Welcome to The BX Project
The BXProject has gone through many changes in both form and function. Now into its 8th major revision it features a reliable forum which has blossomed and now boasts almost continual activity throughout the day. The members have enjoyed many gatherings and I have personally met over 90% of the membership.
Explosive rust removal!
Well, potentially explosive, if i had a huge amount of rust to remove and a long time to do it! This is rust removal by reverse electrolysis, a self regulating method of removing rust from metal without doing any damage to the work piece. In this case the workpiece is a headlight adjustment screw which is very heavily corroded to the point I'm struggling to start a tap on it to revive the threads.
I recently read about this 'magic' method for removing rust which is almost as old as electricity its self. By applying a current through the work piece in a weak alkali bath, reverse rusting occurs and the iron oxide literally falls off. At the same time hydrogen is produced in very fine very small bubbles and hence the potential for explosion.
This is my first test with the method and thus far it seems to be working bloody marvelously! I'll get a finished picture once its clean.Monday 21 June 2010 - 21:50:22 by Admin
Posted in Garage | Comments: 0 |
RetroRides - Fantastic article for older car owners
Retro Rides isn't a new forum, nor have I only just discovered it, but i recently sat and read one of THE most useful threads to an older car owner. The thread is concerned primarily with panel beating repair patches for welding into place, using basic tools and practices. The article takes a really sensible approach to tackling complicated shapes and makes the whole experience seem achievable by any mortal! Check it out yourself over on Retro Rides Forum;
Posted in Misc | Comments: 0 |
Quick Fix - LHM Leaks
On the front of the sub frame is a t-piece union that joins two little thin semi opaque leak of pipes that come from the front N/S suspension and the security valve which often fails. The failure is usually evident in LHM running off the back of the subfrme on the pasenger side.
The recommended Citroen repair is to join the suspension and return line together using washer bottle piping, and then run a second return line from the security valve to the reservoir using NEW washer bottle hose from a motor factors. It is also now possible to buy silicone hose of the right diameter which will far outlast the washer pipe.
Posted in The Citroen BX | Comments: 0 |
BXProject at the CCC National Rally
Tuesday 25 May 2010 - 13:57:09 by Admin
Posted in BXProject | Comments: 0 |
Front end restoration - continues
Well progress is a little slow. Busy weekends, cold weather and a lack of service from Royal Snail have created some hold ups. All told a lot more metal is now missing, and some new panels have been fabricated!
Old metal out;
New metal to go in;
Tuesday 08 December 2009 - 20:46:03 by Admin
Posted in BXProject | Comments: 0 |
Front end restoration
In order to put the AC onto the car, it seems sensible to tackle as many jobs as possible before the expense of gassing up.One problem I know needs tackling is the usual rusted out inner wing, i thought before the start of the Brazilian GP i would take the front end apart and see whats what.
Well its mixed, not as bad as it could have been but worse than i had hoped;
Posted in BXProject | Comments: 0 |
ORGA Number
On all BX's there is a number painted on the left hand front door jam just below the upper door hinge. This 4 digit code relates to the day the car rolled off the production line and is often used by Citroen to identify which part will fit a certain car.
This ORGA (ORGA is short for organisation) or RP number is relatively simple to decode. The ORGA number starts from 0001 on the 9th of November 1976 and increase by 1 on every subsequent day.
The following link tells you more about the ORGA number and has an online application to calculate yours for you;
Posted in The Citroen BX | Comments: 0 |
AC Electronics and idle jacking
The electronics that drive the BX AC system are reasonably simple and straight forward (as is the rest of the system). While I have a great many details on the AC system including the Citroen technical bulletin for the AC circuit, there are some gaps in the information I have on the electronics that drive the system.
The second kit I have acquired came with a reasonably complete loom, which is different to the first kit I have. The first kit came from a K-reg valver and includes an idle jack function, basically when the AC is turned on the engine idle speed is increased. This is used to increase performance in high ambient when the car is at very low speed, modern cars do this only at low road speeds (ie under 15mph where there is little airflow over the condenser/radiator) however the BX simply jacks up the engine speed at all times that the AC is on. This second kit comes from a H-reg car and does not include connectors for idle jack. The connector links the AC control directly to the Motronic engine ECU which has additional inputs (and i presume different internal software) which i did not get with the first kit. This means I wont be able to use the idle jack function on my car without some extensive re-wiring of the ECU, not something I am keen on! In all the manuals i have there is no mention of idle jacking in the wiring diagrams. I do have information that the Motronic system does include this logic and is used on other manufacturer models (namely Porsche), maybe it can be made to work, but i suspect at UK ambient temperatures it isn't worth the hassle.
Posted in Aircon | Comments: 0 |
Aircon Pictures
I have decided i'm going to make progress on fitting an AC system to the BX if it kills me and having been working in the industry for a year, its about time i got it sorted! Last weekend I travelled down south to collect a second 16v AC system. Not a complete system, but with plenty of good quality spares (including piping) to help me sort out my system. Today i've started taking stock of the donor parts i have, and connected some up as a trial run. The following is a picture of the pipe layout;
Sunday 27 September 2009 - 01:41:05 by Admin
Posted in Aircon | Comments: 0 |
You Toob
I've added a new feature to the main website, YouTube Video Gallery, it can be accessed from the front page link or here
Gives me the opportunity to show off the few YouTube vids I've cobbled together, and allows me to add your vids. They are only linked (so no over heads) and played straight from YouTube but without having to go and search them out! Well it might keep me amused. Let me know in this thread if you have a submission
 Jazz running for the first time with a valver |
Posted in BXProject | Comments: 0 |