Faults:

The faults in my car were caused by poor maintenance by the previous owner. For example, the spheres in my car are on their way to hell.. I have replaced the rear spheres and I'm going to overhaul the suspensions.

The car had overheating problems because the previous owner put in a stupid japanese fan and modified the fan wiring. Got the original fan working and never had any problems since.

I have not checked the strut mountings for cracks, and I'm going to do it soon before it shoots out.

General Comments:

On the whole.. the Xantia is a fun and wonderful car to drive. I look forward to driving it everyday.

The suspension system is a dream, which makes you feel like you are floating over highways. The car corners effortlessly, giving me a kinda feeling that I can do almost anything while driving.

After I finish my work on the Xantia, I will get an XM!!

Faults:

Apart from replacing the normal things that wear on any car - tyres, windscreen wipers, bulbs and exhaust bits etc, nothing - repeat NOTHING has ever gone wrong with this car.

I thought this unblemished record had become tarnished some 2,000 miles ago. Although she started as normal and idled perfectly, power was down and she struggled uphill. I checked everything, compression was good and even across all cylinders, there were no inlet leaks and no electrical gremlins. The problem turned out to be a collapsed monolith in the catalytic converter, (it had done 120,000 miles so no criticism) so the lambda sensor was giving duff information to the engine management system. I fitted a new cat. and my hat hit the back seat the first time I touched the gas pedal. Since then she has performed like a new car.

General Comments:

This car has been an absolute joy to own and to drive.

The engine is quiet and responsive, burns no oil and starts first time EVERY time.

The ride is 'magic carpet' smooth with the Activa suspension stiffening when cornering hard.

The air con has never been touched and still works perfectly.

Parts are cheap and readily available.

Interior is comfortable and easy to maintain.

In the recent wet weather the hydro-pneumatic suspension has been a godsend in that I have put her on high lift and have been able to tiptoe through deep flood water and not even get the body wet.

I admit to being a bit of a Citroen freak, (I currently own five different models), it's not that I collect them, I just find I cannot bring myself to let them go when I get a new one. Logically I know that they are just so much metal and rubber, but these cars are like nothing else on the roads and have such quirkiness and personality that they almost become one of the family.