, while both the Audi and the Omega attracted them like flies to shit.

 

- I do, however, have a couple of tins of matte black kindly donated by Mr Coffees (not obtained from his work, nope, not at all). I shall paint the steel wheels with this on Friday afternoon as I have a half day.

 

- Alloy wheels / tyres. Seller was Eastern European and was selling them from a lock up. When I asked if he could provide wheel bolts he stared at me blankly and didn't seem to understand anything I was asking. I passed. Instead I have an appointment on Saturday morning for a full set of Kumho Ecowings and I'm getting the tracking done too. Seems like quite a big spend-out on a shed, but the tyres on there are 4 different brands / qualities / ages and I wouldn't trust them as far as I can throw them.

 

- I still need to do the rear brake pads, but they look like they should be a doddle. Normal calipers with push-back pistons. I may do them while I have the wheels off on Friday for painting (then I'll also soak the track rod ends in penetrating oil in preparation for the tracking on Saturday).

[Supernaut]

I have now ordered a CB radio kit for the convoy to shitefest.

 

It comes with a 1.55m long aerial, as the different aerials made no difference to price of the pack, I ordered the bigger one... obviously!

[Supernaut]

Rear brake pads replaced and everything I could possibly cover in copper grease covered in copper grease.

 

Definitely feels better under braking now. Far less nose-divey than it was before.

 

Tomorrow morning (at 8am!) it's getting a full set of tyres and the tracking done, then I'm going to fit a CB radio kit because I'm an arse!

[dollywobbler]

  On 03/06/2016 at 20:38, Supernaut said:

 

Tomorrow morning (at 8am!) it's getting a full set of tyres and the tracking done, then I'm going to fit a CB radio kit because I'm an arse!

 

WILL SOMEBODY ROGER ME?

 

I'm sure that was funny when I was 16.

[Supernaut]

Tyres and alignment done. Luuurrvly.

 

Fitting CB radio with 17-Coffees later, as he's fitting one to his LS too.

 

I have a fancy new radio head unit to go in the Xantia, complete with a USB port. I also have all the correct wires to fit it, but the bloody dashboard fascia adapter still hasn't turned up in the post. Boo!

I even had it plugged in and working in my hand, but there's no way of fitting it securely until I have the adapter plate thingymabob.

[Supernaut]

[bub2006]

I'm hoping to have my rig sorted too.