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Dithering over purchase. |
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stevepaul
 
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  Member No: #3066
Location: scotish borders |
Hi all, New here, but not new to Citroen's having owned 4. First a BX then XM saloon, followed by an XM auto estate and finally a C4. Loved every one of them but especially the XM's. You just can't beat the big Citroen's. You can keep your BMW's (you'd have to pay me to own one) Merc's, well, let's say a better choice than a BMW. Audi's never liked them. I'd take a Jag over any one of the aforementioned. No doubt they are all good cars, but lets face it, they are 10 a penny and hardly head turners. Now, a C6 - yes please. Loved then from the moment I first saw them. What's not to like. Stand out from the crowd and I can't remember the last time I saw one on the road. Anyway, now I'm thinking it's time I owned one. However, I'm in that place I suspect many of us have found ourselves - dithering. Do I, don't I, should I, shouldn't I. My heart say's buy one, my head say's leave it alone. I have my eye on one and I'm tempted to go take a look and I know if I do I'll end up driving it home. At £4,500 I can afford it, but the road tax and insurance are putting me off. The MPG isn't a concern as I only do around 5,000m/year. There's also that worry that comes with all big Citroen's, just like it did with the XM's - the electric's and repair costs. That said the XM's were no more less reliable than the other British or Jap cars I've owned. How, or were do you guys get any repairs done - main agents, independent specialists, or are local garages able to cope with the big Citroen's? I'm at the stage where I just need a bit of a push to go and get one of these French wonders instead of dithering around. There is a Citroen fan that lives close to me. He used to have a DS, but now drives a black C6. I've thought of stopping when I've passed to just have a chat to find out how he likes the car. Perhaps he's a member of this forum? If so perhaps we could meet. |
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gmerry
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   Member No: #21
Location: Scotland |
If you want and can afford, go for it. The 2.2s (3.0 in theory but too rare) and 2006 2.7s are slightly cheaper to tax. In terms of repairs, folk in the South East have the excellent abilities of BL Autos. I'm in Scotland, have a extremely poor main dealer in town so would travel to Montrose (Franchised Dealer) rather than letting the local monkeys stuff up the car. The kind of place that makes it impossible to speak to whoever is working on the car. So mostly I do any jobs that crop up myself. Insurance is very cheap!!! I'm hoping that if you are an age that had BXs, the same will apply to you. regards |
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Trainman
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  Member No: #86
Location: Penwortham |
I would agree, with G, I've run BX's, Xantia's, Xsara, XM and C5 and my C6. I'm lucky that I have a local specialist (He own's one too) fairly close and my dealer looks after about 6 of them. Insurance can be pricey, but please, please, please shop about....... I got my insurance this year for less than half the cost of last year....... |
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MikkelCPH
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  Member No: #2532
Location: Copenhagen |
It was never cheap to drive on first class but that's what life is about. Buy that C6 and enjoy life !! | ||
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dalicro
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 Member No: #1932
Location: Perth |
2.7 Lignage for sale in Perth. See Autotrader or Gumtree or PM me. David |
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akabigm
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  Member No: #1302
Location: Nottingham |
Agree access to a specialist garage is essential for C6, I use Mark Lightfoot in Ilkeston, Derbyshire/Notts border, so a Midlands option, though interestingly, he currently has a C6 down from Scotland for fixing ! very competent and honest and trustworthy. I love my C6 but do worry about when the mileage builds, I am around 55K and wonder when best to sell before its gets very expensive and also inconvenient, but then this is my everyday car, though being retired I don't go out all the time |
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e3steve
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 Member No: #1163
Location: Warsash, Hants & Palma de Mallorca, Spain |
akabigm wrote ... Always nice to read about good service! IMHO, most Citroën main dealers "just aren't interested" in supporting our niche cars...Agree access to a specialist garage is essential for C6, I use Mark Lightfoot in Ilkeston, Derbyshire/Notts border, so a Midlands option, though interestingly, he currently has a C6 down from Scotland for fixing ! very competent and honest and trustworthy. akabigm wrote ... C6s don't like being sat idle, for some inexplicable reason; stuff seizes up or gets stiff (a bit like those of us over 60!).I love my C6 but do worry about when the mileage builds, I am around 55K and wonder when best to sell before its gets very expensive and also inconvenient, but then this is my everyday car, though being retired I don't go out all the time The Litens freewheel alternator pulley likes to poop its panties at around 60k. The coolant output tank on PSA's version of the 2.7 Lion engine seems to favour somewhere between 80 & 90k before it [literally] bursts at a the seams! I'd think about having it replaced at about 70-75k. It's about sixty quid for the new part; I can change one in a couple of hours. One needs to be v-e-r-y careful when moving the fuel system's and the vacuum (swirl-valves') plumbing around; a necessary task in order to gain access to the little tank, which is, in reality, an elaborate thermostat housing. The cooling system, in general, should be flushed and refilled with Comma G30 [BASF Glysantin G30 / G33] every two years, irrespective of mileage. The antifreeze isn't affected, per se, but the corrosion inhibitors lose their effective properties. Also, the entire system's plumbing probably needs replacing by 100k. The painted steel(!) barsterd-awkward coolant pipe under the gearbox end of the engine bay / left-hand wheel arch is a time bomb... The 2.7's 'Denso' starter motor gets lazy at around 100k. There's a remanufactured, and better (I think) version availabe from The Starter Motor And Alternator Company. It's currently £150 and about a 3- or 4-hour job (if one knows how...). The timing belts, idlers and tensioner(s) should really be replaced at 100k, although PSA reckon 120k. Ten years, in any case, is essential. ABS wheel sensors can play up. The rears are a bit of a sod to replace, as one needs to drop the exhaust system and lower the fuel tank by about 15cm! The Magnetti Marelli RT3 NaviDriv, fitted to '05-'07(?) cars is utter "pants". The driver's seat heating doesn't seem to work on any cars that have covered over 40k. The electric door mirrors don't behave properly unless they've been 'modified' or unless one is very lucky, and the rear spoiler deployment can play up unless it's been regularly lubricated and exercised. Oh, and the instrument cluster can go 'up in smoke' at just about any age or mileage. I've missed out glowplugs, gearbox electrovalve blocks, cooling fans' motors, LDS pump motors, suspension mountings/joints/FRIP bearings and hydraulic pipe leaks; I don't want to scare anyone!  Other than the foregoing, they're lovely to drive. Anyone considering taking ownership needs the have their eyes wide open!! |
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gmerry
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Member No: #21
Location: Scotland |
Couldn't agree more with E3steve's list: some of these problems have affected my lowish mileage 2008 car so treat the figures as a rough guide. For the engine, to protect turbos, valve train wear and general gumming up, I'd suggest you get a car that has had regular oil changes (mine is EVERY 6 months regardless of mileage) and at least 1 preferably 2 or more partial transmission fluid changes (or the hydraulic block wears). regards |
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tomos
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 Member No: #1776
Location: United Kingdom |
I think if you're concerned about paying £500 a year tax you should probably not buy a C6. My 08 2.7 Hdi Lignage loved being lavished with attention at the garage, to the tune of around £1,000 per year, and that was just general servicing mostly. But if you really must - consider a warranty to cover the bigger items (gearbox, suspension, EGRs). Some spare parts are eye-wateringly expensive. |
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dalicro
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Member No: #1932
Location: Perth |
Gavin Gray of: Autotechniks Vehicle Repair Shop 45 Watson Cres Edinburgh Midlothian EH11 1ER 0131 313 5087 has his own C6 and is extremely knowledgeable and helpful. |
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Dan595
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 Member No: #299
Location: Wiltshire |
stevepaul wrote ... There's also that worry that comes with all big Citroen's, just like it did with the XM's - the electric's and repair costs. That said the XM's were no more less reliable than the other British or Jap cars I've owned. How, or were do you guys get any repairs done - main agents, independent specialists, or are local garages able to cope with the big Citroen's? I'm at the stage where I just need a bit of a push to go and get one of these French wonders instead of dithering around. I don't see a C6 as more unreliable or more costly than any other luxury car. On the contrary, compared to a colleague's Jaguar XF which is half the age and half the mileage of my C6, the C6 is wildly cheaper to run. Similarly, XMs I have known have been expensive to run and not as reliable as they should be. There is no excuse for a C6 not having a full service history. Servicing is not expensive. A good dealer is essential, I am lucky with a good main dealer (who is often cheaper than a local independent). Parts can be expensive for items that are unique to the C6, but most parts are not unique (some might say the C6 is a C5 X7 in a posh frock). Even when they are, some are surprisingly cheap - I have just fitted a new rear brake caliper @ £75. Unique parts can be hard to get and expensive, and this situation is likely to get worse as the cars get older - most in the UK are 8-10 years old already. I'm at 10 years and 185,000 miles - and I've done 180,000 of those. 55,000 is nothing. To my mind, it is remarkable that Citroen had the nerve to make the C6 at all, and it is highly unlikely that we will ever see anything of its ilk again. So if you want one, buy one - but try to buy a good one. |
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