BX advice requested from Canada

[Canada's only BX]

Hi: as far as I know I own the only BX in Canada, a 1991 Millésime 1.6 5-spd, w/PAS; no A/C and 110,000 Kms (68,500 miles). It was sold in France and I imported it from Holland earlier in 2022. Just a great car, and in amazing condition, except it has an underlying roughness in delivering power and some lack of power up to 3,000 RPM or so. But it cruised on part throttle at 110 KM/h perfectly when I went to the Citroen Rendezvous in New York last week (540 miles each way) and delivered 8L/100 Kms (38 MPG UK gallon). The symptom is like a misfiring plug (perhaps), but it starts and idles pretty well. BTW, I had the Solex 32-34 carb rebuilt with new gaskets and valve seat, etc, but no change. The accelerator pump seems to function fine. Citroen Archives tell me it had the XU52C (B2C) engine installed but the engine ID says BYD, which would make it an EFI car - but it is not. This sort of thing seems to be common on many Citroens according to some experts in the US ("Henri: we ran out of B2C engines; give me one those others over there"). It had new plugs and timing belt, etc, (plus new fluids and spheres) just before it was shipped over here. I am hoping it is not a difficult to fix carb problem but maybe it is caused by HT leads, poor distributor cap, bad plug, or a timing issue? One possible clue: the distributor's timing adjustment plate is cranked right over to the right (fully clockwise when viewed from the LHD driver's side wing/fender side); that seems strange to me. Any suggestions based on similar experiences? This newbie would very much appreciate your help. Thx.

[Kitch]

Hard to diagnose over the 'net, but the engine code is on a plate riveted to the engine block down behind the RH engine mount, where the head meets it.

[Canada's only BX]

Thanks very much for your interest, Kitch. You have 2 nice cars. Thanks for the engine number location info; the label states" BDY 1CT6B50647".

It also has a strange device I cannot find any reference to in Haynes or any other source, although a friend with a Peugeot 505 has something similar, he says, based on my unit's description: a canister with the name SOBAFLEX cast into the top, which is attached by rubber mounts and studs to the front side of the inlet manifold. The canister is approx 8CM diameter and 12CM or so long with 3 pipes attached to ports in the top. One goes to the carb, one goes back to the fuel tank, and the third comes from the fuel pump.

As SOBAFLEX is a French pump manufacturer, etc, I think this is a fuel vapour separator.

My friend says to take it off to the bench and open a port that should be at the bottom. It may be full of rust or muck, which MIGHT be my fuel starvation problem's source. Ever seen such a thing? Thanks again, Geoff

[Jaba]

A few random thoughts:
Timing - check both the timing before TDC and the operation of the advance retard both the vacuum device and the distributor
Sobaflex - absolutely no idea , never seen or heard of such a thing but it may be some sort of anti pollution device that we don't have here. You could remove or bypass it to see if it makes a difference as long as there is still a fuel return path open.

Congrats on having the only BX in Canada. Don't use it on salty roads in the winter.

[Canada's only BX]

Thanks, Jaba. This little puppy will be safely stored away in a heated garage before our winter arrives, thanks. I live in the most southerly point in Canada, so our winters are milder but some days can be awful, which means we apply more salt than a Liverpool vacationer in a Whitby fish and chip shop. If we had your annual MOT test here, we would have half as many vehicles on our roads as we do.

I removed the SOFABEX device and did some more research, finally concluding it is a fuel pressure regulator/fuel vapour separator: fuel enters under pump pressure and meets a spring-loaded diaphragm that absorbs any shock waves and permits any air to escape through the return port. The fuel then either passes to the carb or - via a cast-in gallery - short-circuits over to the return port and on to the tank.

Why my carb car has something usually considered for a high-performance injected engine is a mystery; it is an expensive looking piece of kit that is also sealed. Unless I had a spare, I would not cut it open to confirm exactly what it is. I cannot find any reference to it in the current SOFABEX catalogue, but I contacted the company last week, and may learn more if they get back to me.

Thanks again.

[panky]

"we apply more salt than a Liverpool vacationer in a Whitby fish and chip shop."
As a Scouser I can appreciate that comment - so true

[Canada's only BX]

I am glad you are not insulted, Panky. I spent many wonderful vacations with terrific relatives in Childwall, and what a warm, loving and funny bunch they were. I miss the place. Whitby is pretty good, too .

[panky]

Not offended at all I used to sprinkle the condiment liberally over every meal but have made myself cut it out - except for fish and chips of course

[BXTASY]

Welcome to the not-yet-active BX Club North America, just now invented. I know of nine BX models in the US, three here in north Texas. Two are at the Citroen shop in Dallas, javelusa.com. He has a 16 valve (photo on the web site) and a 16 TRS parts car, and has the largest supply of Citroen and Peugeot parts in N.A., having recently bought the inventory of Western Hemispheres in Watsonville, Calif. The others are my BX GTI and six found on various sites - BringATrailer, Citroenvie etc. from 2013-17, so no telling where they are now. You might join the Citroen Club Canada via Citroenvie.com, and sign up for the newsletter. Hope to see you at a Rendezvous, if the BX ever starts.