Citroen XM Forum

Hi Guys,

I have been reading in the local club magazine that contains an article written by a club member about his XM with great interest. And thought it's time I did a long term review of the XM.

Where do we start, SWMBO has been driving the XM for a couple of years now. We sold what is probably the best car we have ever owned to buy it. A Xantia 2litre petrol slugomatic…. What was immediately noticed ?? The Xantias handling and ride quality is far better than the XM. The hyperactive modes work correctly, all the spheres are gassed. The ride improved considerably after fitting ½ flat CX spheres under the @rse end of the XM.

The most important aspect of the XM …. Is SWMBO likes it …… Actually that’s the only important aspect of the car. Maybe I have been spoiled having owned driven CX’s for 20years. Yes I drove CX’s and DS’s on my ‘Learner’ plates too. This gives a good grounding on how you expect cars to drive. Possibly it sets your standards waaaayyyy to high.

The XM ?? An aging XM 2.1TD slugomatic. We desperately needed a bigger more fuel efficient car, the Xantia used as much fuel as the tired stinky CX on the highway, and not a lot less around town (The Xantia was always driven *hard* around town, after all SWMBO drove it. Thankfully she struggles with the heavy clutch in the CX, as the fuel she’d use if driving the CX is kinda scarey to think about)…. I’m babbling, we were talking about the XM.

Lets see, it drives really nicely for a modern car. The steering feels like a BX, but is crazily under-geared like a Xantia (only it has nothing like the “sharpness” of a Xantia). For the first few months of ownership I kept thinking one of those “handles” you see on trucks in American movies to help spin the stupidly understeered steering wheel would help (hey I warned you, I have driven CX’s since I was 16years old…. Well that’s on public roads … who know how long before then).

The XM is surprisingly noisy, noisier than the Xantia it replaced, sadly it has a sunroof. I’m only a little guy, nearly 6foot …. To sit up like I like to sit in a car by head bashes against the roof. How in the hell does a CX with pathetic headroom have more room for me than a big high XM ?? Oh well, it fits SWMBO well, she’s “vertically challenged”, so I must wind the sllllllooooooowwww electric seats down to the floor then waaayyy back after she’s been driving. The Xantia was much preferable, it took no time at all to slide the manual seats to the fully rear position so I’d fit. Fortunately winding the seats backs co-incides with the time it usually takes for the glow plugs to finish heating..

The XM’s a beautiful looking car, it really does stand out in a crowd. You never have issues spotting it in a carpark. People look at you very strangely when they hear what sounds like a fergi tractor clatter loudly upto them with this enormously loud HISSING from the piece of crap distribution block that feeds the garbage low pressure Poogoe steering rack fitted to the car. To think this car was about $80,000 new in 1996….. Little wonder very few of them sold. This sqealing hydraulics and clattering diesel must have put a lot of people off.

Performance is surprisingly very good in winter given it has a god awful slugomatic gearbox. I drove a friends petrol V6 XM a while ago, the bloody thing felt like it was going to dig holes in the road off the line (in comparison), so imagine how surprised I was when it felt to have little extra if any performance advantage up the climb out of town. Both the diesel and V6 were flat as a tack and would barely accelerate…. My 4cylinder CX up the same hill, rams it’s @rse end to the bump stops and charges up the hill like frightened bull out of a gate.

Now we come to one of the biggest issues with the car…. Hot weather, no not overheating, performance. The heat seems to massively impact the performance of the diesel. It must be immense heat soak into the intercooler. Stop on a hill with the air-con on, 5 people in the car and you’ll wonder if it’ll ever move…. It’s downright bloody dangerously slow trying to pull from an intersection into fast moving traffic. You have a weeny little 2.1 litre diesel off boost at 800rpm spinning an A/C compressor trying to pull a 1.5ton car loaded with a few hundred kilograms of people and junk. If it had a proper manual gearbox, you could just slip the clutch and get the little oil burner up onto boost. -- Like I said though, in winter this doesn’t happen, turning the A/C off doesn’t help (if you were going to suggest that).

Though it drives quite nicely compared to anything other than a proper pre-PSA Citroen…… Why have we gone back 50years in time. Why does a modern Citroen tram line and tug at the steering wheel. With all the heavy rain in recent times, water down the side of the road pulls the steering wheel aggressively to the left. Why have we gone backwards 50years ?? My tired old CX, the GS, the D’s I’ve driven. The road conditions were almost irrelevant, the car tracked arrow straight and didn’t pull off line no matter what I was forcing the poor car to drive through.

Fuel economy, I have decided none of the guys in the UK can work out fuel economy. They all claim 50+mpg on the highway, and never less than 40mpg around town. Sound to good to be true ??? Well it is !!!! I average about 30mpg around town and 42mpg on the highway. This is very good for a big heavy car with a god awful slugomatic gearbox IMO. Possibly the manual XM 2.1TD’s with a the EPIC (fail) injection pump may get closer to the economy claimed by the guys in the UK.

Reliability ?? Well I have only really done two major jobs on the car, and I sadly must admit it’s the biggest heap of shit I have ever had the mis-fortune to work on. I replaced the evaporator ….. Damn it was an immense job, I could pull an engine from DS, swap the clutch … rebuild the gearbox, and maybe the engine while I’m at it, clean everything and re-assemble in about the same time with a fraction of the frustration. No I am not exaggerating…. The other major job is apparently these diesel go forever without being touched…. Several hundred thousand miles at least is expected, apparently they all do head gaskets at 150,000miles. I wanna know who the hell told my car this ?? 149,900miles and I started having strong symptoms of head gasket failure…

Now I have to say it ……. WHAT THE F#CK WERE THEY THINKING. This must be one of the most tedious frustrating jobs I have EVER done on a car. If I could have got the XM out of the shed, I’d have happily burnt the heap of shit in the drive. What PSA did was take a tiny, weeny little diesel engine and put it in a HUGE engine bay designed to hold a big 24valve V6…. Obviously this was going to make working on it staggeringly simple…. To get around this problem, they tilted the motor back until it was a hair from touching the firewall at the top edge and put *everything* down the back of the motor where you can’t access it… To say I held a passionate hatred of the car after these two jobs would be an understatement, add to that the fact in the last 12months I have had three out of four of those pathetically designed piece of junk window winders die …. And we have a car that I could easily hate ( $700+ each for a fragile piece of plastic crap to winder mechanisms. $700 is how much I’d pay to rebuild a gearbox with new parts…. NOT to replace a plastic piece of junk that’ll fail again in the near future).

The 60/40 split rear seat I thought was a great idea. However I have found in use it's no good. You see you split the "40" down flat so my two kids can fit in the back, yet we can fit long loads in ........ to find .............. The seatbelt catches are bolted to the seat base that is folded forward, so you can't do the seatbelts up. Don't drive anywhere thinking you'll be able to fit anything other than one person in the back if you fold half of it down.

Positives:
--fuel economy is quite good
--space utilisation it very good
--hatch is nice and big
--drives and handles reasonably
--beautiful looking car
--first car I have ever owned that I can put normally available cheaper tyres on.
--finally a Citroen that will heat and cool it’s interior. Ventilation is very good.
--SWMBO likes it ….. SWMBO likes it ………………… and most importantly, SWMBO likes it.

Negatives
--it’s surprisingly large to fit into a modern carpark. At Big W for example it’s longer than the car parks, and you can struggle to open the doors if someone equally big is parked beside you.
--The CX handles better than it
--The CX steers so much better than it, so much better it’s beyond comparison
--The CX brakes are MUCH better. The XM is dramatically better after I dis-abled the bouncy spring they put between the brake pedal and brake valve (WTF: What the hell is wrong with PSA, they did the same shit to my Xantia creating the worst brakes I have ever used in a car)
--The CX ride MUCH better
--The CX is MUCH cheaper to run, parts prices for the XM are out of this world expensive. Eg: strut mounts, window winder mechanism, evaporators, etc.,etc….
--The CX is VASTLY EASIER to work on, as is the GS, DS, 2cv…. Well any other car I can think of.
--The CX has vastly better ventilation ………………………………. Um, hang on, I might be getting carried away here 

Sum up…… Was there anyone in the world that actually traded a CX for one of these at staggering cost…… to go backwards ?

seeya,
Shane L.

Hi Shane

I agree on you comparison with the CX, I ran CX25 DTR Safari's for 10 years or more and covered over 150,000 miles in the last one, a turbo, the design of the suspension and steering was far superior to the XM, the only things that were inferior were the heater the handbrake and perhaps the gearing on the diesel, first was to high, you had to slip the clutch.

I didn't buy my cars to look at though, when I was working as a TV engineer I needed something spacious and the CX fitted the bill, I bought my first one, a 1980 because it had the most refined diesel engine available at the time, I didn't appreciate the fantastic suspension and steering until after I had bought it.

With the passing of time the XM became the logical replacement, I was impressed by the superb heater and effective parking brake, although I did miss the diravi steering and the central knuckle suspension, nevertheless it suited my requirements, more space than practically any other estate, superb comfort, excellent economy, yes I can get in excess of 50mpg from mine on a longish trip but I drive gently and that makes a tremendous difference to a diesel, and durability, although as you say, they are a pig to work on, well maintained they are reliable, the one my wife crashed had done 70k miles practically trouble free since the initial head gasket replacement, the one my son drives has done getting on for 270k miles now and I sold one a few years ago with 292k on it.

I still have one of my own that I use for carrying DIY materials and as a general run about but I do most of my miles now in a Peugeot 406 Hdi estate, because apart from the inferior ride, which is very noticable, its very nice to drive and will do in excess of 60mpg - no contest really.

I have run XM's now for 14 years and shall continue to do so for as long as I practically can, but 2.1 manual Mk2 estates are almost impossible to find now which was largely what caused me to buy the Peugeot, as my XM is a bit tatty, the 406 is very smart, its got many similar characteristics to the XM, particularly the good low speed torque, which I missed on the BMW. which I had shortly, I definitly prefer PSA cars.

Peter

Shane, CXs rust here. Thats their biggest downfall. Xms don't rust anywhere near as much in comparison. In fact they're only starting to rust now, CXs would have started rusting long before now.

My 'E' reg started rusting over the top of the tailgate - nowhere else.

Thanks for posting that Shane, is a very honest and thought provoking view of the XM.

I do love mine, somewhat biasedly (is that a word? ), and am quite forgiving of their flaws, or which there are a few as you've rightfully pointed out.

XMs I've found have always had two types of owner, those who love them for the unusual quirkiness etc, and those who require them for a specific purpose or job.
There's a bit of overlap between these two camps, Peter is probably a good example of that, loves the cars because they're very practical, economical, DIY repairable, and generally suited his requirements better than any other vehicle available at the time.
(Please forgive me for using you as an example Peter, but I think you're a good one ).

I'm firmly in the 'Have XMs because I like them' camp. My practical requirements for a car are simply reliability, relatively economical, decent sized boot and interior, reasonably easy to maintain. There are a million and one other cars that would fit that bill, some arguably better than an XM too.
There's no doubt that sometimes owning aging XMs is the more expensive, more difficult option than going out and buying a Mondeo, or any other generic large saloon, and there are times I've been in dire straights and cursing the XM's rareness, lack of spares, lack of vendor knowledge etc, up and down the street.
However, I just have to look at one of the bloody things, and all is forgiven. It brings me to what I like, rather than need in a car. I want something unusual, I want something that hisses and clicks and psssssts and wafts its way up the street to the point where people turn around and go WTF is that thing?? . I want something that I come back to find sunken flat in a way-too-small parking space like some giant, dead fish.
I want something that looks like a 1980s spaceship, I want something that puts a massive grin on my face and makes me feel like Captain goddamn Kirk when I recline that electric, leather seat, place a hand on that single spoked steering wheel, lean back and relax as I blast down the motorway, overtaking bewildered people in Mondeos, BMWs and the usual generic VAG nonsense.

Owning a car for me, like most here, is practical requirement of life and work, however for the moment, I can turn it into something I greatly enjoy and derive pleasure from. Long may that, and XMs continue.

Ciarán

robert_e_smart wrote:Shane, CXs rust here. Thats their biggest downfall. Xms don't rust anywhere near as much in comparison. In fact they're only starting to rust now, CXs would have started rusting long before now.

Very true Robert - they will rust pretty much everywhere.
But, there are good ones out there with 'zero' rust in them. Admittedly rare nowadays but if you're considering buying a CX then the main factor to consider is the structural condition, not if it's got (eg) the wrong seats. There's always going to be the rotten cars, but there are good ones out there...CGOO, for example - no rust anywhere, at all.

Admittedly rare nowadays but if you're considering buying a CX then the main factor to consider is the structural condition, not if it's got (eg) the wrong seats

This is almost true for XMs now in terms of rust, especially estates. However, the above is true is you remove the word structural for all XMs. Thats why I'm using a TCT, the condition overall made it worth putting up with the TCT lump.

I was thinking more along the lines of when the cars were new. I simply couldn't imagine anyone driving in to trade for example a CX GTi Turbo on a V6 XM... A quick drive around the block would have them thinking ... WTF ?? Where is the progress ?? The CX was a design over 15years old when the XM was released.

These days, comparing a CX with anything is pointless. There simply to old. To run one as a daily driver nearly anywhere would take an immense amount of upkeep. i run my tired old CX GTi turbo as my only car ( note: SWMBO does have the XM), however my annual milage these days is tiny. I work from home whenever possible. For starters, I simply couldn't afford to feed the thirsty beast if I was doing high milage, pressed into high milage they deteriate so rapily over time too.

The likely fate of the XM here will it will be driven until something major fails, then it'll be thrown away. That would never happen to the CX or DS's ... If something major failed, you would drag it inot the shed and get to work .....

This brings on the next issue, when the XM dies .... What do I replace it with.... A C5 ?? We dont' even have proper hydraulics at all. Most out here have the hidiously unreliable AL$ slugoamtic transmission. They have the same cr@ppy window winder mechanisms as the XM, hydraulic hoses to the steering racks and suspension units that leak/weap and cost thousands of dollars to repair. Dumb sh!t like "clutched" altnerators, that are hidiously expensive ... No thanks What to replace the XM with ??? It looks like the first time in 20 years since I get my "L" plates and stopped driving paddock basher cars, I'll have to look somewhere other than Citroen. Possibly even something like a big local car with a 6litre V8 running LPG ... could return similar running costs to the XM diesel, with "slightly" more performance. Certainly parts prices will be a fraction of the XM prices.... hmmmm.....

seeya,
Shane L.

Nice to see Shane blowing off steam again. He hasn't changed his opinion one bit yet, and who would blame him for that or myself or Ciarán for being subjective, biased even in our evaluations. Shane can have his fun ( ) and so can I for loving the car with its ultimate comfort, the 194 HP V6 with the AT which is definitely not a slug-o-matic and who wants the XM to have the extra tiny bit of power in today's traffic? If I needed it I'd buy a Porsche or a Ferrari, or even a Prius, which I actually did some time ago, and is very fast at the lights!
The CX GTi something is not the only vehicle from days long past that performed better (again subjective) than many vehicles on the road today. I've owned CXs and know a little bit about them. They were OK, but you have to move on. I am with Ciarán all the way. I like the XM, the one I have, that is. I don't mind it is not very frugal with fuel in urban traffic. It performs very well on long hauls. My family likes it, everyone who rides in it likes it. And at just 10 years of age and less than 55k km it will stay my, our, pleasure, our comfort on wheels for many more years to come. Thank you

This brings on the next issue, when the XM dies .... What do I replace it with.... A C5 ??

This is the biggest problem we are faced with Shane, and of course you have hit the nail on the head. The C5 is Tat, and if you dislike the XM, you're going to hate the C5 even more.

C6s share a lot of the same electronics and running gear as the C5, and aren't cheap enough yet. I think you're going to have to bite the bullet and get another XM imported over, and use your current XM as a spares car when the time comes.