First Impressions

[nirgunapa]

or should that be Xminations

Well it's really nice to be back in an XM and the journey back was a delight. Of course the car was a bargain in terms of price but I think that is reflected in the amount of work that is needed to bring it to an acceptable standard. What follows might look like a list of moans but it is really a to do list.

The bite point of the clutch is very close to the floor so I'm expecting that it will need a new clutch next year. The mad clicking is I hope the accumulator sphere needing replacement and James has supplied 3 sheres and the rear enfgine mount. A newish set of proper hubcaps has been sourced from France!


James said that the bumpers had been painted and its now showing its age on the front which spoils the look. Note the crack in the front grille panel.


The passenger rear offside door has the worst damage with a typical car park ding and another scrape/ding further back. Look carefully and you can see yours truly


Although we thought the chrome had been painted it has been taped Now thats either because its started to go or it could be in perfect nick (unlikely). Temptation will surely win the day...


The front indicator/fog lights are a nightmare. Seem to be filled with chewing gum/foam/filler!


The offside is slightly better but not much.....


The clock / temperature guage has all its lights on and will not reset. Any ideas? I can't wait to get rid of the aftermarket temp/clock thingy.


The knob on the height adjuster is bust and you can't shift it by hand. I'm very tempted to get some pliers or molegrips to see if it does shift. I expect replacement is a bundle of laughs

Finally I've been following this on Ebay to rob for parts. Only trouble is its in Derbyshire. is it the same colour as mine?


More news and photographs to follow.

[Dean]

Hi

For the price it looks pretty good, the list is long but fairly minor.
The one you have your eye on will be a different colour, for the MK1 there were two reds, one metalic which is something daft like manderin red which is the colour of our cars and then a flat colour which was slightly more of a dark maroon, the later ones i think have a heavier flec to the metalic and are a lighter shade than ours, i would email him and get the paint code to be sure although he probably has a damaged o/s rear door and cracked nosecone
I am tempted to see whats under that black insulation tape too fingers crossed it was put on to protect the mint condition chrome trim from the eliments
I dont know why the indicator lenses melt like that, one of mine is going and i dont have foglights so ive no idea where the heat comes from!.

Good luck with it
D

[Peter.N.]

Hi Colin

It doesn't matter how much you pay for one you will always end up with a long list of jobs, so buy them cheap, that's what I do, at least you know that the remedial work has been done properly - enjoy

Peter

[xmexclusive]

Hi Colin

The height selector can get locked solid just because the ribbed black plastic cover strip has been folded double in its guide slot.
Just unclip and lift the plastic frame to check.
I think one of the other members mentioned speaking on the phone to the Derby ebay based XM bits seller.
As I recall not an ideal source of help. Ad has been running a very long time.

John

[andmcit]

I've had to change three of these height adjustment levers as all had broken caps and it's fairy straightforward
BUT of course you need a decent replacement to put on. The side footwell cover comes off easily enough (you'll
see it quite often when the heater matrix does it's usual thing here so you may as well get the practice!).

Nice big chunky bolts that are easily removed and the whole job is done from inside the car with the main bar
on the road side of the transmission tunnel - I have an old knackered one lying about in the garage (never throw
anything away me ) so I could take a picture of the mechanism for you if it helps. I'd bet removal off
another Xm will help here!

The red is most definitely different to the ebay s2 and Dean is correct to call it Mandarin - brilliant colour and it
glows a lot redder when it's all shiny and the sun picks out the metallic. I wouldn't condemn the rear driver's
door because of a pair on piny pings mind - or the nosecone = have you seen many other s1 red Xm's lately!!

Andrew

[Dean]

Your right about the height control knob Andrew most go the same way as the MK1 mirror switch and auto gear knob and crack then fall apart .

D

[andmcit]

Weird melting indicator!? What's that all about - parking too close to another car's exhaust?

It depends on your budget but there's this:

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Genuine-Citroen-X ... 2557110ab1

and I guess if you wanted straight bodywork to work with, albeit differently coloured, there's these:

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Citroen-XM-2-0-Tu ... 4147a33d94
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Citroen-XM-2-0-Tu ... 4147a345a4
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Citroen-XM-2-0-Tu ... 4147a33e70

this was a nice car

Andrew

[XMX]

I think one of the other members mentioned speaking on the phone to the Derby ebay based XM bits seller.
As I recall not an ideal source of help. Ad has been running a very long time.
John

Hi John,
It was when Tony was looking for an Air-con control panel, which was in THIS thread.
I bought some engine specific 2.5TD parts from this E-Bay seller, I thought they were quite helpful with my purchase's

[robert_e_smart]

These are all minor things, annoying I agree, but don't stop you using or enjoying the car. The black tape is an intersting idea to cover the old trim with.

Then again, the car was cheap to buy, so not to bad all in all. I definately agree with Peter, all XMs have problems, no matter how much they cost!

[nirgunapa]

I'm not at all displeased with the car - quite the opposite! But I do like a challenge and I'm sure this one will be just as challenging as my 89 XM.
That had problems with the leaking sunroof and endless rebuilds of the carburettor! If a forum like this had existed then it might have still been on the road

So now the fun begins........