Comments on: Citroen DS3 Timing Belt Change Interval

By: Pat

Pat — Sun, 28 May 2023 22:42:37 +0000

Hi Marcus
Thanx for such detailed feedback,,, sorry for not replying,, I’m in SA cape Town,,, DS3 out of country, even dealers mess up so don’t have a trustworthy place to take DS3 and ask these questions. I specifically asked them to top up gear oil as the side shafts both leak and I could feel gears a bit stiff,,, but after oil replacment gears much smoother. So have to keep an eye and top up all the time, as this time around it is timing belt plus service for DS3’s(year 8)early 2014 model
To also do sideshafts now, is going to be very expensive
I suppose OAT is the brand of Antifreeze you are referring to,? don’t think it is available here,,, why would the Antifreeze drop to low mark,,, it is actually still on full after feb23 refill,,, was serviced Aug 2022 but had a straw colour ,,,so they must have used that or it is due to mixing dif colours,,, also the start stop did not work, so we replaced old bat with a new AGM battery,,, there was an error code but they could sort it out,,, it worked in town and long distance, but now only long distance,,, At service these error codes came up F5FF(unexpected reinitialisation fault coming from the built in systems interface BSI, C98A(engine relay unit fault right front side light) ,, C99B(engine fuse box left front side lamp fault, the guy has resettled it but the start stop still did not work, then he plugged the tester in again and then it worked in town and on distance driving immed after service,,, could there be something wrong with the altinator,, or that driving too short distances/speed in town? What kind of break pads should be used as it is shreeking since service,,, should original disc’s be used,,, how should ond fit the rim Ds3 insert, as the place where tyres was rotated dropped the tyre and it became loose, they just inserted again and it was lost whilst driving,,, now they have replaced it, but we are not sure if silicone or another adhesive should be used,,,

Will appreciate your feedback, as I value your feedback very much,,, it is a super little car, and would like to keep it going as long as we can.

Regards
Pat

By: Marcus Brown

Marcus Brown — Wed, 01 Mar 2023 17:10:45 +0000

In reply to Pat.

Thanks for your comment. A lot of information here – so I’ll try and be as brief as possible.

Antifreeze should be OAT. This is usually red/pink. You shouldn’t go by the colour – go by the type. I ran the exact same engine as you in a Peugeot 208 for three years – it is an OAT antifreeze. Don’t put anything else in. If you’re not sure – drain and flush it with OAT coolant you can get from Halfords (but make sure you bleed the system up properly to prevent any airlocks)

Oil is 5W-30. Citroen/Peugeot recommend Total. Gearbox is 75W-80/75W-90 – I would use Total or Mobil. Believe the power steering is electric on these and not hydrauliic – so no oil. Brake fluid should be DOT 4.

On these the cambelt/water pump change is 112,500 miles or ten years. I wouldn’t wait that long – I’d do it at about 75,000 miles / 7 years. You should not need to change any seals.

Driveshaft seal is an issue I’ve come across a couple of times on these cars. I highly doubt the gear oil has been touched at servicing because these gearboxes are supposed to be sealed for life so the dealer won’t change the oil unless you specifically ask (and pay) for it. They probably wouldn’t even check the gearbox unless there was a visible leak to be honest (either oil dripping on the floor or noticeable oil staining on the box itself). These gearboxes take 1.9L of gear oil – and you fill them up from a filler plug on the side, which overflows when it’s full – so it’s difficult to overfill these gearboxes even if you are changing the gear oil.

Hope this helps – let me know if you’ve got any more questions.

By: Pat

Pat — Thu, 23 Feb 2023 08:06:45 +0000

HI kindly advise what colour anti freeze and what mixture should be used for Citroen DS3 e-hdi diesel 1600,,, 2014 model. Vin VF7SA9HPKDW618181,,, km today 23 Feb 2023 is 90735
Also it was serviced Aug 22, anti freeze is now straw colour and has dropped from Max to Min, is that a problem to drop so much? and discolour so much in 6 months,,, what drop in Antifreeze is acceptable and how often should it be checked,,, Bosch service centre has topped up with red instead of green? As per other after warrantee French car service manager it should be grern. Does the mixing of 2 dif Anti-freeze colours become a sludge that is bad for your engine? Should it be drained and flushed now?

Can you please supply Exact brands of OIL, for enjine, gearbox, power steering oil and brake fluid, that my DS was filled with when brand New? How much fluid in liters for all of the above oils? Should system be flushed and with what before any oil change?,,,

When should the cambelt be replaced together with water pump and does it necessatates 4 seal changes including those on enjin as well?

My gbox side shaft seal leaks since 2/3rd service under warrantee,,,Citroen said I should check it out, but it lands on the plate, so I did not see any leak, so at its last service I remembered,,, and they never mentioned it again at any service before it was out of warrantee,,, so have been taken for a ride,,, and surely they have put in too much gear oil at its early services, which has put too much pressure on the seals,,,? Should a side shaft seal replacement Always include the side shaft to be replaced itself? as it might have ridges,,,, and leak again even with new seal? Otherwise no explanation why a brand new car will have such an issue from it’s 2nd or 3rd service,, when I asked for the job card they “could not Find” it

Your detailed feedback will be appreciated,,,

WHERE ARE YOU SITUATED??

Thx
PAT