Citroen XM Forum

Hi Andrew

Biggest problem with doing a head gasket on a 2.5TD is the condition of the cylinder head.
They tend to crack badly if the car has coolant problems.
Typically 1 in 3 needs a replacement head.
I think there is a full write up on the old website as done by SteelCity.
He is currently posting on here about the 2.1 he is doing up.

I suspect that there will be a few differences between your two XM's.
The ECU's and engine wiring will have differences.

Ahh!

Peter.N. wrote:Ahh!

Ha ha ha... That woke you up a bit, didn't it Peter...

Will have to be a 2.1 transplant then

The first XM I bought I trailered all the way home using a Xantia Exclusive HDi. No problems, no police, very careful about the speed, stopped regulary to check the car was secure. 400 miles round trip at an average of 40mpg. What a great day out that was. I had to fit a replacement strut top when I got there.


In fact it was on the same day that Glasgow airport was attacked.

As for 2.5 heads....

All four chambers were cracked


Steve.

xmexclusive wrote:Hi Andrew

Biggest problem with doing a head gasket on a 2.5TD is the condition of the cylinder head.
They tend to crack badly if the car has coolant problems.
Typically 1 in 3 needs a replacement head.
I think there is a full write up on the old website as done by SteelCity.
He is currently posting on here about the 2.1 he is doing up.

I suspect that there will be a few differences between your two XM's.
The ECU's and engine wiring will have differences.

OMG!, in that case it'll be a lot of bruised knuckles, frustration and pain, just to get as far as finding out that the head's knackered and I'll have to find another. Is it worth it? I obviously want to keep it as a full car but is it worth all the anxst to be able to sell it on as a runner, for £700?

Nope! its got to be a labour of love they are always going to be worth more in bits and its far less hassle to sell it on for parts. To do the head means new top end gasket set, cam belt, tensioner, coolant, oil, and other bits i dont know about as a bare minimum, thats if the head hasnt overheated and cracked, tbh i wouldnt bother if your just going to sell it on.
I noticed savoy have a 2.5 estate with a slipping clutch for £395...........

D

Whilst it'd be nice (and confusing for the neighbours... ) to have a matching 'pair of bookends'
but as has been sad it's only really worth the hassles if you plan on reaping the rewards of your
labors by keeping the rebuilt engined car. There's no money in cars only bills.

Andrew

I guess you're right. It just seems tragic to scrap a potential nice runner though. I did it once in the 70's with an MGA twin cam. Chassis was rotten and being a student I couldn't afford the £2 per week to garage it! Nobody would give me £500 for the whole car so I cut it up and made £400 on the engine and another £300 on the bits. There was one recently sold for £15,000!
Can't keep everything for ever.
Andrew

ash2020 wrote:I guess you're right. It just seems tragic to scrap a potential nice runner though. I did it once in the 70's with an MGA twin cam. Chassis was rotten and being a student I couldn't afford the £2 per week to garage it! Nobody would give me £500 for the whole car so I cut it up and made £400 on the engine and another £300 on the bits. There was one recently sold for £15,000!
Can't keep everything for ever.
Andrew

even in the late 80s! I scrapped two Heinkel Trojans and an Isetta that nowadays would have been restorable. Sold the bits for a wee fortune but nowadays the cars would have been considered restorable.