Faults:

Driver's side window regulator mechanism (not the motor itself)

Climate control seemed to loose some of its power after 100 000 miles.

CV boot replaced at 90 000.

General Comments:

This is a second generation Xantia with common rail turbo diesel engine. The engine is a vast improvement compared to the older XDU turbo diesel engine in both performance, refinement and fuel economy.

I managed to get over 800 miles per 63 litres of diesel. This was mainly motorway driving. The engines is powerful enough for comfortable motorway cruising and gives good amount of torque.

The suspension is slightly firmer than the older Xantias used to have, but still comfortable. The body of the car feels firmer than the old ones had, at least there aren't may rattles and squeekes.

Seats are nice though I would prefer the ultra-soft ones Citroen BX used to have, but I guess Citroen had to design more "mainstream" European feel for this car. Generally the interior has a good feel though the design shows its age - the design was from early 90s. Still, all functional and stylish.

I had the car serviced once at the Citroen main dealer in Farnborough, Hampshire. It was quite expensive and I did not take the car for routine servicing after that. I used to change oil and filer myself every 12 000 miles. Also change the brake pads twice and replaced front tyres twice, rear tyres were still the originals when I sold the car. I had cam-belt replaced at the independent garage at 70 000 miles, cost about £180.

The car was 100% reliable and the only fault was a broken plastic clip in the window regulator. Even all the electrics were working perfectly. There was something wrong with the climate control - possibly the air-conditioning needed re-gassing.

Citroen has got a bad reputation in terms of reliability. Maybe I was lucky with this or the later model year Xantias were more reliable. I would like to believe it is the latter one.

The car was really comfortable to drive and also looked good. The only reason I sold it was because we moved from UK to Australia. Otherwise, I would probably had this car for another 100 000 miles.

I would not hesitate buying another HDI Xantia if I only find one in Australia.

Faults:

Nothing has gone wrong with the car. The interior is standing up well now I am getting into the higher mileages. All I have had to do is a basic service which was easy too.

General Comments:

I have done over 14000 miles in 7 months and it has been hassle free very comfortable and quick. The diesel engine is quiet and responsive making overtaking easy and safe even with a full load and bikes on the back. It returns around 50mpg and I have a heavy right foot. Handling is good and the brakes are excellent. The suspension is amazing giving a magic carpet ride and is much less roley poley than the BX I had before.

If you look hard enough you can pick good lowish mileages ones up for less than £3500 for a 2000 or 2001 model, you can barely get a base model Fiesta or Corsa for that money.

The car is hugely underrated and as such an absolute bargain with bags of style.

Faults:

Shortly after I bought the car I noticed that the coolant level was falling slowly. Several pipes and the expansion chamber were replaced and all was well for several months, when a fast leak appeared in the hose between the engine and automatic gearbox.

The car has now been off the road for 6 weeks, and will remain so indefinitely because this part is unavailable, and Citroen cannot say if it will ever become available.

General Comments:

The car is superb when it runs, with brilliant performance, handling and comfort.

Fuel consumption is on the high side at around 20mpg, but the brilliant ride makes this worthwhile.

I intend to sell the car if I ever get it going, however, because the atrocious back up from Citroen means that any future fault could lead to a long period off the road.