The £550 Citroen Berlingo 2.0 HDI (super shed)
Discussion
Djw John said:
Good workhorse that'll just keep plodding on.
However...
Yup. Modern diesels use their oil to flush all the crap that the engine produces away. Even the exhaust emissions get into it! It'll be black again after you've run it for about 10mins.However...
Coakers said:
Going to do a second oil change in the coming week as the 'fresh' oil I had put in a couple of days ago is already very black and I've only done 20 miles which shows how much crap is in the engine. The first batch of oil was (Shell Helix HX7). And my more expensive stuff is Mobil 3000 X1 5w40. I'll run Wynns engine flush through again before I change it.
on a diesel its totally normal for oil to be black pretty much straight away. It being black after 20 miles is to be expected. The only brand new car I ever had was diesel and after its first 10k service the oil was black after 7 miles when I checked that it was at the right level. Just to hopefully save you some cash and time.Coakers said:
Since neither of us have had much luck with cars lately. I hope this shed doesnt let us down. The more I look at it, the more I realise its quite a decent looking car. Speaking of luck.
Spotted this underneath Dingo after being parked up for an hour. Yet something else to the list of things i need to fix. This spare time could of really gone into the Mk2 Golf build but ah well I will buy cheap sheds.
Looks like power steering fluid? mine did that and needed a new pump, fairly cheap to buy and easy to fit as it's on the top of the engine... pop the belt off, a couple of bolts... as mine had sent all the PS fluid all over someones carpark, the reservoir was already empty so disconnecting the hoses wasn't too messy Spotted this underneath Dingo after being parked up for an hour. Yet something else to the list of things i need to fix. This spare time could of really gone into the Mk2 Golf build but ah well I will buy cheap sheds.
from memory it about about an hour's work from parking up and getting tools out to driving off again. pump I think was £50-60. I went with a cheap pattern one, but its still working as far as I know.
Kitchski said:
Yup. Modern diesels use their oil to flush all the crap that the engine produces away. Even the exhaust emissions get into it! It'll be black again after you've run it for about 10mins.
Ahh I didnt know this. I've only been driving diesels for 3 months so this puts my mind at rest a bit. Cheers.paulmnz said:
Looks like power steering fluid? mine did that and needed a new pump, fairly cheap to buy and easy to fit as it's on the top of the engine... pop the belt off, a couple of bolts... as mine had sent all the PS fluid all over someones carpark, the reservoir was already empty so disconnecting the hoses wasn't too messy from memory it about about an hour's work from parking up and getting tools out to driving off again. pump I think was £50-60. I went with a cheap pattern one, but its still working as far as I know.
Thats good info and thanks for the reply however i believe I have discovered the source. The sump was an advisory on its last mot but now I've discovered that it is most definitely leaking. Ive ordered a new sump off ebay yesterday so hopefully it should be here by monday. I'm going up to scotland tomorrow for a 34 mile hike so hopefully it suddenly get any worse. from memory it about about an hour's work from parking up and getting tools out to driving off again. pump I think was £50-60. I went with a cheap pattern one, but its still working as far as I know.
Can only say I'm impressed by the range this car has. This trip counter was reset last time I put a full tank in (3 weeks ago). One tank of super diesel will get you around 570 miles. First half of the tank was basically town driving/commuting etc but the second half was my trip upto scotland.
Setting off at 6am ish.
T'was a nice trip. Listening to Ready Player One on audio book for 200+ miles of the m6 was strangely relaxing. However the scottish roads up near loch Lomond are pretty awful. We parked up for a moment when we heard a pop that scared the s
t out of us. Judging by the sound I thought it was a tyre or a spring.
Turned out to be the latter.
Setting off at 6am ish.
T'was a nice trip. Listening to Ready Player One on audio book for 200+ miles of the m6 was strangely relaxing. However the scottish roads up near loch Lomond are pretty awful. We parked up for a moment when we heard a pop that scared the s
t out of us. Judging by the sound I thought it was a tyre or a spring. Turned out to be the latter.
S100HP said:
Why does this thread make me want a Berlingo? 
They're ace! In a bouncy and crap sort of way. I think I liked mine because it wasn't pretending to be anything other than a van with extra seats, and it was probably the most practical car I've ever owned (including the current pickup) because the interior room is huge compared to the exterior size.
MC Bodge said:
Johnnybee said:
I've got a cheap Berlingo van that I bought for carrying the bikes. I've really become quite attached to it and the ride is so comfy.
Indeed. A comfortable ride is an under-rated feature at a time when all vehicles are trying to be faux-touring car racers.
My old Berlingo had a better ride quality than my XJ8. Fixed! 
thanks to the fact that the clutch is cable operated. The plastic attachment was swapped out for a brass piece and we are moving again. If it was a hydraulic clutch issue we would be in a different situation entirely.
We are on the A76 btw. Never been on it before. Has to be one of the best roads I've ever driven on!. Thanks for the continued interest in this clapped out shed.
Oh and i think you've hit the nail on the when you said that this Lingo is not trying to be anything more than a van with seats. Because i care so little about its appearance, I've grown to care a lot about it.. if that makes sense.
thanks to the fact that the clutch is cable operated. The plastic attachment was swapped out for a brass piece and we are moving again. If it was a hydraulic clutch issue we would be in a different situation entirely.We are on the A76 btw. Never been on it before. Has to be one of the best roads I've ever driven on!. Thanks for the continued interest in this clapped out shed.
Oh and i think you've hit the nail on the when you said that this Lingo is not trying to be anything more than a van with seats. Because i care so little about its appearance, I've grown to care a lot about it.. if that makes sense.
Ah the old 2.0 hdi 
In my view, one of the best engines ever built by anyone ever. They are just unkillable, and offer excellent performance - as long as they are mapped. I had one in a 406. Bought at 56k, mapped at 57k, major refurb (suspension and a precautionary clutch). But when I took the old clutch out, it was still OK, with about 60% of the material left on it - so I put it back in.
We've had 4 of these engines in our family, and in total, have done nearly 1.2 million miles with no issues at all ever. Compare that to the more modern DV6 - and you can really gauge the 'progress' of diesel engines.
Defo the engine of choice in these.
Keeps the oil changes every 5 to 6k though, it'll pay in longevity.
In my view, one of the best engines ever built by anyone ever. They are just unkillable, and offer excellent performance - as long as they are mapped. I had one in a 406. Bought at 56k, mapped at 57k, major refurb (suspension and a precautionary clutch). But when I took the old clutch out, it was still OK, with about 60% of the material left on it - so I put it back in.
We've had 4 of these engines in our family, and in total, have done nearly 1.2 million miles with no issues at all ever. Compare that to the more modern DV6 - and you can really gauge the 'progress' of diesel engines.
Defo the engine of choice in these.
Keeps the oil changes every 5 to 6k though, it'll pay in longevity.
bearman68 said:
Ah the old 2.0 hdi
In my view, one of the best engines ever built by anyone ever. They are just unkillable, and offer excellent performance - as long as they are mapped. I had one in a 406. Bought at 56k, mapped at 57k, major refurb (suspension and a precautionary clutch). But when I took the old clutch out, it was still OK, with about 60% of the material left on it - so I put it back in.
We've had 4 of these engines in our family, and in total, have done nearly 1.2 million miles with no issues at all ever. Compare that to the more modern DV6 - and you can really gauge the 'progress' of diesel engines.
Defo the engine of choice in these.
Keeps the oil changes every 5 to 6k though, it'll pay in longevity.
Well that is high praise, and certainly very reassuring to hear In my view, one of the best engines ever built by anyone ever. They are just unkillable, and offer excellent performance - as long as they are mapped. I had one in a 406. Bought at 56k, mapped at 57k, major refurb (suspension and a precautionary clutch). But when I took the old clutch out, it was still OK, with about 60% of the material left on it - so I put it back in.
We've had 4 of these engines in our family, and in total, have done nearly 1.2 million miles with no issues at all ever. Compare that to the more modern DV6 - and you can really gauge the 'progress' of diesel engines.
Defo the engine of choice in these.
Keeps the oil changes every 5 to 6k though, it'll pay in longevity.
Thanks for sharing this.This is pretty much the route we took on our little Scotland getaway. All 670 odd miles. I got 570 miles out of one tank! Frugal driving of course but thats the point when doing long hauls.
.
All was not smooth sailing though. The roads around Loch Lomond really took their toll (they are really really bad.
Coil spring kicked the bucket. Front P/S. the clutch cable snapped at the plastic attachement end. The RAC guy had a brass fitment that just so happened to fit perfectly.
Since I've changed the oil/filter its only prudent that i change the coolant too.
I spotted two bleed nipples. One on the heater matrix inlet pipe (near the bulkhead and tuther on the thermostat housing). I drained the coolant, then filled with water and added Wynns coolant flush. Left it idling but brought it upto temp quicker by holding revs at 2000rpm.
The drained water pictured is after adding the chemical flush. Filled up again with just water to flush the flush and after draining that I added G13 summer coolant. This is VAG stuff but its the more up-to-date coolant which is glycerine based not glycol. I bought it becuase it is a more modern coolant with better cooling/anti-corrosion characteristics however it may not be the 'correct' type for the berlingo.
HOWEVER I did not once see the fan kick in. Even when the temp was up to 95° and as we are approaching summer its another thing I need to add to the list
the sump has been leaking way too much for me to ignore anymore.
Drained the oil for the third time. H6 allen head bolts all around. There is a bellhousing/flywheel cover plate that needs removing also. 2x 13mm bolts and 1x10mm bolt.
I sprayed a liberal amount of plus-gas on all the bolts prior to attempting to crack them loose. One bolt head stripped on me out of the 23 bolts that require removing. I hammered a 'star' socket over the stripped bolt which worked fortunately. After all the bolts were removed however... The sump really didnt want to come off even with Rubber mallet treatment as well as a flat head screwdriver.
I have high-temp RTV to replace the gasket as I have read there is no conventional gasket for these HDI sumps.
Lets just hope this does not leak. I did a few rubbish youtube vids of this if anyone would like to see.
https://youtu.be/VJrYBAQuRuc
I soaked all the bolts in some break cleaner also. I forgot to use copper grease when re-inserting though. No leaks as yet. Also used a gasket scraper to get much of the old sealent off as possible.
My coil is rattling around the strut something terrible so I need to deal with that next.
Well I've started on the wheel bearing.
Most bolts were compliant. Apart from the drop links which had rusted and seized. And a no amount of penetrating oil or foul language would break them loose.
I didn't have a slide hammer so the hub assembly would have to come off to remove the outer hub. That's my 92 year old grandad. If you've read my mk2 golf gti thread you'll know if theres a mechanical engineering issue he'll want to be involved!
This attempt to extract the hub was ultimately futile. I didnt take a picture but a 32mm socket fits nicely into the inner 'face' of the hub and couple of blows with a hammer and it fell out nicely.
All that was left was extracting the old bearing. I bought my bearing/seal press kit from amazon for £50 over a year ago but only recently had a reason to use it. Its a decent bit of kit and does the job its intended for. If you buy one just remember to lubricate the thread of the main bolt.
Theres a lot of very informative guides and youtube vids on this method of wheel bearing removal/insertion. One of the more common things to happen is the outer race of the bearing being seized onto the hub. All methods employ an angle grinder to that which i was nervous about but seemed to be the only way.
At this point I've ran out of time (and energy) and had to attend to fiancee/daddy duties so I'm currently carless (again). But I do have an exiting delivery for the Dingo ;-)
Most bolts were compliant. Apart from the drop links which had rusted and seized. And a no amount of penetrating oil or foul language would break them loose.
I didn't have a slide hammer so the hub assembly would have to come off to remove the outer hub. That's my 92 year old grandad. If you've read my mk2 golf gti thread you'll know if theres a mechanical engineering issue he'll want to be involved!
This attempt to extract the hub was ultimately futile. I didnt take a picture but a 32mm socket fits nicely into the inner 'face' of the hub and couple of blows with a hammer and it fell out nicely.
All that was left was extracting the old bearing. I bought my bearing/seal press kit from amazon for £50 over a year ago but only recently had a reason to use it. Its a decent bit of kit and does the job its intended for. If you buy one just remember to lubricate the thread of the main bolt.
Theres a lot of very informative guides and youtube vids on this method of wheel bearing removal/insertion. One of the more common things to happen is the outer race of the bearing being seized onto the hub. All methods employ an angle grinder to that which i was nervous about but seemed to be the only way.
At this point I've ran out of time (and energy) and had to attend to fiancee/daddy duties so I'm currently carless (again). But I do have an exiting delivery for the Dingo ;-)
Edited by Coakers on Tuesday 1st May 03:26
I've enjoyed reading this, never really considered one of these for a hack but looks remarkably capable!
Is this the same non turbo hdi engine found in the 306? If it is, I bought an ex police car with this engine. It had 80k miles. Used it everyday, abused the hell out of it. Well over 200k miles when I sold it.
In that time it really didn't need that much either, springs (ended up with lowering springs as it was cheaper), tyres and brakes mainly. Also rigged the fan with a manual over-ride for warm weather.
Is this the same non turbo hdi engine found in the 306? If it is, I bought an ex police car with this engine. It had 80k miles. Used it everyday, abused the hell out of it. Well over 200k miles when I sold it.
In that time it really didn't need that much either, springs (ended up with lowering springs as it was cheaper), tyres and brakes mainly. Also rigged the fan with a manual over-ride for warm weather.
Lgfst said:
I've enjoyed reading this, never really considered one of these for a hack but looks remarkably capable!
Is this the same non turbo hdi engine found in the 306? If it is, I bought an ex police car with this engine. It had 80k miles. Used it everyday, abused the hell out of it. Well over 200k miles when I sold it.
In that time it really didn't need that much either, springs (ended up with lowering springs as it was cheaper), tyres and brakes mainly. Also rigged the fan with a manual over-ride for warm weather.
Thanks for the interest Is this the same non turbo hdi engine found in the 306? If it is, I bought an ex police car with this engine. It had 80k miles. Used it everyday, abused the hell out of it. Well over 200k miles when I sold it.
In that time it really didn't need that much either, springs (ended up with lowering springs as it was cheaper), tyres and brakes mainly. Also rigged the fan with a manual over-ride for warm weather.
and thats good to know, i think I may do as you have done and rig up a manual override switch for the fan as mine seems to only kick in intermittently. Apparently this is down to corroded resistors.Well the wheel bearing is in! Grabbed a few hours before night shift and it is sorted albeit with a bit of trial and error.
Having to get the press absolutely flush was the trickiest part. There were several attempts were it felt much tighter than it was suppost to be and discovered it was going in at a slight angle. What I ended up doing was lightly tap it in with a rawhide hammer and measured the distance at every 90° from the 'seat' of the bearing and when that distance was nigh on identical at every 90° I used the bearing press/driver.
I also couldn't help myself and de-rusted and painted the hub and caliper carrier with some engine enamel that I had knocking around. Completely unnecessary I know but it goes against the grain to put rusty/grubby parts back on the car
Another busy day, the pinch bolt that had snapped needed beating out and it took a lot of beating!
Both struts are finally out. Dont have a picture because the thumbsnap default uploader wont let me no matter how many times i trim it.
Anyways.
These circlips can be a massive pain. I ended up prying one side out and hammering a behind the circlip to 'shoehorn' it out.
And I have to say I'm very glad I removed the other bearing. As you can see the seals must've failed at some point letting water in and they have rusted from the inside. Makes me wonder if I've got the right bearing to begin with!
I then began de-rusting the top mounts, the hub and the caliper carrier. I used a long flat head screw driver to pry the old bearings out of the top mounts (I'm getting tired of saying bearing).
Them painted.
And the before and after rust removal.
Both struts are finally out. Dont have a picture because the thumbsnap default uploader wont let me no matter how many times i trim it.
Anyways.
These circlips can be a massive pain. I ended up prying one side out and hammering a behind the circlip to 'shoehorn' it out.
And I have to say I'm very glad I removed the other bearing. As you can see the seals must've failed at some point letting water in and they have rusted from the inside. Makes me wonder if I've got the right bearing to begin with!
I then began de-rusting the top mounts, the hub and the caliper carrier. I used a long flat head screw driver to pry the old bearings out of the top mounts (I'm getting tired of saying bearing).
Them painted.
And the before and after rust removal.
Edited by Coakers on Monday 7th May 06:59
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