Rear Suspension Bearings - CITROEN XM Internet Reference

76 Rear Suspension Bearings

Suspension
76 Rear Suspension Bearings
Rear Suspension Bearings
The old Achilles heel of all hydraulic Citroens from the CX-on.
Wouldn't you think that Citroen would have learn's from the past and tried at least to improve on this
design. It is in enhance a good piece of engineering but once a few years have passed by the damn
things always g ive trouble, unless of course the lubrication modification has been carried out by a past
careful owner. Invariably this has not been done.
I'm not going into the modification details as it has been mentioned many times within the Citroenian
pages, but I will mention that when I dismantled my rear arms to mod. them up I found no trace of
grease at all and the bearings had started to crumble.
This on a car only five years old is quite disgraceful. I think the 'penny pinchers' at PSA have gone a little
far with not including lubrication where the eye can't see. I now have the replacement bearings (from
Andyspares at a very reasonable cost) and seals, and will carry out the relatively simple task of fitting
very soon.
If you intend to keep your XM I would recommend a peek at these bearings. Wear cam be detected by
pulling and pushing the relevant arm with the wheel off and looking for any undue movement at the
pivoting end of the arm. However, as I have found on many past Citroens, this can be quite misleading
and the only real test is to dismantle the arm on a bench and inspect thoroughly. Sorry, but that's the
way it is! A point of note is that the bearings themselves are relatively cheap, but if left unattended cam
cause immense financial outlay (bolts, thrust washers, spacer bar and even a new arm or secondhand
off a CX or XM if you can find one).
Worn rear suspension bearings can cause the car to wander, which may appear at first to be a tracking
problem, until you find that the front tyres are not wearing unevenly. When bearing wear is extreme the
rear wheels will appear splayed, the rear ride quality can become stiff and a squeaking noise will be
heard from the rear on any suspension movement.
(Thanks to Kevin B Spruce and the CCC)
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NOISY SUSPENSION
This has been cured after a discussion with Andy Burnett - what would we do without his expert advice
and depth of experience! I drilled a small hole in the rear suspension arm so that a pressure oil gun can
be used to re-lubricate the rear suspension bushes/bearings without the need for a massive strip down.
It works! Now, many readers may be familiar with Andy's description of doing this to the old CX. If you
have his writings on the topic, it is well worthwhile going through the process all over again, so dig out
the back numbers of the Citroenian. As the XM has virtually inherited the CX GTi rear end, the task is
nearly the same. Remove the back wheel, with the car suitably and securely raised and then remove the
rear disc plate/shield (three set screws).
This will allow access to the arm, using a slim power drill to drill a 4mm hole right through the alloy
suspension arm, feeling for the moment that the drill goes through to the steel pin. Stop drilling at this
point. Take steps to remove the swarf from drilling after the job is done. Pump in some reasonably heavy
oil, until it gently pumps back from the hole. Protect the drive from drips if that is where you do the job!
Result? Within a few miles all creaks and groans have gone and I do declare that the ride from the back
is better. By the way, Andy tells me that even NEW Cits. can have a jerky rise to ride height if the height
corrector linkage is sticky, so while you have the opportunity, do this job at the same time. My car was
very slow to rise at the rear and then suddenly (with much groaning) she would rocket to the correct
height. Not any more! All is silky smooth and reasuring once again.
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