RE: The Brave Pill: Maserati 4200GT
Discussion
For anyone genuinely interested, get yourself over to Sportsmaserati.com.
In terms of brave pills, I bought my non-cat facelift 4200 with 56k miles blind for the same price including commission at auction.
All done one Saturday afternoon over the phone and collected the following Friday after a trip to Kings Lynn.
I was somewhat nervous collecting it, but I had the advantage of knowing who the two previous owners were from the above forum and I was very fortunate that a motoring journalist had given me a heads up on the decorative state of the car.
There will be a clutch replacement in the future, and the heater matrix will need doing too so around £3-4k in anticipated works to be done.
Am I that brave? Not really, there is an outstanding indie just 10 miles down the road from me. And even if A V Engineering stopped trading in Kent, there are two other respected indies in the county.
If I lived close to RPM Technik, I would probably have gone for a cheap 996. The point being, if you get the right support in place you should swallow that pill and enjoy these cars whilst we still can.
And if, as may be the case, in 10 years' time ICEs are outlawed or severely restricted and the car is left with little to no intrinsic value, I am prepared to swallow that £9.5k loss knowing that i had owned such a car embracing its flaws and enjoying that V8.
In terms of brave pills, I bought my non-cat facelift 4200 with 56k miles blind for the same price including commission at auction.
All done one Saturday afternoon over the phone and collected the following Friday after a trip to Kings Lynn.
I was somewhat nervous collecting it, but I had the advantage of knowing who the two previous owners were from the above forum and I was very fortunate that a motoring journalist had given me a heads up on the decorative state of the car.
There will be a clutch replacement in the future, and the heater matrix will need doing too so around £3-4k in anticipated works to be done.
Am I that brave? Not really, there is an outstanding indie just 10 miles down the road from me. And even if A V Engineering stopped trading in Kent, there are two other respected indies in the county.
If I lived close to RPM Technik, I would probably have gone for a cheap 996. The point being, if you get the right support in place you should swallow that pill and enjoy these cars whilst we still can.
And if, as may be the case, in 10 years' time ICEs are outlawed or severely restricted and the car is left with little to no intrinsic value, I am prepared to swallow that £9.5k loss knowing that i had owned such a car embracing its flaws and enjoying that V8.
DeltaEvo2 said:
Why would you when you could get yourself any German from the same era. .
List for my next car was simple:Max £15k
2+2 (or 3)
RWD
V8
Manual
Fun
How many German cars fit with that - I could only think of an E92 M3 (arguably E39 M5)
The M3 is arguably the better car in many ways but it's soulless, however all the reviews said the GranSport was the only 4200GT worth having
I bought a 6.0 V8 RX7 !
(But sold it as driving it was an exercise in restraint)
V8RX7 said:
List for my next car was simple:
Max £15k
2+2 (or 3)
RWD
V8
Manual
Fun
....
I bought a 6.0 V8 RX7 !
(But sold it as driving it was an exercise in restraint
The time is now to buy exotic cars. There are good examples out there of the 4200 but the Med Blu from TVRGlen (NE Salvage) in this thread is not likely to be one of those.Max £15k
2+2 (or 3)
RWD
V8
Manual
Fun
....
I bought a 6.0 V8 RX7 !
(But sold it as driving it was an exercise in restraint
The Gransport is a different beast to the 4200, but outside your £15k budget.
Well done sir on the RX7.
I live in n.i and unbelievably have just sold last weeks pill a 550bhp 2004 Cayenne turbo. This car is a monster but it leaves me with an empty space in both mind and body. I have been looking at this mazzer and am so sorely tempted. I'm used to huge fuel bills and a healthy amount of maintenance but can I justify it? The only way it's going down is if I buy a cheap 4x4 to use most of the time and just lick the 4200 all the time. Yes it is a hard decision, what do you think?
They are so good I have owned two 4200 cambio corsa and if you know how to drive the box is great.
You do not use Auto only Sport.
There is a Great video on YouTube with Michael Schumacher driving a Spyder on track.
I actually shipped my second one to New Zealand to use there.
Again I'm a member on sportsmaserati.com and all the knowledge is there.
You do not use Auto only Sport.
There is a Great video on YouTube with Michael Schumacher driving a Spyder on track.
I actually shipped my second one to New Zealand to use there.
Again I'm a member on sportsmaserati.com and all the knowledge is there.
dgmx5 said:
V8RX7 said:
List for my next car was simple:
Max £15k
2+2 (or 3)
RWD
V8
Manual
Fun
....
I bought a 6.0 V8 RX7 !
(But sold it as driving it was an exercise in restraint
The time is now to buy exotic cars. There are good examples out there of the 4200 but the Med Blu from TVRGlen (NE Salvage) in this thread is not likely to be one of those.Max £15k
2+2 (or 3)
RWD
V8
Manual
Fun
....
I bought a 6.0 V8 RX7 !
(But sold it as driving it was an exercise in restraint
The Gransport is a different beast to the 4200, but outside your £15k budget.
Well done sir on the RX7.
I did a similar thing and bought a 5.7 litre corvette engine converted e46. It was a one trick pony. It was either thundering and thrusting you forward quickly or good to talk about at the pub but that was it. I then bought a cheap 996 which seems a bit of cliche nowadays on here but who cares as they are good cars. The point is I've now realised that you can have fun in a car without massive headline performance figures and more importantly the car needs to get you invested emotionally and this is trickier to quantify when you're just browsing ads. How do you know if a car will get under your skin? I dont particularly like the look of these Maseratis but I do like the newer shape, but I don't want to spend 30 grand on one.
I have a 4200 Spyder, manual (thus, correctly called the GT) which I have owned for nearly 10 years. I bought it with 26k on the clock for less than 20k and it's now got 66k on the clock and I would probably get at least what I paid for it if I sold it tomorrow.
Mechanically it's been very reliable. The only major repairs I have had are the heater matrix, a pair of fuel pumps ( I had a leak ) and at some point in the future I will probably have to do the clutch ( but being a manual it's possible it could go on for another 30k miles!)
I swapped the awful CD stacker for a Loudlink/ipod combo, but then again you don't buy these things for the radio!
It's made the trip from Derbyshire to Modena several times without so much as a hiccup, topped 170mph on the autobahn, and averages 20mpg (24 on a run)
It's a touch heavy to be really really chuck-able, but once you get accustomed to the steering and the weight transfer characteristics it does handle really very well. (tyre choice is vital) I did the Stelvio pass in mine and it was utterly brilliant.
The manual gear change can be recalcitrant if poorly adjusted/not lubricated, but mine is literally 2 finger change territory.
Comfy seats, decent sized boot too.
The crowning glory is the engine - a revvy, eager, snarling V8 that still delivers the goods even today. She's 16 years old but will show a clean pair of heals to plenty of much more modern stuff, even some with the mighty BMW M badge on them.
In the final analysis it's a Maserati. The name alone should make grown men and women with petrol in their veins wibble a bit.
Buy them before they ban them. The bork factor is nowhere near the reward level
Mechanically it's been very reliable. The only major repairs I have had are the heater matrix, a pair of fuel pumps ( I had a leak ) and at some point in the future I will probably have to do the clutch ( but being a manual it's possible it could go on for another 30k miles!)
I swapped the awful CD stacker for a Loudlink/ipod combo, but then again you don't buy these things for the radio!
It's made the trip from Derbyshire to Modena several times without so much as a hiccup, topped 170mph on the autobahn, and averages 20mpg (24 on a run)
It's a touch heavy to be really really chuck-able, but once you get accustomed to the steering and the weight transfer characteristics it does handle really very well. (tyre choice is vital) I did the Stelvio pass in mine and it was utterly brilliant.
The manual gear change can be recalcitrant if poorly adjusted/not lubricated, but mine is literally 2 finger change territory.
Comfy seats, decent sized boot too.
The crowning glory is the engine - a revvy, eager, snarling V8 that still delivers the goods even today. She's 16 years old but will show a clean pair of heals to plenty of much more modern stuff, even some with the mighty BMW M badge on them.
In the final analysis it's a Maserati. The name alone should make grown men and women with petrol in their veins wibble a bit.
Buy them before they ban them. The bork factor is nowhere near the reward level
Workmate had one of these a few years back
I had a 996 C4s and we did a swap for few hours. Felt fast, lots of torque and nice noise. Maybe bit quicker than my 996
a few warning lights on the dash - I was told the PC windows fix (off / on) to "fix" it
They look great - I think better than the GranTurismo
I had a 996 C4s and we did a swap for few hours. Felt fast, lots of torque and nice noise. Maybe bit quicker than my 996
a few warning lights on the dash - I was told the PC windows fix (off / on) to "fix" it
They look great - I think better than the GranTurismo
Great, luxurious, fast fun. Bought a 12 month old Coupé in 2005, not CC, manual no floppy paddles, still going strong at 56k. Gearbox smooth apart from 6th always been a bit reluctant to slot in. Yes, service expensive but otherwise not had any serious issues apart from a/c drain pipe blocking and flooding passenger footwell on a very hot day in France, wet electric window control box under footwell resulting in windows having a mind of their own, fun on long drive. New unit £300 and £30 to unplug old and fit new, not exactly breaking the bank!. Was main dealer's own car for year 1 so probably well sorted when I bought.
I have a GranSport too.
They are pretty reliable for core stuff. Engine is a gem. Ride is pretty poor on UK roads as standard. I've fitted coilovers which are a big improvement. Had it on a track at Oulton Park and it was the fastest thing there that didn't come on a trailer so I thought it was pretty good.
I've done most of my own servicing. Nothing average home mechanic can't manage. Spent £2500 on a new clutch last year.
Not much comes close for ~ £20k. Still a bargain I think.
They are pretty reliable for core stuff. Engine is a gem. Ride is pretty poor on UK roads as standard. I've fitted coilovers which are a big improvement. Had it on a track at Oulton Park and it was the fastest thing there that didn't come on a trailer so I thought it was pretty good.
I've done most of my own servicing. Nothing average home mechanic can't manage. Spent £2500 on a new clutch last year.
Not much comes close for ~ £20k. Still a bargain I think.
jdleeso said:
Lovely cars to look at and sit in. Drive isn't that sports originated and a little dull in auto mode. The main thing you have deal with is things always going wrong. I'd don't mind paying to look after a car but don't like getting into it every once in a while and find something isn't working.
Having said that the Mercedes CL was a much worst proposition.
Would be interesting to know if the grandsport was a more reliable option.
Apart from the engine going south (because of a defective oil pump), nothing in particular...Having said that the Mercedes CL was a much worst proposition.
Would be interesting to know if the grandsport was a more reliable option.
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