Hello from a ZX owner with 306 issues!

[beko1987]

Hi!

I don't have a 306 (had a 206 as my first car, was fun...). I have a ZX XUD9!

Lovely car, this is my second now, the first being a 1.4 which was nice, but the turbo berv is much better! I run sheds for cars tbh. Had a 206 HDI first, then a Puma (bloody good fun), ZX 1.4 (when the puma rotted away), XM 2.0TCT (epic but munched fuel) and now my current 1994 ZX Volcane 1.9TD!

I do have issues however...

The rear beam is gone. One side looks like this:



The other, like this:



The rear calipers are completely shot, literally hanging on by a thread. Boots wore away years ago by the looks of it, I free'd them up but they still drag like anything, at the MOT as soon as it went on the roller the machine red flagged the rear left...

Both rear shocks are crap

All the rear bushes are probably shot as it's been clonking its arse off for the past few weeks...

Searching about for these issues however, lead me to realise that the ZX shares many parts with the 306, mainly beams and (I think) GTI Calipers (rear). Having read all this, loads of which came from this forum, I thought I should register and say Hi!

So that's my story! I'll post up in the relevant forums with questions, but basically I want to fix all that on my car, which seems do-able, and keep it for a few more years. I could just spend £350 on a Xantia, but I want to see the little ZX hit 300,000 miles. Currently on 275,4something!

Different forum, but one I do feel more at home at, and tbh the answers given on there pushed me towards a puglet source of parts... Here's it's back story! The life of my ZX (still need a front wing but everything else has been replaced...)

Cheers

Sam

[kee616]

Hello fellow zx owner here
There's a few people on here that will be able to help you!
Hope you hit the 300,000 miles! Nothing for these engines really

[beko1987]

Hi!

Thanks,  the more I read the more I want to do it.  Will Crack on with the rear calipers first.

The engine had a cambelt waterpump and pulleys done at 260k, clutch at 200ish, gearbox oil done every year, not a drop of rust etc, I think she does deserve to be saved. Will take a clunker of a discovery to give up!

What kind of ZX do you have?

[kee616]

Hello,
I'v got a white zx 1.9dt
Making full use of tthe bosch pump with the waste veg oil from work haha

[beko1987]

Nice! I use new oil from asda. Mixed with a bit of unleaded whilst it's a bit damp and cold here still I'm spending about 90ppl, which isn't too bad. Makes driving to work cheaper...

[zx_volcane]

Welcome along

Be nice to see some pics / project thread on here - maybe copy some of the stuff over from your thread on autoshite?

Rear beam can be swapped for one off a 306 - although suspension geometry differs slightly, I think the volcane has slightly less toe in than the 306.

TBH, I've had both on my car and not noticed the difference on the road.

You'll transform the car if you put a decent beam on, new mounts and some decent shocks!

Team ZX!

[beko1987]

Thanks for the encouragement, I'll post up what I do here as well! I don't do a lot though, tends to just tick along happily taking me to work and back 5 days a week!

Therwon't be much progress anytime soon though, going away for a week soon, then got a car show! Do intend to go through the excellent Bosch tuning guide I found on here and see if I can tweak my idle down a bit! Need to check it's not the cable and I'll be on it! Won't be turning any fuel screws up yet though, don't want to push anymore power through the rear beam, still need her as a daily driver!

[Herby7]

Welcome

[Day666]

Welcome & Hello !

[kee616]

Nice!  I use new oil from asda. Mixed with a bit of unleaded whilst it's a bit damp and cold here still I'm spending about 90ppl, which isn't too bad.  Makes driving to work cheaper...

Still quiet abit of a saving and will add up
Spent 500 on my zx by using the wvo from work I'v made that but plus a few hundred more lol

[Moonwalker]

Welcome bud.

[beko1987]

Thanks! Just asked my first question in the XUD section!

[beko1987]

Well, new rear bushes havent fixed my knocking issue, although the back end feels more attached to the car! The old bushes didnt look knackered, but theres a definate tightness to driving it now that there wasnt before. Havent hooned it about yet as the exhaust is holding itself together with a few rusty spits of weld and I dont want to strain that anymore for now, got 4 weeks until payday to go...

I dont really have any actual pictures of her. All my previous cars would have had gigabytes of pictures on by now, but a small child and pregnant girlfriend take away the time I once had.

Have a poor snowfoam shot (was the last of the bottle IIRC)



and after a quick wash and polish (really need to get the clay out and the rotary, but I can just never be bothered. She looks better dirty too I think, it hides all the dinks and bangs

[7057sam]

Hello and welcome along

[Redordead89]

Hi never owned one yet but the day may come!

[beko1987]

Well, some work has happened since my first post!

Work carried out:
New rear beam bushes (the old ones were bloody fine though...)
New drop links (cured it!)
New matching tyres all round

Things still to do:
New rear calipers (have them, just need to fit them)
New rear shocks (old ones done move at all)
3 weeks ago the already heavily welded exhaust broke where it meets the backbox. Currently lashed up with wire to get me to work and back, hoping the new backbox turns up soon, have the (non cat) centre pipe

Hopefully, soon there will be nothing actually wrong with it, and I can start to look at a new accelerator cable, the slight oil leak and maybe give it another service. Rear pads will need doing too, their already low...

Nearly at 280k too. She needs a good rag, not gone much above 2k since the exhaust went, dont want to piss it off even further by booting it around, plus it sounds like shit.