Citroen XM Forum

Hi everyone. I used to drive an XM in the 90's. I now yearn once more for the carpet-like ride of these cars, plus their fantastic styling. So, I'm looking to buy one and soon to be one of those members you spot somewhere in the UK.

From reading the various posts, opinions and technical data, I gather that I should avoid automatics and 3 litre- engined XM's, because although v powerful, they burn a hole in your pocket, they're so heavy on petrol. Ones to avoid especially, it seems, are 3-litre automatics.

What do you think? I like cars that go fast but are also fairly economical. So presumably it means a 2.5 turbo diesel is the one to go for?

Regards
John

Welcome, John!

You're looking for all the "right stuff", and a 2.5 ticks all the boxes. Ours returns 35mpg overall, and that includes motorway dashes and heaving up and down mountain roads.
A good time to buy.

I would buy an ES9 V6 auto if I saw a nice one for sale. I have been driving V6 Xantias and XM for more than 10 years and they are bulletproof* and reasonably economical for the performance. Expect overall MPG in the high 20s and 30+ on the motorway. Look for one which has already had the transmission rebuilt.

* the Achilles heel is the oil filter in the 4HP20 transmission, which eventually blocks causing moderate to severe damage to the trasnmission. This typically occurs somewhere between 100,000 and 180,000 miles, and unfortunately the engine and transmission must be removed and stripped for replacement.

Hi John,
If you are still looking for a. Xm I have just decided to sell mine as I have just bought a C6 a 2.2 exclusive and as we don't have room for 3 cars the Xm will have to go.

Norman

A C6 Norman? You'll be parking on the other side of the field with the posh new motors next.

Hi Eddie,
Yes but I'll still come over to visit the Xmers.

I don't think the V6s are actually that much worse on petrol than the four-pot XMs to be honest, unless you're keeping it in Sport mode all the time. I had an Alfa 164 V6 a few years back and that didn't struggle to hit 30mpg. They and XM V6s sound utterly gorgeous.

As for diesel performance, I can't really complain about my 2.1 TD. Goes well enough. Not ridiculously brisk, but it seems to be managing 48-50mpg.

normanlindley wrote:Hi John,
If you are still looking for a. Xm I have just decided to sell mine as I have just bought a C6 a 2.2 exclusive and as we don't have room for 3 cars the Xm will have to go.

Norman

I'm shocked Norman... But good for you.

Hi gents.
Thanks for your thoughts.
I think a V6 (presumably that's the 3-litre engine) would be great, due to the performance figures. But I've been told, and this was by someone who drives an automatic version, that in town it does 13-14mpg. Which scared the hell out of me. A lot of my driving is in town, so it looks like a V6 would guzzle a lot of money out of my pocket. At least the automatic version would, presumably.
John

There is a big difference between the older PRV engine and the ES9 engine. The latter is a much more modern design and is coupled to an electronically controlled gearbox (4HP20) that acheives the same fuel economy that I get from the same engine with manual transmission. The ES9 engine was introduced at the beginning of 1997.