Been trying to sort a fog light issue out on my mates car today, and gave it up as a bad job.  That aside, we encountered another problem.


The thing sounds like a VW Beetle.  It sounds like its misfiring and the exhaust fumes smell rich.
Inside, the temperature warning light is on, the stop light is on, and the oil light is on.
It has oil, nice an clean, and it seems to be getting round the engine when I lift the filler cap.

Any ideas where to start here?

Dizzy arm and cap?

Thought they did away with those when electronic ignition came in?

Quote from: soopahflyThought they did away with those when electronic ignition came in?

There isnt a traditional dizzy anymore, but some cars still have a cap and arm on one end of the cam.  Possibly the leads need replacing?  Im assuming you have checked youre getting a good spark.  

I dont think it would show, as it starts fine and runs fine for a few mins, then does it quite sporadically.
Not a problem changing leads and plugs if required, but its the warning lights in the cabin.
Not showing the engine management light either :S

Quote from: soopahflyI dont think it would show, as it starts fine and runs fine for a few mins, then does it quite sporadically.
Not a problem changing leads and plugs if required, but its the warning lights in the cabin.
Not showing the engine management light either :S

weirdness, sounds electrical though, or in this case quite possibly the ECU is on its way and is giving false reasons.  Pull the battery for an hour, then put it back on.  


edit :: the reason i say that is you say the oil etc is ok.  Otherwise I Would say the head had gone.  

Tried the battery thing, and tested earths when trying to fix the foglights

*snip* ignore me, wouldnt take in to account the warning lights.  

Warning lights seem to relate to the coolant sensor, as there is a little light next to the temp gauge thats lit.
STOP light is lit at the top, not sure about the oil light though.

what were you doing before the lights started coming on on the dash ?

was it running ok beforehand ?

I have several of those engines and it is not common to do a head gasket, they are very reliable. Basically an Mi16 with an iron block and a slightly poorer head.

Remember that later models of those have the nightmare multiplex wiring, and seemingly small electrical changes can cause havoc in otherwise totally unrelated systems.

if the temp light is on, and the water is cold, and the gauge is not lifted, you may have fallen foul of the multiplex wiring system.

Even using jumpleads on those damn things can screw them over

Changing the radio can also seriously affect the electrical system and require a dealer reset

This is the 2nd Xsara my mate has had, the other being a 1.6 8v.  Both have been Mk1 cars and both have had a similar problem with the engine misfiring.  It was doing this before we started tinkering with it.  Not sure about the lights though.

Its got an after market headunit, and essentially all I did was remove and clean the contacts on the relays, remove and clean the inner wing earths, and bypass the earth for the front foglights. Then put it back as it had no effect.


The engine was stone cold, and the STOP light, temp light and oil light were all on.



*Edit.

I think the multiplex system was introduced in the 2001 MK2 cars.  This is standard wiring.

Posted on the Citroen Xsara Owners Club

http://www.cxoc.net/index.php?topic=10208.0

OOh hark at you, coming onto my turf

Aye, I reckoned it was the later models only that had that - just didnt know what year yours was.

Its going to be tricky to diagnose over the internet! Could be any number of electrical components, injector, fuel quality, etc etc

Just going to have to test them as per manufacturers specs unfortunately, or read any stored error codes.