XM parts availability

[XMBloke]

Just wondering if anyone else has noticed how difficult it is to find parts that were once (until quite recently) easy to get hold of?
In particular external trim and lighting parts such as headlights, sidelights and front fog/indicator units. Just been onto Marshalls Citroen in Cambridge, GSF and Euro Carparts and stated they can't get hold of can't set a delivery date of light units or other trim etc. Bit worrying this since there are still many XM's on the road. Even Valeo who made most of the lights used on XM's can't supply anymore. Scrapyards and breakers tend to have XM's with those parts already missing. Combine this with the infamous strut-top issues and it won't be long before there's nothing available apart from oil filters and service items. Anyone else on the forum know of good suppliers? At the moment it looks like Ebay is the only source and that's probably new-old stock from dealerships that have closed down.

Update:
Valeo now say they can get hold of sidelights for the Series 1 XM but not the Series 2 ?!! Completely nonsensical - logic states the newer versions would still be catered for?

[xmexclusive]

Hi XM Bloke

What makes you think they will continue making the service items for much longer.
Sell the XM cheap to one of us or buy in bulk service items now from AEP is my best rather joking advice.
There still is a window for spares from scrap cars but mainly for us avid collectors who can buy-in, store, strip and then send to scrap.
Thats one of the reasons scrapyard pickings are usually so thin.
Someone always gets there first.

I am afraid you are also wrong about the source of NOS (new old stock).
Its also active dealers and distributors who are clearing their shelvers of XM bits.
The disealers have been doing this on specific instructions from Citroen UK.
The policy is that valuable shelf space must be given over to current models.
The national central parts store in Coventry was cleared and has gone.
So virtually all the bits you order at the dealer come from France.
They do a computer check of other UK dealers shelves first so even the odd dealer deliberately holding XM bits gets identified and emptied.
To give an example I recently obtained a bulk order of some steel hydraulic pipe fittings.
Some came from the UK (ex) manufacturer. I cleared his shelves and I believe he will make no more.
For the hell of it I asked how big an order to restart. Cash up front for half a million nuts might just do it.
I got the rest of the pipe fittings from a national parts supplier.
A friendly branch manager searched their computer records and collected the residue from the shelves of all their branches.
Many ficticious stock records and wrongly identified items were wiped from their system but thats another story.
During this process he got a personal email from the head of the firm telling him to stop wasting his time and skip what he had collected.

Thats the rather bleak picture most of us are looking at I am afraid.

Now there is a positive side.
We have found answers to most of the problem bits for ourselves.
You mention strut heads.
I send broken ones to eastern Europe and they come back better than original in about 10 days.
Quite a few of the small components can also be sourced from that direction.
Think I have seen new sidelights and I get new bonnet struts for cheaper than they can be refurbished in the UK.
In the case of sidelights the only difference I know of between Mk1 an Mk2 is the composition of the lense plastic.
Mk1 ones go opaque and fail the MOT after 15 years while Mk2 stay clear.
Stick high power white LED bulbs in the opaque ones to get that pass but do not mix opaque and clear on the car if your MOT man is picky.

Ask on here in the sales and wants for specific items and you may be lucky or pointed to a source.

Best of luck with your XM.

John

[citroenxm]

My response was going to be, me, robert and a couple others hold all the spares to keep our cars going, though my stock is getting thin, when I get a car in to supply parts, I end up dooing the darn thing up and selling it to someone who wants one!

But, not any ole tom will be able to buy one off me now, Im going to be selective.

Anyway, as for general parts, they have thinned, due to the strong scrap value a year or so ago, but Im hoping that I may be able to get hold of a further supply of parts soon if my plans go correctly.

[russ92xmsed]

He says rubbing his hands together!!!


Don't like reading the above...quite bleak.

[citroenxm]

Russ, DONT worry about it too much, IF I can sort myself and organise myself correctly, Ill be able to possibly sort something to keep us ok for a while... BUT no promises yet..

[russ92xmsed]

Good oh!

So is this Anything to do with a certain local chap, with a certain collection....

[citroenxm]

Possibly. Further talks when I actually have an XM on the road... SOOON....

[captainhaddock]

The same concerns arose when Citroen decided to scrap loads of 2cv parts.
Stupid from a commercial point of view in retrospect, cause others took over and there is not one screw or bolt you cannot get new.
Newly made that is,maybe not always as good but at least it's there.
I hate Citroen for it's policies, they should look to the East more where it comes to customer service and customer wants. Come for some really old Mercedes part and you'll have it in a couple of days.

[russ92xmsed]

Quite Jaap. Merc and BMW hold parts for all their older models. Okay they might be expensive, but at least they are there.

Apparently Citroen quite proudly scrapped all their SM spare parts bot long after SM production ceased....if I remember rightly that is! Not even sold on. All gone. Of course it meant Lotus had to go shopping for a new gearbox for the Esprit, and got it from Mr Reggie.
For a company that is meant to be proud and in touch with its amazing history, it contradicts itself by not wanting to look after the cars that are left. I suppose they assume after market parts will do.

[Dieselman]

It's just a commercial reality that making and selling a new product is what they are in business to do. Slow moving obsolete stock is a pain to deal with and commercially costly.