Capitol wrote:
Considering only buying and running costs, an old Metro is the only
small hatchback that I know of which will carry an 8 x 4 sheet
internally--much to my surprise!


Continuing my love afair with citroen - I once collected an 8 x 4 sheet
of hardboard home in a citroen dyanne.

I fannyed about for several minutes in the local wickes carpark trying
to figure out how to fit it in. It finally went down through the rolled
back canvas roof and aft into the rear passenger space. Drove home to
greenwich with 3-4 foot poking out the top and no rear visibility -
this was the aspect that caused the crash...

Incidentally - there was a 4x4 citroen BX 1.9GTi. One sold last month
on ebay for =A3100. Spend the remaining =A31,400 on repairs and you could
have a decent car! (this is not a serious suggestion - the repairs are
likely to be v expensive)

finally - Suspension problems are a myth in my experience. I have spent
loads on the car since having it, but only =A3300 on the suspension. The
main problem component on an old BX is the "octopus" which is a series
of rubber low pressure pipes that return LHM suspension fluid to the
reservoir. On an old BX with dodgy suspension - this is the most likely
problem. It will cost =A3100-=A3150 to replace. The other thing to look
out for is the rear trailing arm bearings. if the rear wheels "toe out"
then these need replacing (=A3200). Take it to a specialist garage and
don't listen to the other mechanics who don't really understand the
system. If you buy a car for =A3300-500 when you have a buget of =A31500
- you can afford to have the problems put right at the onset.
Regards

Philip