Fully Releasing The pressure on a Citroën Hydraulic System

One of the most common questions people ask about their high pressure Citroëns hydraulic systems is… How do I release the pressure on the hydraulic system to remove a sphere?

The last time I tried I carefully loosened the bleed screw on the regulator, but still got a hydraulic bath when I tried to remove a sphere”

Well there can often be more to releasing all the pressure on the Citroën hydraulic system then just opening up the bleed screw on the regulator, because there will still be residual pressure in the system even after that is done.

Here is a method that you might want to try: First get yourself some eye protection in the form of some safety glasses or goggles. Next turn the engine off on the Citroën. Open the bleed screw on the regulator. (this can be located in various places depending on the particular model of Citroën) Check your owners manual if you have one.

If not look for the sphere in the engine compartment that is attached to a  metal bodied component with two steel lines and one rubber hose coming from the body of the component. That seems to be the easiest way to describe it if you don’t already know where it is located.

Once you have located the regulator, check for a bolt head on the side of it that should be 12mm in size. With the car turned off loosen this screw about a quarter of a turn. You will hear the pressure release in the system when you do this.  Now move into the interior of the car and grab hold of the height adjusting lever or switch . This is located down by your foot on a D series Citroën, and in the center console on GS, and early CX, and a sliding switch in the center console on later Hydraulic Citroëns.

What you want to do with that lever or switch is move it to the lowest position first and let the Citroën settle completely down. Now that it is in it’s lowest position and resting on it’s bump stops, move the lever or switch to the highest position. If the Citroën still has residual pressure in the system you will notice it attempt to lift up.  What you want to do at this point is move the lever or switch slowly back and forth between these two positions until you don’t get any more reaction out of the car and it just stays down in the lowest position.

At this point the hydraulic system of your Citroën should be completely depressurized. Now move around to the front of the car and grab hold of one of the two suspension spheres and try to move the sphere from side to side . You should be able to get some movement out of them showing you that the suspension no longer has any pressure in it. Now you should be able to remove any of the spheres without getting a hydraulic bath; but be sure to keep those safety glasses on for your own safety.

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.