My Citroen XM 3.0 PR-Vestige

[Dieselman]

Rears should be 30 Bar, rear centre, 50 Bar.

[Dean]

This evening I have started my two weeks leave, I have just ordered three new balls for the back end and fitted my bargain £7 cam belt, the old one was at deaths door.
Don't want to upset anyone but including a cup of coffee the cam belt change took just over an hour

Time to finish of my vinyl wrapping of the plastic trim tomorrow.

D

[Dean]

I've been conned!!!!!!

Well maybe, my new spheres turned up today, they have been on the shelf just under a year, checked the pressure and they are all slightly over pressure so that's good, swapping them I noticed the old wheel spheres have a big damper hole marked 1.6 and the new spheres don't have a marking but the damper hole is tiny, .5mm tiny.

Stuck them on anyway and the ride is a lot better, very firm and controlled but firmer than the front with no load, im torn as i never odered comfort spheres before but i suspect this is what i got and wouod explain why the back end would bob up and down when just looking at the throttle, pulling away saw the back end drop to the deck for so long it would actually let the height correctoor do its thing and when the throttle was released the back end wouod shoot up in the air and have to correct back down again, as you can imagine this made it a bit of a dog in the corners.

It does handle much better though, very composed again, just not decided if i want to drill the damper out maybe .25mm extra or if it could get too soggy again and I end up back where I began which wouldn't be good.

The ride didn't go hard on the old spheres even though they were about 30% down on pressure, but the suspension travel was much reduced.

Think I need to drive it some more to decide but I can see them staying as they are, I think.

D

[Dieselman]

I haven't drilled any rear sphere damper holes, but have enlarged the fronts by 0.1mm to 0.7mm.
I don't have a reference for the Series 1 spheres, but S2 rear spheres should be 400cc-0.7mm damper.

[Dean]

That's what these ones look like Will, thanks.
I've drilled front ones too and it was a good compromise but I have a feeling once I acclimatise I won't want to go back to piloting HMS bouncy castle.

Its pleasantly surprising on the twisty bits now which I seem to remember it was many years ago, 2007 to be precise.

If the markings on the old spheres are correct and that damper is 1.6mm then there isn't really any damping there which would explain a lot.

D

[Dieselman]

If the hole really is 1.6mm, they are the wrong spheres completely, not just comfort ones.

Is there a part number on them?

[White Exec]

1.6mm is a fairly huge damping orifice, compared to the standard 0.7mm.
Doing a quick skim, there seem to be some Xantia spheres with 1.6mm.
Suppliers seem to keep quiet about the spec of 'Comfort' spheres, not least the damping orifice.

Hydractive will, in any case, switch the suspension to firm when the throttle is opened wide or quickly. This, intended to prevent squat, will be somewhat defeated by low-damped rear wheel spheres. Doesn't sound good.

[Dean]

There are part numbers on them yes I will check them in the morrow, the gas pressure was low and I'm sort of sure they were Amtex spheres bought from gsf but it was a while ago and my memory isn't that fantastic, I wouldn't of ordered comfort balls and certainly wouldn't of got Xantia ones.

The back end would sink down maybe 2/3 of the way when pulling away gently just tickling the throttle, never seemed to bottom out though.

D

Edit to say part numbers on the sphere are,
96178590
7-023-DJ

And they are stamped Citroen so OE spheres, a little odd as I've never bought OE spheres, far too tight for that sort of carry on.

[White Exec]

96178590

Not a currently listed Cit pt no.
Closeby 96178589 isn't either, but I have it on paper as Xantia front, 400/30/1.5 Hydractive

Found this though. for yours...
http://www.fota.com.cz/fota_cs/resource ... y_2005.pdf
page 14, item 84-3032
So it's Xantia 1.9D/2.1D without Hydractive

Fell over an old article on FCF, owner also puzzling about what that sphere was.

[Dieselman]

It's good to now what it is, but no Hydractive sphere should have a large damper oriface. The engraved marking isn't the oriface size.

According to what I can find, the sphere 96 178 590 is for a Xantia 2.0i petrol w/o Hydractive. Desmopan, 400cc, 30 Bar, 1.0mm damper oriface.