Searching for my first XM

[enie]

Hello everyone.

I set my mind on finally purchasing an XM Y4 and I hope to get some information on this board.

I have loved their design since I was about 12 years old and every morning on my way to school I passed a Citroën dealership with 10 XM's neatly lined up side by side.

[m0rda]

Welcome Enie,
That is great that you have decided!
My story is very much the same, and your approach is appreciated. I know that there are a lot of things to consider, and this knowledge might save a lot of time and money.
So, what do you think is important about your future XM, do you have any preferences on model, engine, gearbox, etc.? Would you be able to perform some maintenance/repairs yourself?

[Dieselman]

Your location is shown as Germany, so I take it you will be looking for a Lhd car.
My recommendation is to look in southern Europe as the body will be rust free. Rust is what causes an XM to become end of life, the rest of it is very robust.

[enie]

Welcome Enie,
That is great that you have decided!
My story is very much the same, and your approach is appreciated. I know that there are a lot of things to consider, and this knowledge might save a lot of time and money.
So, what do you think is important about your future XM, do you have any preferences on model, engine, gearbox, etc.? Would you be able to perform some maintenance/repairs yourself?

Sorry for the late answer.

I did put some thought into which model/trim I would like to find for a few months now.

Even though I would love a single spoke steering wheel I prefer the later interior, so I am looking for a Y4. I've been looking for Berline models from 1997 and later. I read that the updates to the gas engine fixed some problems and they are the most available XMs around here. But I do not have a preference at this moment other than it has to be a gas engine so that I can still drive into the city center. My current 2l engined vehicle from 1996 is adequate for me with less power so I think I would also be happy with the small one in the XM. I generally prefer manual gearbox, but if the XM would be known for _not_ revving too high I would consider my first automatic.

I like the XM best in red or green. Since the leather version does not have partially foldable back seats I would go with cloth or Alcantara.

Except for some interior fixing I would not be able to work on it on my own. There is a French classics garage near me that has knowledge in the hydraulics. When I talked to the owner it sounded as if they will be able to take good car of an XM. Although they seemed to mostly work on DSs and SMs.

Your location is shown as Germany, so I take it you will be looking for a Lhd car.
My recommendation is to look in southern Europe as the body will be rust free. Rust is what causes an XM to become end of life, the rest of it is very robust.

I have found almost exactly what I was looking for in Italy, but I am not sure if I can drive the car back home or if I would need to have it towed back when buying in another country. Couln't find anything that got closer to what I am looking for over the last few weeks, so I might consider buying from Italy.

[Dieselman]

Imho, Italy would be a good location to purchase from, the body should be absolutely rust free, unless from the high Alps and not looked after.

You are in the Eu, so afaik, should be able to buy a car in any part and drive it to wherever you want to. Your insurance is Eu cover.

For petrol engines my preference would be to go for a V6, with a manual gearbox. The 2.0 are plentiful and adequate, with good parts supply, but the V6 is more of an event to drive and these cars are now becoming classics.
The Uk wasn't supplied with the Es9j engine version with a manual gearbox and the auto box is the Achilles heel of the late V6.

Any garage should be able to look after an Xm, especially a Citroen specialist as the hydraulics are the same from 1955-2010.

A short drive in a manual V6 will go something like...

[enie]

A short drive in a manual V6 will go something like...

Haha, what a fantastic video. In 2019 we drove through Italy and planned to return for a trip along the west coast of Italy to the south of France. This video encapsulates what I thought how this would be like

It's definitely good to know that I should be careful with the automatic if I will go for a V6.

How many kilometres / miles is a lot for an XM? the one from Italy has 225k km already. I could find ones with less than 100k but not necessarily in the configuration that I am looking for.

[Dieselman]

I wouldn't choose to buy a high mileage Xm with the 2.0-16v engine and associated gearbox. Both are the least long lived drivetrain units for manual transmission cars.
The 2.0-16v unit is a later, high efficiency engine, which has short piston skirts, which can lead to piston slap.
The Be3 gearbox is used on low powered units, 2.0 atmo and 2.1diesel atmo, only.

The rest of the Xm will go for huge mileages.

I appreciate you are looking for a car with the optional extra, split fold rear seat, but unless that is absolutely necessary, would keep looking. You could always fit a split fold seat afterwards.