Maserati 3200 or 4200 buying advice
Maserati 3200 or 4200 buying advice
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Discussion

fast cars

Original Poster:

269 posts

231 months

Sunday 14th March 2010
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Hi , I'm looking at a Maser 3.2 or 4.2 , coup or cab , no experience of these cars , can anyone give me some buying tips , budget is up to 20k

Thanks

3200gt

2,727 posts

250 months

Sunday 14th March 2010
quotequote all
Normal answers I'm affraid, plenty of info on here and maserati forum do a search first, have a good read, then if you still have specific questions fire away.

I will just say that both are very different cars which look similar. 3200 has the purity of the design and turbo lunacy, 4200 has the benefit of evolution but the negatives of dilution.

Neither are particularly fragile or better than the other but I won't be changing mine for a 4200 even after 9+ yrs of ownership.;)

maser_spyder

6,356 posts

208 months

Sunday 14th March 2010
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Hope you've got deep pockets!

3200gt

2,727 posts

250 months

Sunday 14th March 2010
quotequote all
maser_spyder said:
Hope you've got deep pockets!
Why? they are no more to run than than my RS6

maser_spyder

6,356 posts

208 months

Sunday 14th March 2010
quotequote all
3200gt said:
maser_spyder said:
Hope you've got deep pockets!
Why? they are no more to run than than my RS6
How much is a clutch for an RS6? Or a set or disks and pads?

Genuinely interested!

3200gt

2,727 posts

250 months

Sunday 14th March 2010
quotequote all
Dont know TBH not had to replace them..........yet!;)
But my 3200 doesn't cost me more than £1k pa in seviceing. The only big exspense I find on the Mas is rear tyres. Nothing has ever blown up on it in almost 10 yrs of ownership. My XC90 definately cost loads more than the Mas ever has.

maser_spyder

6,356 posts

208 months

Sunday 14th March 2010
quotequote all
3200gt said:
Dont know TBH not had to replace them..........yet!;)
But my 3200 doesn't cost me more than £1k pa in seviceing. The only big exspense I find on the Mas is rear tyres. Nothing has ever blown up on it in almost 10 yrs of ownership. My XC90 definately cost loads more than the Mas ever has.
You've been lucky then!

Clutch, flywheel and release bearing for a 4200 is around £2000 (bare clutch fitted about £1200).

Set of discs and pads around £1000.

My annual service last year was £1500 (major one though, it's normally £800 - £1000), plus tyres at £800 a set.

Better off bargaining £3000 p/a and being pleased if it's any less.

3200gt

2,727 posts

250 months

Sunday 14th March 2010
quotequote all
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...

Actual figures from my records for 3200 running costs.

3200gt

2,727 posts

250 months

Sunday 14th March 2010
quotequote all
Nic, just noticed you have a Morris cooper. That was my first car a 1310 cooper s. Wish I still had it now!

maser_spyder

6,356 posts

208 months

Sunday 14th March 2010
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3200gt said:
Nic, just noticed you have a Morris cooper. That was my first car a 1310 cooper s. Wish I still had it now!
Good stuff!

Mine's a '68 998 Cooper, which I've had since I was 15 (bought to restore for my 17th).

Oddly, the pickup, which I got a couple of years later (for £600!), is now worth a heck of a lot more than the cooper, and is generally a lot more desirable. Very odd! At the time, you couldn't give pickups away, but a good MkII cooper was quite sought after.

Still, I doubt either will be sold any time soon (or at all), so what they're 'worth' makes little odds.

Only car I regret selling was my Mk 1 Healey (Frogeye) Sprite. Wish I'd kept it, but was at Uni and really couldn't keep yet another old car!

As for 3200 / 4200 conundrum, the only way around it is to go and drive each, and see which you prefer.

Personally, I like convertibles so it had to be the Spyder, it's great for cruising when you can hear the superb V8 soundtrack, although like most people, I very much prefer the rear of the 3200.

Try both before making a decision.

Edited by maser_spyder on Sunday 14th March 16:46

lambo_xx

2,199 posts

223 months

Monday 15th March 2010
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I don't know a lot about these cars, nor have I ever driven them. I believe the general consensus is that the one to go for is the Grandsport, if you can afford one because it has most of the little niggles ironed out and the gearbox is much better. Also, from what I've been told the flappy paddle box on the 4200 isn't great so you might want to look for a manual. Reliability shouldn't be a problem as long as you maintain the car properly.

Hope that helps

Mario149

7,788 posts

204 months

Monday 15th March 2010
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I dug this up in case it's any use. I wrote some of my thoughts down after ownership:

http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?t=821...

maser_spyder

6,356 posts

208 months

Monday 15th March 2010
quotequote all
lambo_xx said:
I don't know a lot about these cars, nor have I ever driven them. I believe the general consensus is that the one to go for is the Grandsport, if you can afford one because it has most of the little niggles ironed out and the gearbox is much better. Also, from what I've been told the flappy paddle box on the 4200 isn't great so you might want to look for a manual. Reliability shouldn't be a problem as long as you maintain the car properly.

Hope that helps
Umm, that's pretty spurious having not actually driven any of these cars....

The manual version of the 4200 is generally considered to be clunky and not great, the CC (Cambiocorsa) is actually pretty good if driven properly, but it does take a bit of practice.

When buying a car, it's really best to drive one first to see what you like. I tried a manual Spyder and didn't like it at all, very heavy and clunky gear changes. The CC is so much better (in my opinion!).

You'll struggle to find a manual version for this reason, almost all new sales were for the CC (at a £6500 premium).