Citroen AX GT.......no idea what it's like!
Discussion
Well, I have an idea what Citroen AX GT's are like, because I've had four in the past. In fact, I have another one now. And soon, sometime in the next few days, I'll (hopefully) have a sixth. This one, in fact:
I already own a white 1990 GT, which I bought in Cornwall last year and trailered home. It needs a fair bit of work, but it's a good base as a mini-resto. Because I'm busy at work, and because I have a million other cars I need to work on, it hasn't progressed very far. To date, I've only overhauled the carb, fitted a new ignition switch, sourced some original wheels, and......that's about it. In nearly a year!
So, I decided the best thing I could do was take on ANOTHER AX GT!
The car above was listed on the AX forums. The thread was titled simply 'AX GT in France'. Yup, France. The long and short of it is that a very nice British couple had taken the wise decision to go and live in the south of France a couple of decades ago. They'd taken their AX GT with them, which (I'm pretty sure judging by the paperwork) they bought from new, in Bristol. This very AX was now being offered to an enthusiastic owner, free of charge. The only gripe? It was in the south of France!
I'm not expecting too many hassles with getting it back into the UK, as it was previously registered here, and happily is RHD. I'm hoping I can just register it and be away!
Before you get excited and expect pictures of an epic roadtrip where I hitchhike across rural France carrying a backpack, an AX GT brochure purchased on eBay the week before, and a smile........you're in luck!
Not really, I'm getting Shiply to pick it up. Not sure when it'll arrive, possibly Saturday or Sunday.
In fact, it should be getting picked up tomorrow. The costs to transport it are more than I paid for the AX GT I'd bought last year, but I'm hoping this one is closer to being able to just throw into service than that car, which needs some welding first. I'm sure it'll need lots of TLC over the coming years, but I can approach it as a rolling project, as opposed to something that sits and takes up workshop space. I've already got some spares for the other car which I could use, if I needed to. I'll then sell the other car on as a project.
Only slight interesting detail that I've heard as a rumour, is that somebody else enquired about the car also, and they're led to believe it's done 200,000 miles. 200,000 miles.....in an AX!? I could email the 'sellers' and ask, after all they're very friendly. But there's a part of me that wants to be surprised!
Now.....I wait!
I already own a white 1990 GT, which I bought in Cornwall last year and trailered home. It needs a fair bit of work, but it's a good base as a mini-resto. Because I'm busy at work, and because I have a million other cars I need to work on, it hasn't progressed very far. To date, I've only overhauled the carb, fitted a new ignition switch, sourced some original wheels, and......that's about it. In nearly a year!
So, I decided the best thing I could do was take on ANOTHER AX GT!
The car above was listed on the AX forums. The thread was titled simply 'AX GT in France'. Yup, France. The long and short of it is that a very nice British couple had taken the wise decision to go and live in the south of France a couple of decades ago. They'd taken their AX GT with them, which (I'm pretty sure judging by the paperwork) they bought from new, in Bristol. This very AX was now being offered to an enthusiastic owner, free of charge. The only gripe? It was in the south of France!
I'm not expecting too many hassles with getting it back into the UK, as it was previously registered here, and happily is RHD. I'm hoping I can just register it and be away!
Before you get excited and expect pictures of an epic roadtrip where I hitchhike across rural France carrying a backpack, an AX GT brochure purchased on eBay the week before, and a smile........you're in luck!
Not really, I'm getting Shiply to pick it up. Not sure when it'll arrive, possibly Saturday or Sunday.
In fact, it should be getting picked up tomorrow. The costs to transport it are more than I paid for the AX GT I'd bought last year, but I'm hoping this one is closer to being able to just throw into service than that car, which needs some welding first. I'm sure it'll need lots of TLC over the coming years, but I can approach it as a rolling project, as opposed to something that sits and takes up workshop space. I've already got some spares for the other car which I could use, if I needed to. I'll then sell the other car on as a project.
Only slight interesting detail that I've heard as a rumour, is that somebody else enquired about the car also, and they're led to believe it's done 200,000 miles. 200,000 miles.....in an AX!? I could email the 'sellers' and ask, after all they're very friendly. But there's a part of me that wants to be surprised!
Now.....I wait!
Edited by Kitchski on Friday 6th May 13:03
jamiebae said:
Brilliant little cars, I never actually owned one but came close to buying one more than once. This one sounds interesting, and 200k isn't that crazy to have done in 25 years in an AX I'd say.
I'll be following this with interest, we have similar taste in old Citroens, but you seem to buy them while I only think about them without actually following through on it...
I would argue that 200,000 is low mileage, if you average 10k a year I'll be following this with interest, we have similar taste in old Citroens, but you seem to buy them while I only think about them without actually following through on it...
Not sure how much of it will still be in one piece though, and that's assuming it actually has done 200k. I know it's done less than a 1,000km in the last ten years though.As for buying old Citroens, the beauty is they're cheap, so you can realise your dreams! Some people will spend more on a watch, or a dirty weekend away somewhere. I prefer to buy something I could sell again if I needed to, and have fun driving it in the process.
S10GTA said:
I disappointed with the lack of road trip.
I offered you the chance to go!RemyMartin said:
Pictures of the miniture rev counter please :-)
When I get it, yes. I could snap the one in the AX I already have, but where's the fun in that.....chillbill said:
I'll just leave this here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mBFjHjm0O5M
That NEVER gets old!About 430,000 miles on the clock too. I suppose it's marginally more impressive than what I might end up with
Edited by Kitchski on Thursday 10th March 16:35
The Eagle has launched:
Sharing the trailer with something equally interesting:
Hopefully here by tomorrow or Sunday. I guess I'm probably his first stop!
MoT booked for Monday afternoon. I need to do that first in order to get the thing imported!
I do already have a white AX GT, but I might actually be able to drive this one! The excitement mounts....
Sharing the trailer with something equally interesting:
Hopefully here by tomorrow or Sunday. I guess I'm probably his first stop!
MoT booked for Monday afternoon. I need to do that first in order to get the thing imported!
I do already have a white AX GT, but I might actually be able to drive this one! The excitement mounts....
Hard not to panic when you get a phone call saying "Don't worry, the car is fine......"
That's what I got this morning! Turns out the truck had a blow out last night, and missed the ferry. Driver's had a mare by the sounds of it! Hoping to get a ferry tomorrow morning, so should see it later tomorrow hopefully.
That's what I got this morning! Turns out the truck had a blow out last night, and missed the ferry. Driver's had a mare by the sounds of it! Hoping to get a ferry tomorrow morning, so should see it later tomorrow hopefully.
The Eagle has landed! Covered around the same distance too:
Front shocks are shot, brakes barely work and it is FILTHY! Yet, it's actually better than you'd expect for a mk1 AX with nearly a quarter of a million miles on it. It's got an exhaust leak, which is detracting from the seemingly sweet-running engine, and there is the odd job to do, but on the whole it's actually not bad at all. And the rear end looks effectively rot free, which is more than can be said for my other one.
MoT booked tomorrow, then on to the import fun & games, and then hopefully, a small Citroen gathering in mid-April
Front shocks are shot, brakes barely work and it is FILTHY! Yet, it's actually better than you'd expect for a mk1 AX with nearly a quarter of a million miles on it. It's got an exhaust leak, which is detracting from the seemingly sweet-running engine, and there is the odd job to do, but on the whole it's actually not bad at all. And the rear end looks effectively rot free, which is more than can be said for my other one.
MoT booked tomorrow, then on to the import fun & games, and then hopefully, a small Citroen gathering in mid-April
So, time for an update! Last week or so has been pretty hectic, and aside from chuck it in for an MoT and a (small) bit of cleaning, I haven't really done much to the latest acquisition.
This is the site I was finally greeted with on Sunday:
The very same truck from the pictures I was sent from the south of France, only now complete with two new rear tyres after the blowout (I was trying to stay calm!)
Light disappeared fairly quickly, so I went home left with memories of this:
The next day, I came back into work at Southways, and was eager to get cracking on the AX. Sadly, I remembered I was at WORK, and had to wait until lunchtime to get some snaps:
One of the first issues identified right away, is that it's had some light front and rear impact action! Alignment of the front end is, interesting:
While the rear still bares the scars:
The bootlid is cracked, and the rear bumper is damaged beyond reasonable repair. Luckily I have a pretty good bootlid on the other white AX. You know, the one I was going to do up, and didn't do up because I got this, and planned to sell but now plan to sell after I've raided the best bits off of it? That car...:
The bodywork is pretty tatty, but that's to be expected. That said, overall it's not much worse than my other white car, and the long-term intention was to get the thing resprayed, as long as the values of the cars continue climbing to match the input! But overall, for nearly quarter of a million miles on a car with the build integrity of a crisp packet, it's actually fared pretty well
Other greatness includes semi-tidy interior condition:
Jen-you-iiine rubber mats:
Original Blaupunkt stereo (which does still work):
Evidence of canine-carrying activity:
Evidence of paint-carrying activity:
Evidence of carrying heavy s
t and working for a living activity:
And evidence of being a propaahh French motah from actual France. Activity.:
Looks like I'm trying to paint a bleak picture, doesn't it? I'm not. Sure the dash is broken, but I have a good dash in the other car. Sure the seats are broken (the lever to slide it anyway), but I have good seats in the other car. Why don't I just crack on with the other car, you might ask! Well, this car has lived near Spain for many years, and prior to that seems to have spent most of its life bombing up and down motorways, while leaking the odd bit of oil. The underside and all the bits of an AX that normally rot away are preserved brilliantly! The car is filthy dirty, but it's still largely original and it can be cleaned. I'm confident I can get it looking sharp
First job in hand was an MoT test on Monday. I need to do this first, along with telling HMRC the car is in the UK (which is proving difficult, being that their online system for doing this is utter dogste. The MoT station did their bit however, and produced a lovely failure sheet using the vehicle's chassis number!:
Happily, no big fails (not even an advisory on rust - happy days!) and many of the parts needed there I already had in stock ready for the other car. Headlamps....DOH! Didn't think about converting them back to RHD!
More to come, later on
This is the site I was finally greeted with on Sunday:
The very same truck from the pictures I was sent from the south of France, only now complete with two new rear tyres after the blowout (I was trying to stay calm!)
Light disappeared fairly quickly, so I went home left with memories of this:
The next day, I came back into work at Southways, and was eager to get cracking on the AX. Sadly, I remembered I was at WORK, and had to wait until lunchtime to get some snaps:
One of the first issues identified right away, is that it's had some light front and rear impact action! Alignment of the front end is, interesting:
While the rear still bares the scars:
The bootlid is cracked, and the rear bumper is damaged beyond reasonable repair. Luckily I have a pretty good bootlid on the other white AX. You know, the one I was going to do up, and didn't do up because I got this, and planned to sell but now plan to sell after I've raided the best bits off of it? That car...:
The bodywork is pretty tatty, but that's to be expected. That said, overall it's not much worse than my other white car, and the long-term intention was to get the thing resprayed, as long as the values of the cars continue climbing to match the input! But overall, for nearly quarter of a million miles on a car with the build integrity of a crisp packet, it's actually fared pretty well
Other greatness includes semi-tidy interior condition:
Jen-you-iiine rubber mats:
Original Blaupunkt stereo (which does still work):
Evidence of canine-carrying activity:
Evidence of paint-carrying activity:
Evidence of carrying heavy s
t and working for a living activity:And evidence of being a propaahh French motah from actual France. Activity.:
Looks like I'm trying to paint a bleak picture, doesn't it? I'm not. Sure the dash is broken, but I have a good dash in the other car. Sure the seats are broken (the lever to slide it anyway), but I have good seats in the other car. Why don't I just crack on with the other car, you might ask! Well, this car has lived near Spain for many years, and prior to that seems to have spent most of its life bombing up and down motorways, while leaking the odd bit of oil. The underside and all the bits of an AX that normally rot away are preserved brilliantly! The car is filthy dirty, but it's still largely original and it can be cleaned. I'm confident I can get it looking sharp
First job in hand was an MoT test on Monday. I need to do this first, along with telling HMRC the car is in the UK (which is proving difficult, being that their online system for doing this is utter dogs
te. The MoT station did their bit however, and produced a lovely failure sheet using the vehicle's chassis number!:Happily, no big fails (not even an advisory on rust - happy days!) and many of the parts needed there I already had in stock ready for the other car. Headlamps....DOH! Didn't think about converting them back to RHD!
More to come, later on
james_tigerwoods said:
S10GTA said:
so you're going to use the white one as a donor for the white one?
How will you know which is which - I can see you taking both apart, putting one back together, standing back and realising that you've rebuilt the crappy one with the crappy parts That's what I'd end up doing anyway
Frimley111R said:
Excellent. I had a white AX Splash back in the day and used to clean the bumpers with Jif and a stiff brush! They came up like new every time
Will try that, cheers!dibblecorse said:
Brilliant and will follow this, first weekend of Dec 89 I picked up G807RGU my beloved black MK1 AX GT, loved that car, rant it for 5 years and 100k, was ruined when I'd finished with it, was brand new, cost me 8k and as an 18 year old first years insurance was 1250, I can remember taking the money in cash to the Endsleigh office on the Old Kent Road, would love another but decent ones are rare. Keep up the good work fella.
My first AX GT was a black one (with white 15in Dare RLS wheels). Had that at 17/18yrs old. That was G148TKL. Then a grey one (G140TKL....really!) Then a silver one me at S10GTA went and bought from a pub garden near Kent/London for £30, which I gave to a girlfriend as a birthday present, only for her to return it to me when we broke up (I was a bit of a bd to her looking back, which takes the rose-tinted specs off a bit). That was G706DAB. Then there was K501MMR, a white GTi I paid £50 for, and had covered 29k miles. That ended its days in Scotland, a week after being converted to run a 106 GTi engine a van drove into the back of it! Then there was G313XAE - a grey mk1 GT that I was given F.O.C (seems to be a reoccuring theme) and to be fair that was probably the best of all of them. Then these two white ones. I paid more than £1250 to insure my black one at 17 though. Think it was £1600 IIRC. rossub said:
Ah good old Endsleigh. Back in the early - mid nineties, they were the only company that would touch us young uns with something sporty
The AX GT is one that got away from me. Put a deposit on a Black G plate in 1996, got home and the woman phoned to say she'd had a higher offer! Ended up with a 309 SRI instead.
It was CIS back in the days for me. Endsleigh wised up just before I got driving! CIS would also let you drive other cars third party, which was great for swapping cars with mates......in emergencies. Honest.The AX GT is one that got away from me. Put a deposit on a Black G plate in 1996, got home and the woman phoned to say she'd had a higher offer! Ended up with a 309 SRI instead.
Something great about AX GTs and football. A year ago, I went to pick up the other white GT I have, which we got from Cornwall. That day, we (Southampton FC) beat Aston Villa 6-1.
Yesterday, I went to spend the day working on this AX. We end up beating Liverpool 3-2, having trailed 0-2 at half time. Boring as sin for people who don't like football, but for those who do - get an AX GT, especially if you live in Leicester!
Anyway, slightly prior to the weekend of sporting triumph, I made a start on the AX's MoT issues. I've ticked the HMRC box - they know it's in the UK and have confirmed there's nothing to pay. I still need to get it MoT'd within 14 days though (seems daft - what if it's a project car?!) so I'm cracking on with that. Except for the first few minutes, where I'm just trying to clean the engine bay up a bit! Here's how it started:
Including oar-sum bonnet stay clamp (original plastic one long gone!):
A long while later, it looked slightly less filthy dirty under there:
That's because most of it was on the bodywork:
So a quick clean on the outside too, mainly to assess how tatty it was and whether it was worth raiding bits off the other white GT for, which in fairness isn't un-tatty itself! It came up ok though, so I'll live with it like this for a bit (these pics make it look much better than it is - white hides dings well!):
Granted, this wasn't strictly necessary for the MoT, but progress is good for morale! What was necessary was to try and sort out the rear light interaction issue:
Annoyingly, this wasn't as simple as just cleaning the earthing point, but I did this anyway along with the rear panels behind the lamps, just to see how it came up:
Pretty well was the answer. Nice and clean and straight:
Rear lamp issue persisted after cleaning of earth contacts though. Ran out of time that lunchbreak, more time needed!
I also switched the fair-condition mk2 bonnet the car came with for a poor condition mk1 bonnet. More madness? No, it MUST have a mk1 bonnet. It's just wrong without it!:
Also, one of the MoT fails was a faulty/blocked washer jet. Changing the bonnet to repair a washer jet.....excessive? No way!
I popped the car up onto the ramp on Friday evening in preparation for some MoT work I'd hope to get done on Sunday. Had a quick nose around underneath for the first time, too:
First thing I noticed was the downpipe's taken a beating. The flat patch is actually supposed to be there, but the heavy dings aren't. Luckily I have the spare on the other GT, and I really want to retain the original GT type because they have a divider in the centre, meaning the exhaust is a genuine 4-2-1 system from new.
It's the same idea as my BX's, although that's 8-4-2-1, which sounds much cooler!
Happily, it's in VERY good condition under here. It might have done some mileage, but I don't think I've ever seen an AX as original and straight as this underneath. I can find no evidence of welding anywhere on the car, and preserving that is my number one aim. It'll possibly never be worth much later in life because of the miles, but to the right person this is a massively original AX, with A LOT of history, which will be fully reconditioned. What's not to like?! Good job I'm not selling it anyway!
Sills and rear inner arches are in much better condition than they have any right to be!:
Made a start on the most pressing issues - front shock absorbers, and wheel bearing. The damper issue is actually where the shaft has play in it, rather than anything else, though if it has sufficient play to fail an MOT, it's pretty much goosed anyway! The wheel bearing on the driver's side had excess play, and the CV boot on the nearside was guff, so it was a case of ripping it all out:
I work on quite a lot of reluctant, 'questionably' engineered stuff at work, so to pull this apart was a joy. Everything so simple, small and lightweight to manhandle!
The front dampers on an AX are inserts. The uprights/lower struts are one and the same bit, as they are in Saxos and 106s, so you need to remove the damper inserts from the struts themselves. There is a special tool for this. There are also Stilsons. I used Stilsons
Removing insert from strut. I appear to have interrupted the bath it was taking in its own oil:
Original? Could they be?! They look like it, but they can't be, can they?!:
Wheel bearings were a little bit more of an AAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHH fkING ahole to remove, but we got there (calmly) in the end:
Eventually I plan to overhaul the whole car, but for now the goal was to get the MoT and get her on the highways. That said, I was having to completely strip one of the front strut assemblies here, and if I were to overhaul them now, that's one less job for the future. So, I made the decision - I was going for it! First thing first, assemble together all strut parts that are AX-speciific and hard(ish) to find:
Shot blast these, and the strut legs themselves. Curse wildly when the compressor overheats and cuts out before the struts were finished:
Note one of the upper top mount cups is a little....pissed:
That's another part raided from the other GT (whose future is looking more bleak by the second!)
Crack on painting these bits up with the best stuff in the business at this kind of thing:
When that's all done, you're ready to tackle the back end. Changing the rear bearing takes 10 mins. Unless it takes you an hours to get the bd drum off because the old bearing is very old:
Then....
10mins later:
No more rough wheel bearing! Was going to do the other side too, until I wked out the first bearing kit trying to use a too-snug-fitting socket to push the new one back in. Doh!!
I went back to the front while the POR15 dried and thought I'd take a look at the exhaust. Then I noticed some more issues (once of which even eluded the MoT tester!):
So that's new track rod ends needed then! And either a brake caliper rebuild, or replacement. And I might as well do braided brake hoses while I'm at it. It's all done then!
And then I found LOADS of play in the anti-roll bar D-bushes:
I've got a full Powerflex kit for it, so I'll do these now and leave the wishbones and rear end until later I think!
So then.................(it's still going)........I thought I'd tackle another big issue, the blowing exhaust. This failed the moT, gases out the occupants of the car and generally makes it sound like 98% more of a wreck than it actually is. It had to be fixed. Luckily I have a spare manifold in stock, as I had a feeling I'd sheer some studs off in this one (why change the habit of a lifetime?!) Anyway, I did, and luckily I do, and I found out why the exhaust was blowing:
The flow divider I was talking about earlier:
The thought had crossed my mind to get a nice 4-2-1 aftermarket manifold, but if you do that you lose this unique 'tingling' noise the TU engine makes under light throttle inputs. I want it to feel, drive and sound original, so I need the original exhaust with the divider. I'll blast and paint the best two I have and fit them.
Last job for the day after I finished up this afternoon was to remove the manifold itself:
|http://thumbsnap.com/BdmFRN9I[/url]
That engine's going to need a clean too....
Yesterday, I went to spend the day working on this AX. We end up beating Liverpool 3-2, having trailed 0-2 at half time. Boring as sin for people who don't like football, but for those who do - get an AX GT, especially if you live in Leicester!
Anyway, slightly prior to the weekend of sporting triumph, I made a start on the AX's MoT issues. I've ticked the HMRC box - they know it's in the UK and have confirmed there's nothing to pay. I still need to get it MoT'd within 14 days though (seems daft - what if it's a project car?!) so I'm cracking on with that. Except for the first few minutes, where I'm just trying to clean the engine bay up a bit! Here's how it started:
Including oar-sum bonnet stay clamp (original plastic one long gone!):
A long while later, it looked slightly less filthy dirty under there:
That's because most of it was on the bodywork:
So a quick clean on the outside too, mainly to assess how tatty it was and whether it was worth raiding bits off the other white GT for, which in fairness isn't un-tatty itself! It came up ok though, so I'll live with it like this for a bit (these pics make it look much better than it is - white hides dings well!):
Granted, this wasn't strictly necessary for the MoT, but progress is good for morale! What was necessary was to try and sort out the rear light interaction issue:
Annoyingly, this wasn't as simple as just cleaning the earthing point, but I did this anyway along with the rear panels behind the lamps, just to see how it came up:
Pretty well was the answer. Nice and clean and straight:
Rear lamp issue persisted after cleaning of earth contacts though. Ran out of time that lunchbreak, more time needed!
I also switched the fair-condition mk2 bonnet the car came with for a poor condition mk1 bonnet. More madness? No, it MUST have a mk1 bonnet. It's just wrong without it!:
Also, one of the MoT fails was a faulty/blocked washer jet. Changing the bonnet to repair a washer jet.....excessive? No way!
I popped the car up onto the ramp on Friday evening in preparation for some MoT work I'd hope to get done on Sunday. Had a quick nose around underneath for the first time, too:
First thing I noticed was the downpipe's taken a beating. The flat patch is actually supposed to be there, but the heavy dings aren't. Luckily I have the spare on the other GT, and I really want to retain the original GT type because they have a divider in the centre, meaning the exhaust is a genuine 4-2-1 system from new.
It's the same idea as my BX's, although that's 8-4-2-1, which sounds much cooler!
Happily, it's in VERY good condition under here. It might have done some mileage, but I don't think I've ever seen an AX as original and straight as this underneath. I can find no evidence of welding anywhere on the car, and preserving that is my number one aim. It'll possibly never be worth much later in life because of the miles, but to the right person this is a massively original AX, with A LOT of history, which will be fully reconditioned. What's not to like?! Good job I'm not selling it anyway!
Sills and rear inner arches are in much better condition than they have any right to be!:
Made a start on the most pressing issues - front shock absorbers, and wheel bearing. The damper issue is actually where the shaft has play in it, rather than anything else, though if it has sufficient play to fail an MOT, it's pretty much goosed anyway! The wheel bearing on the driver's side had excess play, and the CV boot on the nearside was guff, so it was a case of ripping it all out:
I work on quite a lot of reluctant, 'questionably' engineered stuff at work, so to pull this apart was a joy. Everything so simple, small and lightweight to manhandle!
The front dampers on an AX are inserts. The uprights/lower struts are one and the same bit, as they are in Saxos and 106s, so you need to remove the damper inserts from the struts themselves. There is a special tool for this. There are also Stilsons. I used Stilsons
Removing insert from strut. I appear to have interrupted the bath it was taking in its own oil:
Original? Could they be?! They look like it, but they can't be, can they?!:
Wheel bearings were a little bit more of an AAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHH f
kING ahole to remove, but we got there (calmly) in the end:Eventually I plan to overhaul the whole car, but for now the goal was to get the MoT and get her on the highways. That said, I was having to completely strip one of the front strut assemblies here, and if I were to overhaul them now, that's one less job for the future. So, I made the decision - I was going for it! First thing first, assemble together all strut parts that are AX-speciific and hard(ish) to find:
Shot blast these, and the strut legs themselves. Curse wildly when the compressor overheats and cuts out before the struts were finished:
Note one of the upper top mount cups is a little....pissed:
That's another part raided from the other GT (whose future is looking more bleak by the second!)
Crack on painting these bits up with the best stuff in the business at this kind of thing:
When that's all done, you're ready to tackle the back end. Changing the rear bearing takes 10 mins. Unless it takes you an hours to get the b
d drum off because the old bearing is very old:Then....
10mins later:
No more rough wheel bearing! Was going to do the other side too, until I w
ked out the first bearing kit trying to use a too-snug-fitting socket to push the new one back in. Doh!!I went back to the front while the POR15 dried and thought I'd take a look at the exhaust. Then I noticed some more issues (once of which even eluded the MoT tester!):
So that's new track rod ends needed then! And either a brake caliper rebuild, or replacement. And I might as well do braided brake hoses while I'm at it. It's all done then!
And then I found LOADS of play in the anti-roll bar D-bushes:
I've got a full Powerflex kit for it, so I'll do these now and leave the wishbones and rear end until later I think!
So then.................(it's still going)........I thought I'd tackle another big issue, the blowing exhaust. This failed the moT, gases out the occupants of the car and generally makes it sound like 98% more of a wreck than it actually is. It had to be fixed. Luckily I have a spare manifold in stock, as I had a feeling I'd sheer some studs off in this one (why change the habit of a lifetime?!) Anyway, I did, and luckily I do, and I found out why the exhaust was blowing:
The flow divider I was talking about earlier:
The thought had crossed my mind to get a nice 4-2-1 aftermarket manifold, but if you do that you lose this unique 'tingling' noise the TU engine makes under light throttle inputs. I want it to feel, drive and sound original, so I need the original exhaust with the divider. I'll blast and paint the best two I have and fit them.
Last job for the day after I finished up this afternoon was to remove the manifold itself:
|http://thumbsnap.com/BdmFRN9I[/url]That engine's going to need a clean too....
Edited by Kitchski on Friday 6th May 13:20
TonyF55 said:
Ahhh the AX GT, had 2 of these. Brings back some fantastic memories
First car was an early 88 E-reg red one which came with no rear spoiler, I was only young and Dad had seen an advert in the local paper, the ad simply read '1988 Red Citroen AX £1200' (the days when every word was about a £1) Dad says to me, this sounds ideal for you as a little runabout, its only local, lets go take a look. The year is 94/95 and for an 88 car the price seems cheap.
I was not to impressed as I had my heart set on the Fiesta MkII 1.4S that Dad had taken in P/X but he had a buyer lined up for this and he thinks it too fast for me anyway, but not to upset Dad I went along as I liked cars.
We arrive and we see the AX on the drive, straight away I clock that its got a bodykit, I'm thinking is this a 1.0E with bodykit, a quick look inside and round to the bootlid clearly tells me its a GT, Dad doesn't really spot any of this as he is not really that up on the model. He says to me, this is nice and sporty, this will do you wont it? I umm and ahh and say 'yes maybe'. We knock on the door, a middle age lady answers and explains she has had it from new and is now emigrating to Australia and would like it sold quickly.
We explain that it is a well kept car but not keen on the colour and once Dad finds out the engine size his not to sure himself now, but the best bit was when she turned to us and said well I need a quick sale and I am open to an offer, Dad thinks and goes in well cheeky with £700, because he is thinking if I have to pay his insurance on a 1.4 we need it cheap. Boooom she accepts £700.
Long story short, this car was an absolute raucous rocket, rev counter zinging round to 8k regularly, cocking its rear wheel at every opportunity, racing 4.0 XJ6's with aplomb and just putting a smile on my face every drive (all on an airfield of course) I loved this car, kept it for 14 months and only sold it as the car got a name for itself among friends and was offered £2200 for it.
Second car was a 88 F-reg White AX GT Sportif, got this for £900 as it needed the drivers seat welded and a good clean. The chap I bought it from was about 40 stone....that poor seat This car never had the same feel or get up and go as the red one, kept it about 6 months and sold this for £1750.
When the GF (now wife) passed her test, I steered her to a 1.4D Jive as her first car, this was a fantastic little car that we traveled the length and breadth of the country for long weekends in Cornwall/Wales/Yorkshire, this thing ran on fresh air and was nippy enough.
Sorry for the long post but the AX holds really good memories for me when I was younger.
Good story chief, most people have a good memory or two with these cars!First car was an early 88 E-reg red one which came with no rear spoiler, I was only young and Dad had seen an advert in the local paper, the ad simply read '1988 Red Citroen AX £1200' (the days when every word was about a £1) Dad says to me, this sounds ideal for you as a little runabout, its only local, lets go take a look. The year is 94/95 and for an 88 car the price seems cheap.
I was not to impressed as I had my heart set on the Fiesta MkII 1.4S that Dad had taken in P/X but he had a buyer lined up for this and he thinks it too fast for me anyway, but not to upset Dad I went along as I liked cars.
We arrive and we see the AX on the drive, straight away I clock that its got a bodykit, I'm thinking is this a 1.0E with bodykit, a quick look inside and round to the bootlid clearly tells me its a GT, Dad doesn't really spot any of this as he is not really that up on the model. He says to me, this is nice and sporty, this will do you wont it? I umm and ahh and say 'yes maybe'. We knock on the door, a middle age lady answers and explains she has had it from new and is now emigrating to Australia and would like it sold quickly.
We explain that it is a well kept car but not keen on the colour and once Dad finds out the engine size his not to sure himself now, but the best bit was when she turned to us and said well I need a quick sale and I am open to an offer, Dad thinks and goes in well cheeky with £700, because he is thinking if I have to pay his insurance on a 1.4 we need it cheap. Boooom she accepts £700.
Long story short, this car was an absolute raucous rocket, rev counter zinging round to 8k regularly, cocking its rear wheel at every opportunity, racing 4.0 XJ6's with aplomb and just putting a smile on my face every drive (all on an airfield of course) I loved this car, kept it for 14 months and only sold it as the car got a name for itself among friends and was offered £2200 for it.
Second car was a 88 F-reg White AX GT Sportif, got this for £900 as it needed the drivers seat welded and a good clean. The chap I bought it from was about 40 stone....that poor seat
This car never had the same feel or get up and go as the red one, kept it about 6 months and sold this for £1750.When the GF (now wife) passed her test, I steered her to a 1.4D Jive as her first car, this was a fantastic little car that we traveled the length and breadth of the country for long weekends in Cornwall/Wales/Yorkshire, this thing ran on fresh air and was nippy enough.
Sorry for the long post but the AX holds really good memories for me when I was younger.
Edited by TonyF55 on Tuesday 22 March 22:14
Some more progress to report since the last update. We haz MoT 
Took a while to get there, but then for the mileage, age and fact the car was given away, I'm more than happy. It was all easy stuff to rectify, and I was able to sort everything out, bar the advisory about the chip on the windscreen. So 244,000 miles, one advisory. I'll take that!
To get there, I had to carry on repairing, and chose to spruce some bits as I went. I left with the engine being very mucky, and to be honest, after many hours of scrubbing, it is still pretty mucky. Much better than it was though, and the fact it's all oily is actually a blessing in disguise as it means there is very little in the way of alloy corrosion anywhere. Once you've cut through the muck, the finish of the engine is actually really good!
The reason for being here in the first place was because of the leaky exhaust manifold. Turns out, the manifold was shot anyway:
The divider was totally broken up, which wouldn't have helped the gasket as a bit more back pressure would have built up there. Luckily I had a good spare, which I shot blasted and then painted with POR15 VHT spray in cast iron finish:
The original downpipe was a bit battered as I mentioned, so I raided my now-spares-car for a much better one, and shotblasted it:
Quite happy with that, but there was a problem:
One of Peugeot/Citroen's favourite tricks in the 80's & 90's was to put divider plates in their manifolds (not much left of the one above) and downpipes, meaning officially the original AX GT exhaust is a 4-2-1 (check out the BX 16v, which is 8-4-2-1!). The divider works well for an OE system, and you genuinely do lose power if you go for a dividerless system. However, not really that noticeable by camera, but noticeable by eye was a haircut crack running along sections of the divider's outer edge. It's basically where it's rusted over the years and lost a bit of weight! I decided to weld over any cracked or thinner areas, as well as giving the usual AX weakspots an extra seam for future proofing:
Then I gave it matching treatment with the VHT spray and fitted it with new gaskets. I also fitted the lower gearbox bolt, which passes through the downpipe and braces it, as well as providing a fixing for engine to gearbox. It was missing from the car, which could be another reason the joint started leaking.
I chose the cast iron finish, as the original manifold was, well, cast iron! I wanted it to look OE, but tidy, and the cast iron bronzes off very nicely once you put some heat through it.I also blasted and sprayed the heat shield, so the manifold will barely be visible anyway! But at least I've done it.
One of the advisories on the MoT was a minor leak between the exhaust centre section, and the back box. I hate exhaust leaks - cars always sound like total sheds with a leaky exhaust, so I wanted to put this right. Just as I went to strip and refit it, I noticed the centre section also had some hairline cracks in around the silencer welds. This is very common, and aftermarket exhausts are known to split here. So I ordered a new one in. Bosal wasn't available, so I went for a Klarus system, on the advice of the exhaust supplier. When it got here, I pretty much decided straight away I wasn't going to fit it!:
For a start, it's just a cheap AX exhaust. It's a smaller bore than the one on there (which, though it looks genuine, is still aftermarket) and the mandrel bends are just guff! The pipe is compressed on all the kinks way more than the original, which has been made using the more expensive but much better method of retaining the pipe diameter. also, the replacement wasn't even lined up right!
I decided to sack that off and repair my original by welding over the cracks, though I did notice the backbox (which at £24 I just got for the sake of it) actually appeared to use a much beefier diameter pipe, and the quality looked noticeably better, even though it was badged as a Klarus too! I guess they don't make them, they buy them in and label them. So, I decided to fit the backbox, which was the one bit that never actually needed renewing:
Along with attending to said fractures. Before:
After (no, I didn't forget to take a pic after I'd done it and grabbed one under the car later on. Honest.....):
In the end I welded three ends up. The 4th had been done already.....interestingly:
The result was, well....a result! The fit of this system combined is brilliant! You see so many AX/Saxo/106 models around with the exhausts hanging low off the bottom, rubbing the bumper or rubbing the heat shield underneath. This thing is tight, perfectly aligned, nicely tucked up underneath, leak-free and to cap it all off, it makes that tinny, raspy note the AX GT is supposed to make. I really couldn't have got luckier!
So, back to more pressing issues, namely the suspension and wheel bearings. The uprights were now all painted up in POR15 gloss black, and I was in the process of rebuilding them with the new Bilstein B4 dampers, wheel bearngs, top mounts, brake discs........it goes on!
Dampers going in:
Spring cups all blasted and painted, new top mounts fitted:
Strut assy nearly complete:
Time isn't on my side with this one, so the road springs will have to wait another time to be painted up. AXs don't tend to suffer snapping of the coil springs though, and there's nothing in the history to suggest these aren't original. They're in very good condition either way!
Then I had to clear the threads for the brake calipers:
Earlier on I found a hole in the rubber boot on one of the brake calipers. The brakes never felt great in this car (they never feel great in any AX!) but we had a customer's AX GT track car in at the same time, and by the time I'd finished with that car, the brakes were miles better than this car. So, because of the ripped dust cover, the mileage and the fact the pads that came out looked like this:
....I decided to renew the calipers, discs and pads. The pads I took out were actually genuine Citroen, but luckily I had another set ready to fit. £16 on eBay, new old stock. Bargainous!:
So by the end, my refurbished uprights looked like this:
That was blasted/POR15 painted uprights, new driveshafts, new brake calipers, new brake discs and pads, new shock absorbers, new top mounts, new track rod ends and new brake hoses.....HEL braided, of course, only finished in black to look OE+. I just need to make a new loom to connect the brake pad wear indicators to!:
I also found the anti-roll bar bushes to be slacker than Stricklands worst student, so these were replaced with Powerflex units early on:
I've got some new wishbones and some Powerflex wishbone bushes to fit yet, and I might pop a lower strut brace on there just to sure things up a bit. But for now, it's gone well!
This was all a week or so ago, and since then I've simply been waiting for the DVLA to process the paperwork to re-register it back in the UK. I posted it before remembering to write the sender's address on the back of the envelope, so am presently stting it that they won't get it and that all my paperwork will be lost in the post. Likewise, why didn't I send it recorded?!! Durr!!!! The show I want to take it to is on the 17th April, so provided all the paperwork goes well, I'll be going to that.
This very afternoon, I'd been playing TVRs at work as usual, and as usual TVRs were giving me a massive headache. Part-way through storming out and going home to switch the xBox on, I caught glimpse of the AX sat there, and thought I might just grease the ignition barrel. Been meaning to do that for ages, and it's very sticky. They're always snapping, so I should do that.
Next thing I know, I've pulled the carb off:
Now I'd been originally restoring the other white GT I have, which is now destined for spares. In the process of doing this, I'd stripped and rebuilt the carburettor, as that car ran like a sack of st! The carb is a Solex Z2 32/34 twin-choke unit:
This AX ran much better, but was only really happy at full throttle. Prolonged driving at part-throttle got rougher and rougher, which is something I'd remembered from my younger days of driving them (I wonder if this one will conk out going round fast, tight right-handers too?) So being that I'd fully refurbished this one, I decided to fit it:
Still need to get some suitable fuel hose in! The original doesn't have long left in it!
Once I'd played around with the choke connections, mixture control and idle speeds, I'd nailed it. It runs and drives beautifully! I've only been round the private estate here, but it pulls so sweetly in any gear. No stuttering, no hesitation....nothing. Perfect! Made up for the stty afternoon I had at work!
So, in between now and the 17th's trip to Burghley House (should I get the registration done ok), I've got the following to do:
Took a while to get there, but then for the mileage, age and fact the car was given away, I'm more than happy. It was all easy stuff to rectify, and I was able to sort everything out, bar the advisory about the chip on the windscreen. So 244,000 miles, one advisory. I'll take that!
To get there, I had to carry on repairing, and chose to spruce some bits as I went. I left with the engine being very mucky, and to be honest, after many hours of scrubbing, it is still pretty mucky. Much better than it was though, and the fact it's all oily is actually a blessing in disguise as it means there is very little in the way of alloy corrosion anywhere. Once you've cut through the muck, the finish of the engine is actually really good!
The reason for being here in the first place was because of the leaky exhaust manifold. Turns out, the manifold was shot anyway:
The divider was totally broken up, which wouldn't have helped the gasket as a bit more back pressure would have built up there. Luckily I had a good spare, which I shot blasted and then painted with POR15 VHT spray in cast iron finish:
The original downpipe was a bit battered as I mentioned, so I raided my now-spares-car for a much better one, and shotblasted it:
Quite happy with that, but there was a problem:
One of Peugeot/Citroen's favourite tricks in the 80's & 90's was to put divider plates in their manifolds (not much left of the one above) and downpipes, meaning officially the original AX GT exhaust is a 4-2-1 (check out the BX 16v, which is 8-4-2-1!). The divider works well for an OE system, and you genuinely do lose power if you go for a dividerless system. However, not really that noticeable by camera, but noticeable by eye was a haircut crack running along sections of the divider's outer edge. It's basically where it's rusted over the years and lost a bit of weight! I decided to weld over any cracked or thinner areas, as well as giving the usual AX weakspots an extra seam for future proofing:
Then I gave it matching treatment with the VHT spray and fitted it with new gaskets. I also fitted the lower gearbox bolt, which passes through the downpipe and braces it, as well as providing a fixing for engine to gearbox. It was missing from the car, which could be another reason the joint started leaking.
I chose the cast iron finish, as the original manifold was, well, cast iron! I wanted it to look OE, but tidy, and the cast iron bronzes off very nicely once you put some heat through it.I also blasted and sprayed the heat shield, so the manifold will barely be visible anyway! But at least I've done it.
One of the advisories on the MoT was a minor leak between the exhaust centre section, and the back box. I hate exhaust leaks - cars always sound like total sheds with a leaky exhaust, so I wanted to put this right. Just as I went to strip and refit it, I noticed the centre section also had some hairline cracks in around the silencer welds. This is very common, and aftermarket exhausts are known to split here. So I ordered a new one in. Bosal wasn't available, so I went for a Klarus system, on the advice of the exhaust supplier. When it got here, I pretty much decided straight away I wasn't going to fit it!:
For a start, it's just a cheap AX exhaust. It's a smaller bore than the one on there (which, though it looks genuine, is still aftermarket) and the mandrel bends are just guff! The pipe is compressed on all the kinks way more than the original, which has been made using the more expensive but much better method of retaining the pipe diameter. also, the replacement wasn't even lined up right!
I decided to sack that off and repair my original by welding over the cracks, though I did notice the backbox (which at £24 I just got for the sake of it) actually appeared to use a much beefier diameter pipe, and the quality looked noticeably better, even though it was badged as a Klarus too! I guess they don't make them, they buy them in and label them. So, I decided to fit the backbox, which was the one bit that never actually needed renewing:
Along with attending to said fractures. Before:
After (no, I didn't forget to take a pic after I'd done it and grabbed one under the car later on. Honest.....):
In the end I welded three ends up. The 4th had been done already.....interestingly:
The result was, well....a result! The fit of this system combined is brilliant! You see so many AX/Saxo/106 models around with the exhausts hanging low off the bottom, rubbing the bumper or rubbing the heat shield underneath. This thing is tight, perfectly aligned, nicely tucked up underneath, leak-free and to cap it all off, it makes that tinny, raspy note the AX GT is supposed to make. I really couldn't have got luckier!
So, back to more pressing issues, namely the suspension and wheel bearings. The uprights were now all painted up in POR15 gloss black, and I was in the process of rebuilding them with the new Bilstein B4 dampers, wheel bearngs, top mounts, brake discs........it goes on!
Dampers going in:
Spring cups all blasted and painted, new top mounts fitted:
Strut assy nearly complete:
Time isn't on my side with this one, so the road springs will have to wait another time to be painted up. AXs don't tend to suffer snapping of the coil springs though, and there's nothing in the history to suggest these aren't original. They're in very good condition either way!
Then I had to clear the threads for the brake calipers:
Earlier on I found a hole in the rubber boot on one of the brake calipers. The brakes never felt great in this car (they never feel great in any AX!) but we had a customer's AX GT track car in at the same time, and by the time I'd finished with that car, the brakes were miles better than this car. So, because of the ripped dust cover, the mileage and the fact the pads that came out looked like this:
....I decided to renew the calipers, discs and pads. The pads I took out were actually genuine Citroen, but luckily I had another set ready to fit. £16 on eBay, new old stock. Bargainous!:
So by the end, my refurbished uprights looked like this:
That was blasted/POR15 painted uprights, new driveshafts, new brake calipers, new brake discs and pads, new shock absorbers, new top mounts, new track rod ends and new brake hoses.....HEL braided, of course, only finished in black to look OE+. I just need to make a new loom to connect the brake pad wear indicators to!:
I also found the anti-roll bar bushes to be slacker than Stricklands worst student, so these were replaced with Powerflex units early on:
I've got some new wishbones and some Powerflex wishbone bushes to fit yet, and I might pop a lower strut brace on there just to sure things up a bit. But for now, it's gone well!
This was all a week or so ago, and since then I've simply been waiting for the DVLA to process the paperwork to re-register it back in the UK. I posted it before remembering to write the sender's address on the back of the envelope, so am presently s
tting it that they won't get it and that all my paperwork will be lost in the post. Likewise, why didn't I send it recorded?!! Durr!!!! The show I want to take it to is on the 17th April, so provided all the paperwork goes well, I'll be going to that.This very afternoon, I'd been playing TVRs at work as usual, and as usual TVRs were giving me a massive headache. Part-way through storming out and going home to switch the xBox on, I caught glimpse of the AX sat there, and thought I might just grease the ignition barrel. Been meaning to do that for ages, and it's very sticky. They're always snapping, so I should do that.
Next thing I know, I've pulled the carb off:
Now I'd been originally restoring the other white GT I have, which is now destined for spares. In the process of doing this, I'd stripped and rebuilt the carburettor, as that car ran like a sack of s
t! The carb is a Solex Z2 32/34 twin-choke unit:This AX ran much better, but was only really happy at full throttle. Prolonged driving at part-throttle got rougher and rougher, which is something I'd remembered from my younger days of driving them (I wonder if this one will conk out going round fast, tight right-handers too?) So being that I'd fully refurbished this one, I decided to fit it:
Still need to get some suitable fuel hose in! The original doesn't have long left in it!
Once I'd played around with the choke connections, mixture control and idle speeds, I'd nailed it. It runs and drives beautifully! I've only been round the private estate here, but it pulls so sweetly in any gear. No stuttering, no hesitation....nothing. Perfect! Made up for the s
tty afternoon I had at work!So, in between now and the 17th's trip to Burghley House (should I get the registration done ok), I've got the following to do:
- Change the lower arms - the bushes are knocking their tits off.
- Compression test and dyno/rolling road session. See how healthy this thing is, and check the gearing as it's had a used gearbox fitted in the past (incidentally, the guy I got it from was kind enough to go through what was and wasn't original....the head gasket, and the gearbox are all that's been done. The engine - all original!) My worry with the gearing is that unless you removed it from an AX GT yourself, they all look the same externally, and if by chance it's got the ratios from a different car in (not that it would be massively noticeable, then I have a chance to use the box in my spares car rather than selling it!
- Clutch cable - will wait until I've checked gearbox. The pedal is very stiff and jerky, and being that I've got the throttle light and razor sharp now, and the brakes are now much better, then the clutch is really letting the side down! It might be the actual clutch, sticking on the splines, but I'll wait and see if I've got a proper GT gearbox fitted first.
- Cambelt - might as well do it, as it's pretty easy. Need to do the valve clearances too, as it's a mite tappy.
- Service - matter of course, and fuel filter looks a million years old.
- Bloody good clean inside! The exterior can stay a bit ratty for now. It adds to the charm!
- Dashboard - it's broken, and rattling around all over the place. My spares car has a good dash, so I might switch them before I drive 400 miles in it. The rattling will drive me mental otherwise!
Edited by Kitchski on Friday 6th May 13:27
Cheers all
It used to make me laugh though. There were two cars, 100kg difference in weight and not a huge amount between them. Maybe 1/2second on the 0-60mph? And then we were surrounded by other lads who were removing the rear seats from their car, and the spare wheel - all in the name of saving about 20kgs
ETA: Of course there was also the first version of the XS, which used the suitcase Simca-type engine, not the TU. Think those were about 75-80bhp too, but sounded like a tumble dryer full of spanners. And then there was the 5dr version of the XS, the GT (which I nearly bought once.....)
itcaptainslow said:
I'd rather read this than a thread about a Ferrari etc. Absorbing-keep the updates coming!
Yeah, I'm the same. I'm following a thread on a Moggie Minor, a 2006 Fiat Panda, a Metro and the 106 XSi at the moment. Not a sports car or anything 'exotic' in sight!abarber said:
Great car!
I never had the pleasure of an AX GT, but my 205 XS with the same TU lump ans Solex carb was great fun. Such a willing revvable engine too. Just as well at 5k+ on the motorway.
It maybe a cliche, but they don't build 'em like this any more!
Yeah, I had a friend with the XS. There really wasn't much in it. I heard lots of BS saying the AX had closer gear ratios, a different cam and more power etc, but personally I think the engines were actually identical. Peugeot probably up to their old tricks of talking down power figures and book times to try and get low insurance groups. Only difference was the AX was about 100kg lighter, hence it was a bit faster. Not much, but a bit.....we tried I never had the pleasure of an AX GT, but my 205 XS with the same TU lump ans Solex carb was great fun. Such a willing revvable engine too. Just as well at 5k+ on the motorway.
It maybe a cliche, but they don't build 'em like this any more!
It used to make me laugh though. There were two cars, 100kg difference in weight and not a huge amount between them. Maybe 1/2second on the 0-60mph? And then we were surrounded by other lads who were removing the rear seats from their car, and the spare wheel - all in the name of saving about 20kgs
ETA: Of course there was also the first version of the XS, which used the suitcase Simca-type engine, not the TU. Think those were about 75-80bhp too, but sounded like a tumble dryer full of spanners. And then there was the 5dr version of the XS, the GT (which I nearly bought once.....)
I am SOOOOOO going to regret not sending this recorded. Chased today, still hasn't been processed 
The little Citroen rally this weekend is out the window now. DVLA have said give it til Monday, then ring again. Sounds like they never received it all and me being a complete tit, I forgot to write a return address on the envelope
The little Citroen rally this weekend is out the window now. DVLA have said give it til Monday, then ring again. Sounds like they never received it all and me being a complete tit, I forgot to write a return address on the envelope
Time to pick up on the AX GT. While I was waiting around for the paperwork, I set about swapping the boot over with the car I'm breaking:
Would be nice to keep as much of the original bits as I can, but the bootlid is cracked right through, and the replacement is already the right colour!
Renewed little things like the slightly-less worn out boot striker:
I also sorted out one of the slightly less pressing, yet slightly more satisfying aspects of the car:
Dead happy with what The Wheel Specialist in Fareham managed with these. That's basically a full OE refurb. Originally, and for reasons not entirely known, Citroen used to enjoy stitching wheel refurb companies all over Europe up like total kippers, by subtlety using two different colours on their alloy wheels. With the AX GT, the process is paint/powder coat in black, then prep and paint the inner lip in grey, then diamond cut the whole thing and finally lacquer it. This was the first set TWS Fareham tried, and they nailed it! I bought the Dunlop tyres last year, in the correct 155/60R14 sizing. The very early AX GTs had 13in wheels, but these were upgraded to 14in when they started fitting bigger brakes at the front (238mm discs became 259mm discs).
You may remember the panicking that had set in due to my balls up on the paperwork postage? Well, I got away with it!
Came a bit later than planned (22/04/16) but it came! That's the important bit! Turns out the reason for the delay was that I'd put way more in there than they really needed, but that was on the basis that there wasn't much detail in the instructions on how to apply. The dept that was supposed to get the paperwork never did, because the dept that received it just sat on it. The guy on the phone apologised, and DVLA were very helpful in general. I also got away with the postage, as it turns out even if you don't cover the postage fully, they'll still deliver it to government buildings anyway. Result!
And that meant the first order of business was to get it out on Drive it Day (24th April). I spent most of the day in my BX 16v that day, but I made 30mins or so in the morning to get out in the AX:
New wh33lz and new pl8s! The AX GT is officially on the road! Happy days!
First thing I noticed about the car, having got it out on the road, was that it wasn't running perfectly afterall. It should be, as I rebuilt the carb and made sure it was all tip-top there, but I found it really lumpy and jerky the more you drove it, and it seemed too reliant on the choke. Then, one evening I popped over a mates a few miles away and opened it up for the first time on the motorway. The harder I drove it, the worse it got. It would only pull flat-out, or idle. Everything else was lumpy and unhappy. It felt a bit like the carb was icing up, but the AX GT never suffers from that as the inlet manifold is plumbed into the cooling system.
Then I realised I hadn't been paying much attention to the temperature gauge, which was pretty much always at rock bottom. I got to my mates, popped the bonnet, undid the rad cap.....nothing. Barely warm!
The next day, back into the workshop. I began wondering if the thermostat had been removed, it was that bad. My heart sank when I saw this:
But when I pulled it out, I began laughing with relief:
I nabbed the housing from the other car, as this one was full of silicone, and the threads that the stat spigot bolt to were damaged, and it had been bodged up with some nuts at the back. New housing cleaned, new stat fitted, no silicone in sight. Jobbed!:
I took the opportunity to fit a new rad cap, as the old one wasn't holding 15psi, and the fuel filter, as the old one wasn't holding anything except muck.
I also made a new section of coolant pipe to fit in a section above the radiator. This is not because I didn't check it wasn't fouling the cooling fan before I ran the engine up. Definitely not:
Nope, no siree. Not today. Genuine upgrade!
Would be nice to keep as much of the original bits as I can, but the bootlid is cracked right through, and the replacement is already the right colour!
Renewed little things like the slightly-less worn out boot striker:
I also sorted out one of the slightly less pressing, yet slightly more satisfying aspects of the car:
Dead happy with what The Wheel Specialist in Fareham managed with these. That's basically a full OE refurb. Originally, and for reasons not entirely known, Citroen used to enjoy stitching wheel refurb companies all over Europe up like total kippers, by subtlety using two different colours on their alloy wheels. With the AX GT, the process is paint/powder coat in black, then prep and paint the inner lip in grey, then diamond cut the whole thing and finally lacquer it. This was the first set TWS Fareham tried, and they nailed it! I bought the Dunlop tyres last year, in the correct 155/60R14 sizing. The very early AX GTs had 13in wheels, but these were upgraded to 14in when they started fitting bigger brakes at the front (238mm discs became 259mm discs).
You may remember the panicking that had set in due to my balls up on the paperwork postage? Well, I got away with it!
Came a bit later than planned (22/04/16) but it came! That's the important bit! Turns out the reason for the delay was that I'd put way more in there than they really needed, but that was on the basis that there wasn't much detail in the instructions on how to apply. The dept that was supposed to get the paperwork never did, because the dept that received it just sat on it. The guy on the phone apologised, and DVLA were very helpful in general. I also got away with the postage, as it turns out even if you don't cover the postage fully, they'll still deliver it to government buildings anyway. Result!
And that meant the first order of business was to get it out on Drive it Day (24th April). I spent most of the day in my BX 16v that day, but I made 30mins or so in the morning to get out in the AX:
New wh33lz and new pl8s! The AX GT is officially on the road! Happy days!
First thing I noticed about the car, having got it out on the road, was that it wasn't running perfectly afterall. It should be, as I rebuilt the carb and made sure it was all tip-top there, but I found it really lumpy and jerky the more you drove it, and it seemed too reliant on the choke. Then, one evening I popped over a mates a few miles away and opened it up for the first time on the motorway. The harder I drove it, the worse it got. It would only pull flat-out, or idle. Everything else was lumpy and unhappy. It felt a bit like the carb was icing up, but the AX GT never suffers from that as the inlet manifold is plumbed into the cooling system.
Then I realised I hadn't been paying much attention to the temperature gauge, which was pretty much always at rock bottom. I got to my mates, popped the bonnet, undid the rad cap.....nothing. Barely warm!
The next day, back into the workshop. I began wondering if the thermostat had been removed, it was that bad. My heart sank when I saw this:
But when I pulled it out, I began laughing with relief:
I nabbed the housing from the other car, as this one was full of silicone, and the threads that the stat spigot bolt to were damaged, and it had been bodged up with some nuts at the back. New housing cleaned, new stat fitted, no silicone in sight. Jobbed!:
I took the opportunity to fit a new rad cap, as the old one wasn't holding 15psi, and the fuel filter, as the old one wasn't holding anything except muck.
I also made a new section of coolant pipe to fit in a section above the radiator. This is not because I didn't check it wasn't fouling the cooling fan before I ran the engine up. Definitely not:
Nope, no siree. Not today. Genuine upgrade!
Edited by Kitchski on Friday 6th May 13:34
To finish off from the other day (as I bailed out to eat some tea), I'd recently been not quite 'feeling it' with the AX. Sounds mad to say it, being that I'd gone to all this effort with it, and also known them since I was about 17. But it had been ages since I'd driven one properly, and all I seemed to be experiencing piloting it to work and back was a noisy, tinny, rattly car with an irritating choke mechanism and a broken dashboard. The door clangs when you shut it, the steering is heavy when you're trying to park, and the clutch pedal/cable is really sticky, so it's hard to manoeuvre smoothly. It brought a few positives back, like the fact I put fuel in it for the first time over a week after getting it on the road, and the ride, which is as good as I remember. The brakes on this one seem pretty good too, but overall it wasn't being as fun as I remember them being. It didn't even feel quick, and before anyone says 'Well it won't, it's only got about 80bhp!', I know this. They did always feel quite quick though, relatively speaking. On paper, slow, and after 70mph, slow, but up to that I always remember them feeling really gusty and franti, even if it was just a placebo.
Problem is, I only work 4 miles away from my front door, so it never really gets much use even if I use it to commute. The kind of driving it gets is the kind of driving an AX should be good at (mostly 30mph roads, a narrow lane and a couple of roundabouts!) But it just wasn't happening, and it took me until this weekend just gone to realise it. Maybe I'd changed? Maybe what I'd consider to be fun, was actually just a bit.....st? Even the gearing didn't feel as short as it used to, and that was one of the stand-out things I remember front my yoof.
I popped into work yesterday on the bank holiday to sort out a couple of things. I took the AX, and while there decided to head back via a more scenic route to see if I could a feel for it again. If nothing else, it would burn off some of the carbon currently clogging the head up caused by driving around on the choke for so long - a result of the lack of a thermostat! Sure the wheel alignment isn't quite there, and the front wishbone bushes clonk a bit, but it should be up together enough now to go and see if it can raise a smirk on my normally static mug.
Was it?
Yes. Yes it was I had such a blast I stopped to take pics on my phone!
I'd forgotten what the AX GT is great at - B-road bashing! It comes alive when you start flinging it around the countryside. The feel and delicacy of the thing is something unmatched in any other hatchback I've ever driven (and I've owned a S1 106 Rallye). It doesn't talk to you, it SCREAMS at you! You can feel the weight loading and unloading on each wheel. You can feel the grip through the steering, and even in the wet I could feel when it was starting to reach the limits. The back end won't snap on you like it does with a Saxo or 106 GTi because it's no where near as stiff. The gear ratios, which felt a bit cumbersome around town suddenly seemed to physically expand, and now each burst of twin-choke full throttle was egged on to instantly be followed up by the next gear. The way it hauls out of corners in second gear is just such a laugh! Hard in, lots of squeal, boot the throttle and it just leans like a looney 2CV, makes some roarty induction noise and hooks up! Even the suspension is brilliant! So soft for a that kind of car, and with such skinny tyres, yet it all works perfectly. It's so supple, and perfectly damped. You can hit ruts mid-bend without stting your pants, and though it lurches around like a pissed maid of honour, it never loses grip and always manages to relay everything to you. They managed to make a car handle brilliantly, but with soft, high riding, bouncy suspension. I've had cars in the past where they'd been lowered and stiffened and still didn't handle properly, and yet this little crummy tinny hatchback from France is making them look ridiculous!
In standard form, I was reminded that the AX GT is one of the most fun hatchbacks you can drive, and possibly more fun than a lot of different sports cars (I've driven quite a lot of those too). It went back to being a small crap car in traffic on the way home, but for the fun it'll give you on B-roads, I can entirely forgive it!
All this from a car that has already covered nearly quarter of a million miles, and it's still delivering the smiles! I've not had a car for such a long time which I just want to go out and head to the countryside in. Just drive for the sake of driving.
Epic little car!
Problem is, I only work 4 miles away from my front door, so it never really gets much use even if I use it to commute. The kind of driving it gets is the kind of driving an AX should be good at (mostly 30mph roads, a narrow lane and a couple of roundabouts!) But it just wasn't happening, and it took me until this weekend just gone to realise it. Maybe I'd changed? Maybe what I'd consider to be fun, was actually just a bit.....s
t? Even the gearing didn't feel as short as it used to, and that was one of the stand-out things I remember front my yoof.I popped into work yesterday on the bank holiday to sort out a couple of things. I took the AX, and while there decided to head back via a more scenic route to see if I could a feel for it again. If nothing else, it would burn off some of the carbon currently clogging the head up caused by driving around on the choke for so long - a result of the lack of a thermostat! Sure the wheel alignment isn't quite there, and the front wishbone bushes clonk a bit, but it should be up together enough now to go and see if it can raise a smirk on my normally static mug.
Was it?
Yes. Yes it was
I had such a blast I stopped to take pics on my phone!I'd forgotten what the AX GT is great at - B-road bashing! It comes alive when you start flinging it around the countryside. The feel and delicacy of the thing is something unmatched in any other hatchback I've ever driven (and I've owned a S1 106 Rallye). It doesn't talk to you, it SCREAMS at you! You can feel the weight loading and unloading on each wheel. You can feel the grip through the steering, and even in the wet I could feel when it was starting to reach the limits. The back end won't snap on you like it does with a Saxo or 106 GTi because it's no where near as stiff. The gear ratios, which felt a bit cumbersome around town suddenly seemed to physically expand, and now each burst of twin-choke full throttle was egged on to instantly be followed up by the next gear. The way it hauls out of corners in second gear is just such a laugh! Hard in, lots of squeal, boot the throttle and it just leans like a looney 2CV, makes some roarty induction noise and hooks up! Even the suspension is brilliant! So soft for a that kind of car, and with such skinny tyres, yet it all works perfectly. It's so supple, and perfectly damped. You can hit ruts mid-bend without s
tting your pants, and though it lurches around like a pissed maid of honour, it never loses grip and always manages to relay everything to you. They managed to make a car handle brilliantly, but with soft, high riding, bouncy suspension. I've had cars in the past where they'd been lowered and stiffened and still didn't handle properly, and yet this little crummy tinny hatchback from France is making them look ridiculous!In standard form, I was reminded that the AX GT is one of the most fun hatchbacks you can drive, and possibly more fun than a lot of different sports cars (I've driven quite a lot of those too). It went back to being a small crap car in traffic on the way home, but for the fun it'll give you on B-roads, I can entirely forgive it!
All this from a car that has already covered nearly quarter of a million miles, and it's still delivering the smiles! I've not had a car for such a long time which I just want to go out and head to the countryside in. Just drive for the sake of driving.
Epic little car!
Edited by Kitchski on Tuesday 3rd May 21:34
Well that's something unexpected! The AX was PH's readers car of the month! Pretty cool that something like an AX is deemed more newsworthy than some of the more obvious exotic machines!
Not much to report today on the AX GT front. I took it to vote yesterday, which normally wouldn't be newsworthy, but seeing as these cars remind me of being a teenager, it was kinda cool to go and vote in it. Looked odd in the school playground among all the German saloons and people carriers!
So tomorrow's going to be an interesting one.....rolling road! I'm digging out the dyno in a last minute attempt to see if I can diagnose a fault on the wife's S-max, and while I do that, it would be rude not to check out what kind of health the quarter-mil AX is in.
So place your bets! 85bhp is the book figure, and I've rebuilt the carb myself (I'm no carb specialist!) Engine is the original one. What do we reckon?
Closest guess wins an old piece of the car in the post!
Not much to report today on the AX GT front. I took it to vote yesterday, which normally wouldn't be newsworthy, but seeing as these cars remind me of being a teenager, it was kinda cool to go and vote in it. Looked odd in the school playground among all the German saloons and people carriers!
So tomorrow's going to be an interesting one.....rolling road! I'm digging out the dyno in a last minute attempt to see if I can diagnose a fault on the wife's S-max, and while I do that, it would be rude not to check out what kind of health the quarter-mil AX is in.
So place your bets! 85bhp is the book figure, and I've rebuilt the carb myself (I'm no carb specialist!) Engine is the original one. What do we reckon?
Closest guess wins an old piece of the car in the post!
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