Help! Citroen XM alert!

[Torsten2001]

So a guy at work turns up with a K reg XM 2.0 Sei tonight, he bought it for his babysitters boy but hadn't accounted for her boy having 5 kids (at 21 yrs old!) and of course it's a 5 seater so he wants me to flog it for him! I've driven it tonight and as I've never had a Citroen before it's all a bit strange, everything seems to work, I've had the suspension up and down, amazingly sumptuous interior but I really can't figure out the handbrake! It's manual and the clutch is heavy, it crunches into 3rd unless you're carefull and this has only happened since the clutch cable was changed. It has masses of history and 101k on the clock so can anyone tell me what I should be looking for problem wise, how the handbrake works (though I think I have the book) and what it's worth, it has T&T until the end of April and he paid £350 for it, do you think he should get his money back? I can get photos when it's light!

[wuvvum]

That's quite an early XM so he might struggle to get £350 for it - they're not the easiest of cars to sell. The parking brake is applied using the pedal to the left of the clutch, and released using a handle under the dash. They're usually not particularly effective, especially if one of the cables has gone, as they often do. They operate on the front wheels in typical Citroën fashion. Heavy clutch is a common problem on these, especially if the cable's not been routed quite right (as was the case on the last one I had). Crunching into third might be related as the clutch might not be releasing properly, but it could just be a synchro problem as they're not the strongest gearboxes in the world. XMs are great cars to drive when they're working properly (although I'd take a CX any day myself) but they have a bit of a reputation for going off fomr quite rapidly so a lot of people stay away from them. I'd see a K plate SEi with three months' T&T at about £200-250 myself, but then I'm a tightarse so he might be OK.

[Richard]

XMs are getting rare so they are worth money if you can find somebody who wants such a thing.Most of the people who would want such a thing can be found on the XM forum. They have a For Sale section there. It looks like your questions have been answered for now but the people on the XM forum are very knowledgeable and very friendly.They might be able to help you out with any parts you need too.

[mouseflakes]

Check the front strut tops - they're in the rear corners of the engine bay, with the green spheres atop them. The bit with the rubber coating can rust away. Check from beneath too - the gaiter at the top of the strut should still be attached. I understand they can part company with the strut at the top if it is rotting. Off-side usually worst apparently.As wuvz said - push the left-most pedal to the floor then push the lever on the right of the dash inwards to lock the parking brake. Just pull the lever out to release - the pedal springs upwards.Sounds like the clutch cable needs some slack taking up if the problem wasn't there before it was fitted?Try the Club-XM forum for all the XM info you will ever need!

[wuvvum]

push the left-most pedal to the floor then push the lever on the right of the dash inwards to lock the parking brake.

Yup, Mr Flakes is right, that's the proper way to do it. I used to just leave the lever pushed in and push the pedal down on the ratchet, but I've since been told that the ratchets a) wear out quite quickly if you do this and are a complete bar steward to replace. Not had a chance to investigate as I haven't had another XM in the fleet since then.

[Torsten2001]

Well I drove it to work this morning and it was a cracking drive, the 3rd gear thing is a minor inconvenience but otherwise I'd happily waft down to the South Of France in it, those seats are amazing! I looked through the paperwork and it seems to have been properly cared for o let's see what happens, I'll bung it on a few sites and see what happens! Thanks for your help chaps!