In case you were wondering...

[krede]

Update:
The good news: is that it appears that a new steering wheel can still be bought.

The BAD news: I have had the Momo wheel fitted so It can be on the road while I wait for the parts to arrive, but when I got behind the wheel I immediately noticed that the entire steering column felt "soft" and that the steering wheel could be moved in all directions without much effort!!
The bolts underneath was fine, so I fear that the mounts connecting it to the chassis itself has been damaged!!
That sadly means that the dash will have to be removed completely to find the damaged area , and I will probably be without my car for a considerable amount of time......
     

[Anders Dinsen]

Update:
The good news: is that it appears that a new steering wheel can still be bought.

The BAD news: I have had the Momo wheel fitted so It can be on the road while I wait for the parts to arrive, but when I got behind the wheel I immediately noticed that the entire steering column felt "soft" and that the steering wheel could be moved in all directions without much effort!!
The bolts underneath was fine, so I fear that the mounts connecting it to the chassis itself has been damaged!!
That sadly means that the dash will have to be removed completely to find the damaged area , and I will probably be without my car for a considerable amount of time......
     

Annoying!

Krede, you should start "pushing the buttons now". Do you have a workshop appointed yet to do the job? Have you told the insurance company about this? Tell them that you are relying on this car and need it running fast. Then they will offer you a Citroen C1 or similar, but that will cost the insurance company money for every day your own car is standing still - i.e. they will start pushing the workshop too to finish the job. Find buttons like that around you. Don't tell them you can live without your car; we who know you know that you CAN'T. You'll end in mental hospital if this takes too long (ok, just joking there!)

That said, to me it sounds like the problem could be the bearings in the steering column. They are made of rubber and can be crushed. It should also be possible to check whether it's the column that moves, or only the axle inside it that does so. (My Espace phase I failed MoT once because of a worn steering column bearing. They are dead simple to change once it's all taken apart, but it may be faster to fit a new (restored) column from Simon. I fitted a good used one.)

- Anders

[krede]

The car went on a lorry to the workshop the very next day after I discovered the damage.
I offered the insurance company to have their guy asses the "value" of the damage and then do the repairs myself, but they declined, so it has to be fixed at one of their "approved" garages.... their loss.... apart from the damage to the steering column, its a less then an hour to fix.

They won't give me a loaner while I wait for parts.. only for when they are actually working on the car.
And it wouldn't be a c3 in anyway.. neither Peugeot nor Citroën would take on a Murena... what a bunch amateurs!
 

[FOB]

Hi Krede, the bracket holding the steering column is brocken this is a week point proberly made for collision protection, see the German board:
http://www.matraforum.de/thread.php?threadid=2959&boardid=7&styleid=1&sid=e6509b77eb68b45104cd86ad37ba5d6e
Mine has bin broken there too  , but you can weld it.

-Finn

[krede]

Update:
FOB you are absolutely right... They just called from the garage, and it was broken exactly as you said.
And on a further high note.... The steering wheel and other parts from Simon had also arrived, so it should be ready to hit the road by mid day tomorrow...

Only bad thing is that the clutch is still broken... It will de clutch... but only just... So I will take it straight from the garage, to where I work, and fit a new slave cylinder.. and if that doesn't cure it, a new master cylinder...(yep.. I believe I single handedly keep Simon in business)

Should neither get the clutch going again, I fear the car will go into storage, as I haven't got the time to wait for MORE parts to arrive, and still carry out any major repairs.... but.. lt's see if it comes to that.

For now...... Im extatic      

[Anders Dinsen]

HOORAY. Fingers crossed here. Good you found the reason, and we even documented what appears to be a common fault!

[krede]

Update:
Picked up the car today... from the looks of it, Id say they have done a decent job... they welded the broken steering column and the trim is nicely fitted.
The new steering wheel is excellent, and much firmer then the old one (even though it was in god condition).

My clutch problem remains though.