Gold V6 engine out - head gasket

[citroenxm]

Chains are a matter of opinion and history..

In my view IF they do not have a rattle on them and sound quiet in operation, AND you also know the engine has gad a good oil service then I wouldn't.. Ive got a PRV 12v in my SEi at the moment on 200k with what I beleve the original chains.. They are a rather meaty chain in there.. and I beleve other then head and manifold gaskets all other joints are a "Sealent Instant Gasket" type of joint.

The descision is your own really Mathew. Price would probably dictate that.

Paul

[MTXM]

Many thanks Paul and I note your comments about replacement of the chains. In this case the engine is very smooth and quiet with a good history of oil changes, therefore I shall probably opt not to change. Although I am awaiting a cost for the chains and tensioner I do not expect them to be cheap! On my other 12v the engine does have some mechanical noise when cold and there is no history. I suspect the second car has not been so well maintained and in due course the chains would be worth replacing. Thank you also for confirming that other joints are gasket sealant. All the best, Matthew T. PS. Just out of interest have you done the heads on your 200k 12v?

[Dean]

I would just check the tensioner's and guide blocks on the timing side for wear, if there isnt much wear on the blocks and the chain isnt sloppy they should be fine.
one thing to note with chains ive found when dealing with other vehicles is try to get cheaper ones, some better chains will not stretch with age and so you wont get the distinct rattle as the oil pressure drops on the overun, harder more expensive chains wont stretch, they just snap, they do last a long time before doing it though which is a plus i guess

D

[MTXM]

Many thanks for your advice Dean and I will certainly have the garage check the chains and tensioners. I am still awaiting further prices from the gasket supplier!! With regards, Matthew T.

[Dean]

No worries Matthew, here's another good bit of advise, this i am qualified to make too.

DO ONLY WHAT YOU TOOK THE CAR APART FOR IN THE FIRST PLACE AND NOTHING MORE!

XM resto1 by Deanxm, on Flickr



D

[robert_e_smart]

I can see it now, CXM rally 2061 - Dean wins concourse XM!

[Dean]

2061, its a bit of a tight deadline but i will see what i can do

D

[robert_e_smart]

Just to take Matthew's post even further off topic, are you applying new underseal and cavity wax to your car? If so, which product are you using. I need to do some of mine now.

I haven't made up my mind what to use yet. The Dinitrol reads well on paper, they have a product for both exterior stuff, and cavities. Waxoyl seems to be only worth using in cavities. Then endorfin posted up about the Mike Sanders Grease.

Decisions, Decisions.

[Dean]

Robert, all the box sections are being done with Dinitrol, its low odour when set, lasts about 4-5 years and creaps like water, then in all the wheel arches, sills, and subframes are being cleaned right back, rustcure applied, primed and sprayed with hamerite black stone chip, i may then paint this over with body colour paint to simulate the stock finnish.
The underside has been pressure washed and degreased and im planning to use Dinitrol clear underbody protection but i have not bought that yet and wanted to look into that side of things a bit more, i think any underseal needs regular re application whatever it is, but im on the hunt for something good and cheap!

Have sprayed the high impact arears under the car with stonechip too by the way just to be sure.

while we are ruining matthews thread i have found hamerite metal paint should be ovoided too, it is very quick to delaminate if an item cannot be encapsulated in it, if you paint to an edge like you have to at some point on a car there are no solvents to help it soften the previous underseal/paint and bond, it just sits on top and is effectivly useless.

D

[robert_e_smart]

im planning to use Dinitrol clear underbody protection but i have not bought that yet and wanted to look into that side of things a bit more, i think any underseal needs regular re application whatever it is, but im on the hunt for something good and cheap!

On this front,I found an underseal product which is asphalt based from 3M. It was very cheap. A litre shutz style can for little over £3.50. At that price you could use as many as you want and re-apply regularly as well.

The only thing that put me off the 3M product is that it doesn't claim to have any anti-corrosion chemicals etc to stave off any existing corrosion. I am worried that the 3M would make matters worse by trapping in rust, and basically doing what factory underseal did on failure.

I am weary of mixing and matching different products from different suppliers. A few years ago I Hammerited some new welding, and sprayed on some Gravitex stone chip to it, only for the solvents in the Gravitex to react with the Hammerite and render the whole lot useless. My point being that Dinitrol reccomend using the cavity wax around seams and the likes before applying their underseal. My worry would be that the 3M stuff reacts with the Dinitrol.

The cheapest I could get Dinitrol for was approx £10 a litre delivered. They recommend you use 4 litres of cavity wax, and 6 litres of underseal on a large car. I have a number of large cars to treat, but don't want to spend more than what it would cost to buy a large car on these products!!

Any opinions on how much of the Xms cavities really need treating? Sills and underboot floor would be the main weak points in my opinion. Xms aren't like CXs which rust in every cavity, so perhaps 2 litres would be enough?