Xsara - airbag light back on 😂

[beko1987]

I'm off work today, taking my stepdad for an eye test at rhe hospital, and spent 10 minutes cleaning out the xsara, in an attempt to stop an interior sounding rattle. I also topped the screenwash up and noticed one of my aux belt pulleys looking a bit worse for wear... 

 

I've already got a new belt to put on, but have zero idea what pulley I need. Would probably be prudent to change both of them (think one is a tensioner, the other an idler), @Andyrewdo you know off your head what pulleys a 2002 xsara 110 hdi with air con would need?

I also noticed what I assume is the rockercover gasket? 

Its not dripping off the bottom of the engine so hopefully just a simple change and clean up? 

[maxxo]

3 hours ago, beko1987 said:

I'm off work today, taking my stepdad for an eye test at rhe hospital, and spent 10 minutes cleaning out the xsara, in an attempt to stop an interior sounding rattle. I also topped the screenwash up and noticed one of my aux belt pulleys looking a bit worse for wear... 

 

I've already got a new belt to put on, but have zero idea what pulley I need. Would probably be prudent to change both of them (think one is a tensioner, the other an idler), @Andyrewdo you know off your head what pulleys a 2002 xsara 110 hdi with air con would need?

I also noticed what I assume is the rockercover gasket? 

Its not dripping off the bottom of the engine so hopefully just a simple change and clean up? 

110?

cos intercooler pipe

didn't realise the xsara got the 110 (am being stupid i imagine)

[Talbot]

Yep.  110.  It's not a slow car.

The oil contamination on that looks completely normal.  I wouldn't even bother with it.  The pulley will be common to all DW10 engines with AC.

[Andyrew]

Oddly the tensioners cheaper than the idler

Tensioner, skf brand 16.75 plus vat

Idler pulley 27.14 plus

[beko1987]

2 hours ago, Andyrew said:

Oddly the tensioners cheaper than the idler

Tensioner, skf brand 16.75 plus vat

Idler pulley 27.14 plus

Awesome, cheers! May be in touch after payday if that's OK? 

I'll not begrudge it a rocker cover gasket and a general clean up, I'd like to have the egr valve out and cleaned too but I'll sort the aux belt out first, it'll be more annoying if it let's go

[Talbot]

4 minutes ago, beko1987 said:

I'd like to have the egr valve out and cleaned too

Trust me, you don't want to try that on that engine in that car.  The access is impossible.  It's an engine-mount-off-and-lean-the-engine-forwards job.

[beko1987]

2 hours ago, Talbot said:

Trust me, you don't want to try that on that engine in that car.  The access is impossible.  It's an engine-mount-off-and-lean-the-engine-forwards job.

Feck I have read that, or rather the lack of finding an easy how to guide or similar clicks further into place now....

On the 1.9dci with laguna2 wrapped round it is was there infront of you. 2 bolts (then chisel the fucker out) it wasn't bad. Nice preventative maintenance on a Saturday morning type job black hands but no* blood

I'll put that right from my mind then, sod that! 

[Talbot]

11 hours ago, beko1987 said:

Simply because I cannot be arsed to edit an image at this time of night... the EGR valve is top left of the above image, under the braid covered coolant hose, behind the inlet manifold.  It's about 6" tall, and bolted to the exhaust manifold, hence the access needed down the back of the engine.  To compound matters, you have an EGR cooler, which is the stainless cylinder on it's side behind the inlet manifold that the braided covered hose mentioned above connects to, and has two stainless flexis connected to either end (these are visible in the above picture, just about, down the back of the inlet manifold.

The connection to the exhaust manifold will be rusty.  The stainless clips to hold the EGR tube to the valve are an absolute bastard to get undone, and 10 times harder to put back together.

Forget it.  (Yes, I know you already have)

[beko1987]

With the mot booked for Friday I spent a bit of time yesterday afternoon and gave it a clean inside to help her chances. Didn't really need doing but I've literally done fuck all bar drive it since the back hoses were done, got to do something! I used my new cordless vacuum 

Cleaned the glass inside and out too as the front screen was awful, and the hole thing took about 20 minutes. Took the car seats out too. 

I then had the head unit out and fitted the new cable

Had to drill the rear hole out a bit but it was a simple job

I can't test it yet though as I forgot I butchered the plug on the existing antennae to try and bodge it prior, so it's all back in now, and I've ordered another aerial because it's needed*. Will fit that when it comes. 

Removed some FOD from the rear footwells, which was about the worse of it. Still not shampooed it or anything, this was the numatic on low power 

I'm in the office this week a few times so I'll put some fuel in and throw its arse violently there and back so it has a better chance of passing the emissions after doing barely 3k this year... (I'm sure it's fine but it won't hurt) 

Boring update over! 

[beko1987]

In the hands of the shite gods now! Hopefully she'll get a pass for her 20th year on the road

[loserone]

That's a nice looking car that, Sam.

[beko1987]

Just now, loserone said:

That's a nice looking car that, Sam.

Thanks! There's some rust bubbling up on the front drivers wing I keep forgetting to sort but bar that she wears her 160k well! It's been a perfect 'an car' so far! 

Assuming it passes I'll tap @Andyrew up for some aux belt pulleys and tick another job off the list of stuff that needs doing but not urgently!

Sort of hoping it does pass, taking my daughter to my dad's tomorrow... 

[Andyrew]

Thats a cracking looking mot station too!

[beko1987]

Woohoo! Guess I need to get over my fear of removing the steering wheel, airbag and clock spring to change the stalks... (although im so used to just holding it down to turn left whilst juggling gears and steering it's second nature now...)

[beko1987]

2 minutes ago, Andyrew said:

Thats a cracking looking mot station too!

Run by a guy with such a heavy italian accent who speaks so softly I can barely understand him, but it's a wonderful oil smelling place inside!

[AxWomble]

@beko1987 - a bit late reading this thread as I could have had a look for you for any bits and pieces, but my usual yard has a Xsara estate in currently ( fairly complete from first glance but I was in the small-chod-section over the aisle so I didnt get a close look) - Dunkerton Dismantlers, just a few miles out of Bath. Don't know if you'll e getting down that way anytime soon but given the scarcity of these cars, thought I'd alert you!

[Dobloseven]

Good feeling when you're set up for another years use. Friday the 13th as well! 

[beko1987]

6 minutes ago, AxWomble said:

@beko1987 - a bit late reading this thread as I could have had a look for you for any bits and pieces, but my usual yard has a Xsara estate in currently ( fairly complete from first glance but I was in the small-chod-section over the aisle so I didnt get a close look) - Dunkerton Dismantlers, just a few miles out of Bath. Don't know if you'll e getting down that way anytime soon but given the scarcity of these cars, thought I'd alert you!

Cheers! No idea when I'd have a free Saturday to make the trip, although there's always stuff I'd want (better inner arch plastics, but then 20 minutes with more cable ties would solve that), better headlights (could just polish them though), a less rusty front wing (should just rub down, rust convert and paint in something roughly silver...) 

Would also break my scrapyard cherry... But I've got no free weekends for at least a month and I'd imagine it'll be gone by then... 

[AxWomble]

2 minutes ago, beko1987 said:

Cheers! No idea when I'd have a free Saturday to make the trip, although there's always stuff I'd want (better inner arch plastics, but then 20 minutes with more cable ties would solve that), better headlights (could just polish them though), a less rusty front wing (should just rub down, rust convert and paint in something roughly silver...) 

Would also break my scrapyard cherry... But I've got no free weekends for at least a month and I'd imagine it'll be gone by then... 

It's been there for a year, easy, and its in a corner so the chances of it being moved soon are slim! It's on the site of an old colliery I believe, and is basically a couple of hundred cars perched on top of an oily hill. None of the Silverlakes-style vehicle rotation there, I took bits off a 106 yesterday and realised halfway through that I'd taken parts from the same car in Feb 2020! Fairly reasonable prices too, go dressed to impress (filthy hi-viz jacket and builder's boots) and your final price will probably drop by a tenner, its that sort of place. 

[beko1987]

Can start splashing the cash now...

New crankshaft pulley, oil, plastic clips as most are missing from the arch liner and I'm sure that's responsible for some of the knocking it does on shit roads (10 for £3, why not), cabin filter as the car doesn't currently have one fitted at all and since I ham fistedly broke the filter housing cover it will need to be siliconed back on, so I may as well do that with a new filter in it, and replacement studs and clips for the top engine cover as 2 are snapped off causing more rattles/their cheap

With the aux belt pulley, tensioner and new aux belt a fine weekend of fettling is in order (already have many oil and fuel filters to hand) for <£100 which should make it sound less like a tractor and I can say I've serviced it for the first time since April 2020, although having done less than 3,000 miles since then I'm not too upset by the lack of love...

Oh and a tube of tigerseal to stick down some of the window trims that are doing a PSA and peeling back, and maybe fix the rear bumper's broken clip (by sticking the bumper to the body) which will enable to me to loose the sellotape currently fixing it into place

[Grumblespeed]

4 hours ago, beko1987 said:

Would also break my scrapyard cherry...

I was looking at this and thinking "Cherries are getting really rare, surely somebody would have a go at saving it? I really liked mine back in the day...." before the penny dropped.

[Split_Pin]

4 hours ago, beko1987 said:

Woohoo! Guess I need to get over my fear of removing the steering wheel, airbag and clock spring to change the stalks... (although im so used to just holding it down to turn left whilst juggling gears and steering it's second nature now...)

Yaas!

I changed the clock spring on my old Bini, it was no bother.

Just make sure you disconnect the battery 1/2 hour before!

[maxxo]

excellent

glad to see you're carrying on with this car

really is nice to see, lovely cars these are

[beko1987]

19 minutes ago, Split_Pin said:

Yaas!

I changed the clock spring on my old Bini, it was no bother.

Just make sure you disconnect the battery 1/2 hour before!

Apparently I don't need to worry, a chap on the frenchcarforums says it's difficult to break them changing the indicator. I think I'm thinking of the job in either the xantia or 406, one of those was tragically tricky iirc

Equally I'm going to have the steering cowling off and eyeball the part number as there's  rand new entire stalk assemblies on ebay for £45 posted which would be a drop in replacement. 

[beko1987]

34 minutes ago, maxxo said:

excellent

glad to see you're carrying on with this car

really is nice to see, lovely cars these are

Thanks! It's carried on fine itself tbh, I just feel bad for abandoning it throughout the pandemic, won't do it any harm to have a bit of cash thrown at it. Equally with the crankshaft pulley and  oth aux belt pulleys done I can say I've changed every spinning external bit of the engine (bar the alternator and air con pump), it is very loud and noisy under there! Can also remove the belt covers and double check the waterpump bolts. The level does drop a small tiny amount over a period and I did see the telltale sign of a small coolant leak not long after doing the job. Can tweak the bolts up/see if it's just fixed itself/carry on ignoring it and checking the coolant every month or so

Being forced back into the office nowadays too so once this work is done it'll be pretty much ignored over winter! Throwing chunks of cash at cars then ignoring has stood me well before, the old ZX was a peach after a good service, new tyres and a cambelt, I drove it with zero care after that. 

Their like the c5s (your picture of the estate dumped on the verge made me think this) nowadays, on the verge of just being scrapped for silly things, they need people like us to throw small amounts of money and time at them  here and there to keep them happy before they crap something mediumly expensive. Still cheaper than renting a modern every month though! 

I even thought about changing the gearbox fluid earlier, but that can wait for another day! 

[beko1987]

Rolled over 160,000 3 miles before I got home, good little pig! Blasted past no less than 23 broken down cars on a round trip to Peterborough too, and watched as a 15 plate fiesta ground to a halt fully blocking my grans driveway, then 20 minutes later a vw van rocked up and the rigid pole towed the fiesta away... 

Got my grandad talking cars though which was ace, apparently granny had a half shaft fail on a car once, a recovery of a part stolen bike at a speedway meeting 45 years ago and some motorbike tales (grandad had alot of them it seems!). And a bmc something that broke the throttle cable, luckily as he always carried tools he cut some barbed wire fence near where it broke down and once it was cool enough to touch the springs the broken cable attached to made a hook on each end and carried on. Also something about a car granny used to have that had a misfire on a cylinder. Duly traced he took the ht lead end off and started to pare it back, but no copper. Carried on until it was obvious something was wrong then realised it was some new fangled carbon leads. Apparently that weekend he went to the parts place on woodston avenue and bought a yard and a half of copper lead and re did the lot, never another issue! Fucking love hearing their stories like that

[beko1987]

Are all the xsara indicator clusters the same? Seems their pretty bloody easy to get apart and just change the whole unit. Indeed there's lots of whole units, but the numbers on them are different. But every photo of ever one is physically the same... 

But every single code like mine is the same format but different. I'm wondering if their just all plug and play and done as long as I get one with the front fog switch. There's a brand new one on ebay for £42 which is bloody well go for if I was a bit more confident... 

Am I overthinking this and it'll just bang straight in? 

[beko1987]

Or, since its got to come off anyway, do I buy one of these

I mean I've got the magic database to back me up that they said it would work and it doesn't guarantee, and since mine electrically works until it clicks, and that all looks very self contained it should fix the issue... 

Having watched some ootube videos their fairly simple to have apart, the dreaded clock spring is in the outer housing the entire other side of the module self contained to the side the pcb is. 

Sounds like a fod job too if I order it tomorrow morning... I'm sure @Talbotwill have a 24mm socket to hand

[Noel Tidybeard]

do you actually need to deconstruct the column?

[Andyrew]