RE: Maserati GranTurismo: PH Buying Guide
Wednesday 27th July 2016
There was no doubting what Maserati had in mind when it launched its GranTurismo at the Geneva motor show in 2007. The name said it all and the replacement for the 4200 was intended as a car to cover big distances at speed and in comfort. It was not a direct rival for any of its Ferrari cousins, even if some of its components were shared with the 599.
To underline the GranTurismo's true GT credentials, it was based on the Quattroporte platform that was shortened by 122mm in the wheelbase. The 405hp 4.2-litre V8 engine with six-speed automatic gearbox was placed as far back in the bay as possible, which gave 50-50 front/rear weight distribution. This meant the GranTurismo was praised for its handling balance in early road tests, though the performance of 0-62mph in 5.5 seconds and 177mph top speed were regarded more as adequate than impressive.
The next big change for the GranTurismo coupe arrived in late 2010 with the MC Stradale joining the line-up. Inspired by the Trofeo race car, it has a 450hp 4.7 V8. Covers 0-62mph in 4.6 seconds and hits 188mph. More importantly, weight is reduced by 110kg and the MC Shift gearbox has quicker changes and a unique Race mode. There were no rear seats in the Stradale when first introduced, which was slightly at odds with the GranTurismo's ethos, but it's the fastest version of this Maserati.
Maserati GranTurismo: PH Buying Guide
Want a Maserati GranTurismo? Of course you do - here's what you need to know before taking the plunge
To address this problem, Maserati introduced the 4.7-litre S model in 2008 that came with 440hp to deliver 0-62mph in 4.9 seconds and upped the top end to 183mph. Other changes for the S included the MC Shift transaxle transmission that is an automated manual rather than an auto with manual override. Bigger brakes with six-pot Brembo calipers and more aggressive styling for the Pininfarina exterior styling completed the S model's upgrades.
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The Italian firm also introduced the GranCabrio open-top version in 2010, which has a fabric roof and a model line much the same as the coupe's. Prices for the GranCabrio start at £45,000, while around £28,000 will get you into an early GranTurismo 4.2. If you want the 4.7-litre engine, reckon on spending from £35,000, while the Stradale will need at least £70,000 to put one in your garage.
PHer's view:
"I had a 4.7 MC shift and it was brilliant, it sounded amazing, was great to drive, looked stunning, had proper usable rear seats and I loved the MC gear box, the way it changed gear at maximum revs and full throttle was fantastic but it is not the best for town driving."
Pooh
Buying Guide contents:
Introduction
Powertrain
Rolling chassis
Body
Interior
At a glance
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Discussion
"Early cars suffered faulty cam variators, which are £300 for replacements, but this shouldn't be a problem on any car now as Maserati was quick to solve this and fix any cars that experienced the problem."
Mine has just had the Variators done at a cost of £3000. There is a list of engine numbers affected. It is most common on the 4.7 Auto QP and 4.2 Auto GT but does still happen on the MC Shift. To determine if they need doing listen to the engine on cold start and it will clatter for a few seconds, there is no mistaking the sound it is very loud but will go after a few seconds and not return until the engine has cooled sufficiently. The fix is to have the cam variators removed and the cam caps machined with a non-return valve. Maserati should have issued a recall for this but as usual they continue to let owners down with very poor aftercare service.
Mine has just had the Variators done at a cost of £3000. There is a list of engine numbers affected. It is most common on the 4.7 Auto QP and 4.2 Auto GT but does still happen on the MC Shift. To determine if they need doing listen to the engine on cold start and it will clatter for a few seconds, there is no mistaking the sound it is very loud but will go after a few seconds and not return until the engine has cooled sufficiently. The fix is to have the cam variators removed and the cam caps machined with a non-return valve. Maserati should have issued a recall for this but as usual they continue to let owners down with very poor aftercare service.
Contigo said:
"Early cars suffered faulty cam variators, which are £300 for replacements, but this shouldn't be a problem on any car now as Maserati was quick to solve this and fix any cars that experienced the problem."
Mine has just had the Variators done at a cost of £3000. There is a list of engine numbers affected. It is most common on the 4.7 Auto QP and 4.2 Auto GT but does still happen on the MC Shift. To determine if they need doing listen to the engine on cold start and it will clatter for a few seconds, there is no mistaking the sound it is very loud but will go after a few seconds and not return until the engine has cooled sufficiently. The fix is to have the cam variators removed and the cam caps machined with a non-return valve. Maserati should have issued a recall for this but as usual they continue to let owners down with very poor aftercare service.
My research indicates that this issue also effects a large number of Quattroporte's too. It's one of the things that put me off buying one. I don't like it when cars have known engineering issues that aren't fixed for years. The 911 bore scoring is another example. It really shouldn't take the manufacturer years to sort stuff like this out. Unfortunately most interesting performance cars these days seem to come with at least one major engineering fault.Mine has just had the Variators done at a cost of £3000. There is a list of engine numbers affected. It is most common on the 4.7 Auto QP and 4.2 Auto GT but does still happen on the MC Shift. To determine if they need doing listen to the engine on cold start and it will clatter for a few seconds, there is no mistaking the sound it is very loud but will go after a few seconds and not return until the engine has cooled sufficiently. The fix is to have the cam variators removed and the cam caps machined with a non-return valve. Maserati should have issued a recall for this but as usual they continue to let owners down with very poor aftercare service.
stuckmojo said:
Beautiful cars, and they sound immense.
The running costs and repairs scare the s
t out of me though. Ferrari running costs, right?
Yes, I looked into them when I bought my 997, running costs looked about 4x higher than the 997 due to 6000 mile intervals with £800 minimum charge, vs 20,000 miles in the Pork & more like half that cost per serviceThe running costs and repairs scare the s
t out of me though. Ferrari running costs, right? Of particular concern was an indi telling me that I could save some money on brake disks by not using Maserati branded and instead fitting the Ferarri 599 part
Guvernator said:
My research indicates that this issue also effects a large number of Quattroporte's too. It's one of the things that put me off buying one. I don't like it when cars have known engineering issues that aren't fixed for years. The 911 bore scoring is another example. It really shouldn't take the manufacturer years to sort stuff like this out. Unfortunately most interesting performance cars these days seem to come with at least one major engineering fault.
Which is what has put me off buying a 4200 and a 996 or 997 911.Doubt the manufacturers give a crap though about the used market at over 5 years old.
So I choose other manufacturers instead
Scottie - NW said:
Which is what has put me off buying a 4200 and a 996 or 997 911.
Doubt the manufacturers give a crap though about the used market at over 5 years old.
So I choose other manufacturers instead
As many have said before, unfortunately these ( 997's, Maserati's etc) are all c. £80k-£100k when new and even when they are £30k they still have £100k running costs. Doubt the manufacturers give a crap though about the used market at over 5 years old.
So I choose other manufacturers instead
Obviously you can do some of the maintenance yourself but they will all have big bills. If the big bills worry people then its better going down the mass market Audi or BMW route.
I ran the 4.2 when it came out and it was pretty reliable, had 3 997's two needed new engines, GT2 needed new ceramic disks, Range rover needed new electrics etc etc
I ran all of these as every day cars and did 30-35k a year in them.
I will at some point go back to a granturismo mc shift as an every day hack but I will also put £10k in a bank account that I assume I will spend on it over a couple of years.
As with anything slightly exotic always a good idea when thinking about buying one looking at the purchase price adding £10k to it and assuming that's what your actually paying, if your comfortable with this then all good and you might even come away with not spending it all which would be a nice bonus.
As an example when I bought my 550 a couple of years ago I ensured I had a £10k slush fund, car checked out and all was good. Started to drive it home from the Netherlands and a knocking started at the rear ( axle, gearbox etc etc) it got steadily worse through Belgium and France. It sounded expensive and made me feel physically sick ... and this was before I even got home !!
Couple of sleepless nights later !! It was an exhaust hanger ( about £20 !) that had failed allowing the exhaust to bang on the underneath !!
Could have been much worse !!
Phib
Edited by phib on Thursday 28th July 10:51
Edited by phib on Thursday 28th July 10:52
phib said:
As many have said before, unfortunately these ( 997's, Maserati's etc) are all c. £80k-£100k when new and even when they are £30k they still have £100k running costs.
Obviously you can do some of the maintenance yourself but they will all have big bills. If the big bills worry people then its better going down the mass market Audi or BMW route.
I ran the 4.2 when it came out and it was pretty reliable, had 3 997's two needed new engines, GT2 needed new ceramic disks, Range rover needed new electrics etc etc
I ran all of these as every day cars and did 30-35k a year in them.
I will at some point go back to a granturismo mc shift as an every day hack but I will also put £10k in a bank account that I assume I will spend on it over a couple of years.
As with anything slightly exotic always a good idea when thinking about buying one looking at the purchase price adding £10k to it and assuming that's what your actually paying, if your comfortable with this then all good and you might even come away with not spending it all which would be a nice bonus.
As an example when I bought my 550 a couple of years ago I ensured I had a £10k slush fund, car checked out and all was good. Started to drive it home from the Netherlands and a knocking started at the rear ( axle, gearbox etc etc) it got steadily worse through Belgium and France. It sounded expensive and made me feel physically sick ... and this was before I even got home !!
Couple of sleepless nights later !! It was an exhaust hanger ( about £20 !) that had failed allowing the exhaust to bang on the underneath !!
Could have been much worse !!
Phib
The thing is I wouldn't class major component failure as running costs. I've run performance cars before so servicing and consumables being more expensive I can deal with, you have to pay to play as they say but a major component like an engine failing is something else entirely. Obviously you can do some of the maintenance yourself but they will all have big bills. If the big bills worry people then its better going down the mass market Audi or BMW route.
I ran the 4.2 when it came out and it was pretty reliable, had 3 997's two needed new engines, GT2 needed new ceramic disks, Range rover needed new electrics etc etc
I ran all of these as every day cars and did 30-35k a year in them.
I will at some point go back to a granturismo mc shift as an every day hack but I will also put £10k in a bank account that I assume I will spend on it over a couple of years.
As with anything slightly exotic always a good idea when thinking about buying one looking at the purchase price adding £10k to it and assuming that's what your actually paying, if your comfortable with this then all good and you might even come away with not spending it all which would be a nice bonus.
As an example when I bought my 550 a couple of years ago I ensured I had a £10k slush fund, car checked out and all was good. Started to drive it home from the Netherlands and a knocking started at the rear ( axle, gearbox etc etc) it got steadily worse through Belgium and France. It sounded expensive and made me feel physically sick ... and this was before I even got home !!
Couple of sleepless nights later !! It was an exhaust hanger ( about £20 !) that had failed allowing the exhaust to bang on the underneath !!
Could have been much worse !!
Phib
Even the BMW and Audi's that you've stated have major issues sometimes, right now I'm dealing with a DSG issue on my Audi on a 42000 mile car, apparently it's a known fault
. Thankfully it's under warranty but I just don't think major components like the engine or gearbox should just fail and if it's happening to lots of cars then that is a manufacturing fault and should be rectified by the manufacturer ASAP rather than what most try to do which is just trying to sweep it under the carpet.Gassing Station | General Gassing | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff