Xantia V6 air intake hose

[Robin Hoffmann]

Good evening fellow froggers
The air intake hose on my V6 Xantia, which connects the air filter to the throttle body, has a large split between two of the flexible 'bellows'. Do any of you know of or have made a repair of a similar problem on such a hose? Would superglue be an acceptable solution? Obviously, being 24 years old, the hose has become brittle. I've done a bit of searching and can't seem to find a replacement.
Thanks and cheers. Robin

 

[Harvey]

G'day Robin,

I feel your pain. Out of the same desperation ('nil stock global') and desire to keep things as neat as possible, I've had varying success with repairing the equivalent section on a couple of my Turbo CTs using superglue...... and lots of cleaning, care, patience and persistence. I don't recall whether your red Activa was one of my attempts.

That said, as you hinted for your V6, even once repaired, it's all still old and brittle, so can't be expected to last well just with superglue alone.

One of my attempts was by using the superglue for the initial rejoining of the cracks, followed by reinforcing with black Sikaflex (I can't say which specific one, sorry). Main trouble probably was that I put the Sikaflex on too thickly and therefore not flexible enough and/or it wasn't bonded well enough to the rubber concertina folds, so it all started to unpeel disappointingly soon.

So I suppose, next time around I'd:
1. do the cracks with superglue initially again, just to get it all lined-up properly, then
2. pick the best sounding specific Sikaflex formulation or maybe just some black silicone, and
3. not use too much so as to maintain a reasonable degree of flexibility of the concertina section.

Good luck !

 

[fritzelhund]

Would a local "speed shop" ... in my case Autobarn, stock silicone pipe and suitable alloy joining tubes ... I had to replace some turbo to intercooler piping on a Mitsubishi and that ( and Ebay ) was a neat looking substitute for a failed ( but not concertina ) high heat and more than atmosphere linking pipe.

 

[Robin Hoffmann]

G'day Robin,

I feel your pain. Out of the same desperation ('nil stock global') and desire to keep things as neat as possible, I've had varying success with repairing the equivalent section on a couple of my Turbo CTs using superglue...... and lots of cleaning, care, patience and persistence. I don't recall whether your red Activa was one of my attempts.

That said, as you hinted for your V6, even once repaired, it's all still old and brittle, so can't be expected to last well just with superglue alone.

One of my attempts was by using the superglue for the initial rejoining of the cracks, followed by reinforcing with black Sikaflex (I can't say which specific one, sorry). Main trouble probably was that I put the Sikaflex on too thickly and therefore not flexible enough and/or it wasn't bonded well enough to the rubber concertina folds, so it all started to unpeel disappointingly soon.

So I suppose, next time around I'd:
1. do the cracks with superglue initially again, just to get it all lined-up properly, then
2. pick the best sounding specific Sikaflex formulation or maybe just some black silicone, and
3. not use too much so as to maintain a reasonable degree of flexibility of the concertina section.

Good luck !

Thanks Harvey. You were up particularly early!! I'll proceed with caution as you suggest. I might also investigate replacing the factory air filter setup with a K&N filter. The only thing that might be a bit tricky is hooking the PCV hose, but it might be worth a try. I'll keep you posted. Cheers, Robin

 

[Robin Hoffmann]

Would a local "speed shop" ... in my case Autobarn, stock silicone pipe and suitable alloy joining tubes ... I had to replace some turbo to intercooler piping on a Mitsubishi and that ( and Ebay ) was a neat looking substitute for a failed ( but not concertina ) high heat and more than atmosphere linking pipe.

I used Autobarn to procure silicone hoses to resolve a similar problem on my Turbo CT a little while ago. I couldn't replicate the concertina section but it all seems to work well. I might also consider a K&N setup and modify as necessary to accommodate the PCV connection. I'll keep the list posted. Any obvious shortcomings with a K&N setup, anyone?
Cheers, Robin

 

[JAJEA]

G'day Robin,

I feel your pain. Out of the same desperation ('nil stock global') and desire to keep things as neat as possible, I've had varying success with repairing the equivalent section on a couple of my Turbo CTs using superglue...... and lots of cleaning, care, patience and persistence. I don't recall whether your red Activa was one of my attempts.

That said. ...

One of my attempts was by ...

So I suppose, ...

Good luck !

For what's it worth.
What Harvey suggests is precisely how I would attempt it (even if a replacement was available).
I have already repaired the similar ducting on the BMW E34 525i. However, I don't not know how successful it is as that BMW gets little use.
Nevertheless, I would not hesitate to attempt it again by:
1. Cleanliness is paramount with any superglue. I used Solvex 1425 product which I believe is napthalene to remove any trace of oil and somebody else toothbrush to brush clean the surfaces to be "mated".
2. Once happy that the joint is oil free after scrubbing, I would rinse off with neat naphthalene, and when dry (naphthalene dries / evaporates very quickly as it is very volatile) I would prise open the joint and apply Loctite 406 (previously purchased to glue / make odd size o-rings) to the joint.
3. After the Loctite 406, I would clean again and smear Sikaflex 227(?). By clean, I would gently try roughening the bellows to give the Sikaflex the opportunity to adhere to the ducting. Again clean with naphthalene.
If all of the above fails, you end up with a tube of Sikaflex, a little bottle of Loctite 406 and bottle of napthalene that will come handy in no time.
John