Novice almost ready to buy Maser 3200GT - poss Assetto Corsa

[Jandy72]

Hi all - new to all this so thought I'd ask for your oracle like wisdom.....
I am poised to buy a 3200 GT poss manual, poss an Assetto Corsa around 2000/1 for £17k ish.....but not yet decided. Never owned Maserati or Ferrari before and I want to use it daily around 8000 miles per annum...am I mad or will I get away with modest running costs (excluding MPG which I understand can be between 12 used hard and 25 on a very light footed motorway run??)
Also I want to find a good independant specialist to keep running costs down - are there any Maserati Independants fairly close to me in Exeter South West?
Also should I buy privately? Can I buy an aftermarket warranty that means something in the real world?
Lastly where is the cheapest for insurance!!
You can tell I am keen but cautious!!!
Oh and I need 4 good seats hence the Maser..

Andy

[shadowninja]

It's the servicing costs and parts that are the problem. From previous threads, I gathered you ought to put aside £5k a year for a typical 12k miles a year.

[dubbs]

For just a couple of grand more you enter 4200 territory... from what I understand (based on my looking as I want a 4200 or a 456 next year) the 4200 is much better, and likely to be less tired or at least better screwed together.

I reckon parts availability for the 4200 will be easier and servicing less expensive

If you need any more convincing then look for the Tubi exhaust vids on You tube for a 4200..wow!!!

[Colossus]

I agree that in terms of running costs a well sorted and looked after 4200 is likely to be cheaper in the long run. I owned an '03 Coupe GT for 2 years and used it as a daily driver and it never missed a beat. Service was with main dealers and annual service was about £1,000 while bigger one was £1,700. You would then probably want to budget for something going wrong - I reckon £3,000 a year would not be unrealistic. Can't comment on the 3200 but from what I understand they are very different cars to drive and the 4200 has much better build quality. Either way, do it if you can afford it, they are brilliant cars and I have just traded in for a new Maser QP GTS. Good luck and let us know how it goes.

[mr_tony]

FYI - this is what it cost me to run my 18 month old 8000mile 02 car from 2003 to 2005. (22 months and 25k miles)

Running Costs
Insurance: £2,850 £1,555
Tyres: £950 £518
Servicing/Repairs: £4,804 £2,620
Tax: £320 £175
Upgrades: £2,350 £1,282
Total Running Costs: £11,274 £6,149

Bear in mind that I had a full warranty that stood the cost of new aircon compressor, multiple lambda sensors a new radiator (stone put a hole through it) new suspension arms and various hoses, the car was in excellent condition, it broke down only once in that time which was aircon related and not drivetrain.

Ok you can ignore the upgrades (though get a tubi if it's not got one) and you're probably not accounting for insurance / tax in your equations. But clearly 5k per year inc tyres, a warranty and some servicing and repairs is sensible to budget for if you're running 8k miles a year as I did.

I hope you go for it, they are a lot of fun

[shirazjiwa]

Not the 3200 vs 4200 again!

I haven't been following Masers with intent, but was following the threads on them. I believe there's a specific maserati forum out there as well and a couple fo regulars on here that use it.

From what I understand I believe the running costs and reputation aren;t all that different, however what is more important is finding one that's been maintained well. Personally I much prefer the look of the 3200 with those boomerang lights and the bonnet scoops, however style/colour is a very subjective/personal thing.

Anyway just my tuppence worth; there'll be many far more knowledgable than me that can shed light on this subject. Trying doing a search maybe as well?

[3200gt]

shirazjiwa said:

Not the 3200 vs 4200 again!

Hehe

No arguement 3200 every time (and before I get the N'th degree, yes I have driven both)

[Jandy72]

Hey everyone this is very informative and not much different to what I'd thought. Thanks very much.
Does anyone know of a list of independants or anywhere (good) near Exeter to get it serviced/repaired rather than using main dealer?
Looks wise it's the 3200 for me but ongoing costs are definitely a factor as well....decisions decisions!

[bertie]

3200gt said:

shirazjiwa said:

Not the 3200 vs 4200 again!

Hehe

No arguement 3200 every time (and before I get the N'th degree, yes I have driven both)

Each to their own, but I think the 4200 is a league better. The automatic 3200 was difficult to drive with an almost digital throttle but the manual I drove was almost uncontrolable!

[Jimbo.]

...but the manual I drove was almost uncontrolable!

Nonsense. It's not "uncontrollable": it's just fine.

[Popeyed]

Jandy72 said:

Hey everyone this is very informative and not much different to what I'd thought. Thanks very much.
Does anyone know of a list of independants or anywhere (good) near Exeter to get it serviced/repaired rather than using main dealer?
Looks wise it's the 3200 for me but ongoing costs are definitely a factor as well....decisions decisions!

You have mail, mine may well be on the market very shortly.

[bertie]

Jimbo. said:

...but the manual I drove was almost uncontrolable!

Nonsense. It's not "uncontrollable": it's just fine.

Was to me.

Throttle was basicly digital, you got 30hp, the 1mm more travel and some time when the turbos spooled up and you got 350bhp.

I found it very difficult, almost impossible to drive smoothly, and yes I have driven some spicy things, I get along with my Caterham R400 just fine and they don't come much more sensitive than that, but at least it's predictable.

[s3200h]

bertie said:

Jimbo. said:

...but the manual I drove was almost uncontrolable!

Nonsense. It's not "uncontrollable": it's just fine.

Was to me.

Throttle was basicly digital, you got 30hp, the 1mm more travel and some time when the turbos spooled up and you got 350bhp.

I found it very difficult, almost impossible to drive smoothly, and yes I have driven some spicy things, I get along with my Caterham R400 just fine and they don't come much more sensitive than that, but at least it's predictable.

Thats because your throttle will have needed to be reset. there is a simple procedure that sorts out the throttle response. will post details later

[s3200h]

With use and due to its design, the "fly-by-wire" throttle system gradually narrows its operating band between idle and full throttle. If left unchecked, this can result in an increasingly sensitive throttle pedal affecting drivability. As it's not exactly insensitive to start with, the result is a PITA with hill starts etc

Whilst you would normally use either an SD2 or SD3 to reset the engine ECU, the factory manuals (Engine volume: page 96 of the Fuel supply section) do contain another approach from the comfort of the drivers seat but do read very carefully.

If you are not sure of what you are doing, leave it to someone who does!


1) Reset the mechanical zero position

Put gear lever in neutral

Switch on ignition (to MAR position) but do NOT start the engine

Do not touch the throttle pedal for 2 minutes

Switch off ignition



2) Reset the mechanical Full Throttle position

Put gear lever in neutral

Switch on ignition (to MAR position) but do NOT start the engine

Fully depress throttle pedal and hold for 5 seconds

Release throttle pedal completely

Switch off ignition


The full text does not specify waiting until the various warning lights have extinguished themselves after switching on ignition, but I do not depress throttle (item 2) or start timing until they have.

By way of explanation, the no throttle setting (tickover or lower value) is 350/650mv whilst full throttle (upper value) is typically 3,100/3,300mv.

Apparently, the management system strategy gradually reduces the full throttle value by 5mv (for the next switch-on) every time the ignition is turned on (whether engine started or not) UNLESS full throttle is applied for 5 seconds at least once in that cycle (eg climbing a steep hill with full throttle etc). Therefore, under certain circumstances, the full throttle setting will gradually reduce, leading to over sensitivity at the pedal. The manual reset procedure restores the upper and lower values to their default design settings.

Thanks to Nigelo for the above

[bertie]

s3200h said:

bertie said:

Jimbo. said:

...but the manual I drove was almost uncontrolable!

Nonsense. It's not "uncontrollable": it's just fine.

Was to me.

Throttle was basicly digital, you got 30hp, the 1mm more travel and some time when the turbos spooled up and you got 350bhp.

I found it very difficult, almost impossible to drive smoothly, and yes I have driven some spicy things, I get along with my Caterham R400 just fine and they don't come much more sensitive than that, but at least it's predictable.

Thats because your throttle will have needed to be reset. there is a simple procedure that sorts out the throttle response. will post details later

It was two different cars, my brother auto and may mates manual, both were similar.

I guess you'd get used to the hair trigger given time and exposure.

[3200gt]

s3200h said:

Thats because your throttle will have needed to be reset. there is a simple procedure that sorts out the throttle response. will post details later

Its amazing that so many people think that the hair trigger throttle comes as standard. Your not wrong about the reset procedure, I ensure that they do it free at every service just for peace of mind.
My preference is for the auto but both are far from undriveable.

[3200gt]

Popeyed said:

You have mail, mine may well be on the market very shortly.

Why are you selling?, the impression I got from your posts it was a keeper, especially as its in the correct colour combo.

[Popeyed]

3200gt said:

Popeyed said:

You have mail, mine may well be on the market very shortly.

Why are you selling?, the impression I got from your posts it was a keeper, especially as its in the correct colour combo.

True, I've totally sorted the car, but the urge for a Gransport has become too strong!! Now finding a Gransport in the correct colour combo will be more challenging, although Tom Hartley had a great Rosso one with a dark interior until a few weeks ago.

[s3200h]

bertie said:

s3200h said:

bertie said:

Jimbo. said:

...but the manual I drove was almost uncontrolable!

Nonsense. It's not "uncontrollable": it's just fine.

Was to me.

Throttle was basicly digital, you got 30hp, the 1mm more travel and some time when the turbos spooled up and you got 350bhp.

I found it very difficult, almost impossible to drive smoothly, and yes I have driven some spicy things, I get along with my Caterham R400 just fine and they don't come much more sensitive than that, but at least it's predictable.

Thats because your throttle will have needed to be reset. there is a simple procedure that sorts out the throttle response. will post details later

It was two different cars, my brother auto and may mates manual, both were similar.

I guess you'd get used to the hair trigger given time and exposure.

bertie, I do know what you are saying with the hair trigger, the first 3200 i test drove was a manual and the throttle was very hard to control, the dealer told me it is normal for the 3200, this nearly put me off the 3200 as it was very bad, tried another manual and the throttle was perfectly normal. In the end i bought an auto with a perfectly normal throttle. use the above procedure it works