Robert's new XM

[robert_e_smart]

The good old swirl flaps, as pointless as the EGR nonsense that we have had to endure.

[Dieselman]

The theory of swirl flaps is that they create a dual length intake to give a wider spread of torque...


not when they are in the cylinders, they don't...

[Peter.N.]

Mine is to old to have them

[robert_e_smart]

Evening Folks,

Just a bit of an update on this car. I got it through the MOT re-test with little hassle, a couple of parking brake cables, and head lamp alignment set was all she needed.

Recently I have changed the timing belt kit and waterpump. I ran into some difficulties with this job, in that I messed up the crank timing. On the auto flywheels, there are 3 triangular cut outs, with one being beside the timing hole... so missing the timing hole, and having my locking bolt through the triangle cut out, I carried on. So on completion, the car didn't start, I blamed the Lucas Epic for loosing the immobiliser code that was stored in the ECU. And proceeded with a Bosch mehcanical conversion from my donor engine. Once this was completed, still no starting of course, and after checking everything that I could possibly check. I decided to lift the rocker cover, to check if I had broken anything, and well as you have probably guessed, I had broken the 4 exhaust rockers. Please be sure to turn the engine over by hand before trying the starter! So after replacing the rockers, and re-assembling everything else that needed assembling, the car runs well 300 miles later.





Before



To convert Lucas Epic to Mechanical Bosch, you will need the pump, pump sprocket, the injectors, the injector feed pipes, the manual pump throttle cable (much shorther than the the fly by wire one, and the kick down cable if you have an auto - its longer on the mechanical pump). The water inlet housing with the cold start advance, and another pipe inlet that sits behind the pump that is blanked off on the Epic engine. The rubber hose that goes from the vacum on the top of the pump to the intercooler. Its not necessary to change the wiring harness, however I did so as to remove many of the reundant plugs for the fly by wire system. Its nice to be able to top up the auto box without having to remove the whole fly by wire equipment that was mounted on the battery tray.

You have to move the pump mounting bolts into the other position for the bosch timing to be correct and fit all the other bosch stuff to complete. In the process I have lost cruise, and the onboard trip computer (no biggie) and the rev counter. I also had to hard wire the stop solenoid to the ignition switch, ignition fed live, as the stop solenoid feed on the bosch loom didn't work when I swopped it over.

Other work I have done is changing all spheres, starting a hydraflush course, and a double Hydractive bypass. Thankfully the to do list is much shorter now.

[Dean]

sounds like you have been keeping out of trouble!
R.e the timing hole, are you sure there is one in your flywheel? ive got three Auto flywheels here and they dont have them in.
Hows the box doing anyway, still behaving itself?

D

[Dieselman]

R.e the timing hole, are you sure there is one in your flywheel? ive got three Auto flywheels here and they dont have them in.

Aren't yours petrol engine flywheels, if so they don't.

[Dean]

R.e the timing hole, are you sure there is one in your flywheel? ive got three Auto flywheels here and they dont have them in.

Aren't yours petrol engine flywheels, if so they don't.

I always thought they didnt, now im just peeved cos i dont get a timing hole and everyone else does

D

[robert_e_smart]

It has kept me busy the past 3 weeks! I'm very tempted to keep the damn thing now that I have put so much work into it.

The autobox seems to be behaving Ok. The petrol gear changes don't really suit it too well. It changes into top 10mph early, and labours along or else changes down until its going a bit faster. If I could make my own perfect auto change points for the 2.1, I would go for 2nd at 15mph as standard, 3rd at 30mph, it so handy for town, and top at 45, since so many people struggle to go faster nowadays

[Dieselman]

The petrol gear changes don't really suit it too well. It changes into top 10mph early, and labours along or else changes down until its going a bit faster.

Which is presumably why Citroen chose the change points they have, even though we think it makes the car buzzy.

[robert_e_smart]

Further updates on the autobox front. The petrol gear change points on the diesel engine were annoying me, and driving my other TD auto made me want to change it back to diesel spec. So I changed the valve block from my spare TD auto box, and another ATF change, and all seems to be well on the short test run I tooke the car on earlier. The changes are nice and smooth, and more or less where they should be as well.