Citroen XM Forum

Starting problem check out the connections to the starter relay which i think lives behind the passenger headlight if not the drivers headlight..

1995 i guess is a series two car with headlight washers.. ive a set of virtually new fog light/indicator units in the shed im sure.

Side lights for 927 is a typo.. im certain they are 27 quid each...

Sorry to hear of the terrible experience with the Xantia engine...

I've seen the same thing happen on a 1.9TD and I put it down to the crank bolt being loose at some time and allowing the sprocket and pulley to fret against the key.

The engine never lunched itself but the problem was getting to the point where it was going to as once wear sets in then it can only get worse. The car was scrapped before it finally went..

I've had a crank bolt come loose after changing the belt. It damaged the pulley and key, but the crank was ok, so new pulley and key and the bolt done up tight with thread-lock on.

The one I referred to Will showed bad wear in the key socket on the crank tail. It was bad enough that the crank really needed replacement or perhaps a special oversize key making up.

Dieselman wrote:I've had a crank bolt come loose after changing the belt. It damaged the pulley and key, but the crank was ok, so new pulley and key and the bolt done up tight with thread-lock on.

Ive had this on the smaller brother 1.9 xud more then twice too and no not any of my own.. the bolt though come loose has allowed and pully to batter the crank and bolt and this then prevents the bolt from removal.. any attempt then shears the bolt off INSIDE the end of the crank...

You then need a pully a key a good drill a tap and thats if your lucky....

My Sd im dooing up was close to slack. I locked it all up got my wrench bar and my scaffold extension (id forgot to crack the bottom bolt on the starter) went to undo the bolt and it just undid with about 5lb ft on the bar....

If the bolt is tight it doesn't need the key, so just fill the gap with thread-lock.

I recently did a Renault Megane head job after an apparently snapped timing belt, but as this engine has no key I think the bolt just came loose. Easy engine to work on. New valves, new gasket, water pump and belt.

Dieselman wrote:If the bolt is tight it doesn't need the key, so just fill the gap with thread-lock.

I recently did a Renault Megane head job after an apparently snapped timing belt, but as this engine has no key I think the bolt just came loose. Easy engine to work on. New valves, new gasket, water pump and belt.

Was that a petrol or the little 1.5 dci unit? 8 or 16v

1.6, 16v petrol.

When I carried out an engine 'autopsy' on the remains, the crank pulley bolt was still tight but when removed the woodruff key was in bits. Even measured the machined keyway and it was textbook - no sign of hammering or opening up. The AA recovery bloke who attended said he'd only seen two Xantias do this and mine was the second. Still, it could have been worse. It could have decided let go while pulling out on the short onslips of the A14.

That's an incredible failure I think in all the years I've been dabbling in things mechanical I've never seen a key fail without an underlying cause... Amazing!

And for someone to have seen two Xantias with the problem is doubly so...