Gransport 20995

[b9boy]

I'm hoping to go and see it on Wednesday this week.
Min100% agree with hashluck's comments above - low mileage doesn't mean a lack of problems, oftenthe reverse.

 

[jayblue]

This car is good value and should sell for 20k all day long assuming its as good as it looks. I don't think it is true that high mile Maserati's are hard to sell, the way I look at it all of them are hard to sell! Just look at how long some of the cars are for sale on Autotrader and Pistonheads, low miles or not.

 

[philgarner]

Yes, bad time to sell. Most people will just buy a 997 who are in the market for this sort of car so you have to be either a proper enthusiast or just happen upon one, either of which is a very rare event.

I think in the Spring, well presented, it would have gone for 23k.

 

[Woody]

So, does this demonstrate that higher mileage cars are basically unsellable? A bit of a concern really unless you intend to keep it forever. Stuck between low mileage "investment " quality cars and daily drivers which are low value.

I would say all GranSports are hard to sell.

Ive put 40+k on mine and I've enjoyed every one of them. I did go through a patch of not using it much and that was when I had a few issues. I know it's a cliche, but these cars really do benefit from being used.

Yes, I've had one or two big bills, but pence per mile, I suspect, is lower than putting a car in the garage and doing 500 miles a year, particularly if you are doing the annual maintenance.

I am not planning on selling mine but I'd hope that if I ever do, the car will be judged on its condition and service records and not on the numbers on the dash.

 

[Wack61]

Many buy from dealer for retail with reassurance of warranty and consumer rights but selling is a different game , I got offered 2/3 of it's value in PX for my 4200 against a 22k QP last year and that was sight unseen, I dread to think what would have happened if I'd made the 150 mile trip to go and see it.

I'd sold it in a private sale last September but between agreeing the sale and pickup the A/C started playing up , I could have just let him drive away in it but that's not me so the sale fell through

 

[BRR]

Great value car for £20k, also I don't think these cars are unsellable at any miles you just have to price them accordingly. I bought mine 4.5 years ago with 20k less on it than it has now and paid £21k I reckon it's still worth roughly that but if I sold it for £15k it would still have been very cheap motoring, the problem would be that anything else you can purchase for 15-25k is going to feel like a big step down in ownership experience IMO

 

[b9boy]

What mileage is yours on now BRR?

 

[BRR]

What mileage is yours on now BRR?

just coming up to 73k, I think if I sold it in spring I'd get my £21k back, if I was to sell now maybe 18-20? not really sure but like I say even if I sold it for much less it would have been cheap motoring

 

[b9boy]

Still, that's sensible miles because these are strong cars. I think part of the issue is that people see big bills on low mileage cars and think that they will be multiplied when the miles go up. Reality is that many repairs are age related or through lack of use NOT through mileage. This dampens the market for higher mileage cars.

I totally agree with your suggestion of value for yours. I suspect it's worth that money no problem at the right time of year.

I went to see this silver one today BTW. Will post up thoughts later.

 

[Dyer3200]

7 pages of speculation and nobody's bought it ?

B9boy interested to hear your thoughts having viewed the car

 

[b9boy]

It's a bit of a long story and I'm conscious I don't want to deflect anyone else's interest in the car but the seller is an 'interesting' chap.

I must have bought 200 cars over the years (we all have the diseSe it's just about how badly it bites us . ) but this guy and his set up takes the biscuit. It's a hurdle for sure.

If we focus on the car only though it's surprisingly tidy. Good Paint, good wheels, good interior. Stamped up history book. Invoices for clutch, wishbones, brakes, heater matrix etc (on his phone only...). Half worn contis.

Bad bits (as far as I can tell):
- stone chips to nose, some very deep but not bad for mileage at all
- drivers seat doesn't work properly. Judders on all movements
- drivers heated seat doesn't work
- stereo is popping really loudly even though volume is off. Sounds like amp is trying to eat itself
- bootlid leading edge is rusty
- spirit and windmirror housings are rusty
- cats started rattling loudly when warm. He practically sprinted to turn the car off when this happened

Overall the car is very tidy though. Biggest issues (IMO) are the knackered cats (IMHO) and the seller
Who I struggle with. I could expand on this but I won't in a open forum.

I might still make him an offer but my enthusiasm for a bargain has waned somewhat which is annoying given the effort to get to 'middle earth' today.

 

[rockits]

Drop me a PM if you like. I bought my QP from Steve last year.

 

[Andyk]

I suppose the reason it's cheap is because of some of the issues mentioned maybe ? .... There is usually a reason for it being cheap and sounds like that's it.

 

[midlifecrisis]

It's a bit of a long story and I'm conscious I don't want to deflect anyone else's interest in the car but the seller is an 'interesting' chap.

I must have bought 200 cars over the years (we all have the diseSe it's just about how badly it bites us . ) but this guy and his set up takes the biscuit. It's a hurdle for sure.

If we focus on the car only though it's surprisingly tidy. Good Paint, good wheels, good interior. Stamped up history book. Invoices for clutch, wishbones, brakes, heater matrix etc (on his phone only...). Half worn contis.

Bad bits (as far as I can tell):
- stone chips to nose, some very deep but not bad for mileage at all
- drivers seat doesn't work properly. Judders on all movements
- drivers heated seat doesn't work
- stereo is popping really loudly even though volume is off. Sounds like amp is trying to eat itself
- bootlid leading edge is rusty
- spirit and windmirror housings are rusty
- cats started rattling loudly when warm. He practically sprinted to turn the car off when this happened

Overall the car is very tidy though. Biggest issues (IMO) are the knackered cats (IMHO) and the seller
Who I struggle with. I could expand on this but I won't in a open forum.

I might still make him an offer but my enthusiasm for a bargain has waned somewhat which is annoying given the effort to get to 'middle earth' today.

Sounds like it needs a respray (3-5k), CAT removal and a lot of attention elsewhere (1k). Did you get to look underneath? The front subframe on all 4200/GS rust from the inside out at some point in time where the OSF suspension attaches to the subframe. That alone is £500 to properly weld up, with extra internal ribbing, application of rust inhibitors etc. The engine should be mechanically fine, but I'd worry about the cats being sucked into the engine. The Cat's would also be in the manifold downpipes not on the 'horizontal' run after the first join. More of a nightmare. I'd walk away unless I knew a friendly mechanic and offer 15K. Cruel offer but it sounds like it has big issues.

 

[b9boy]

Rockits - will send you a PM thanks

As for the other bits it doesn't need a respray. If you were picky the nose cone anerds doing but it's not terrible by any stretch. The bootlid needs doing but I suspect they can deal with it from the inside edge and not spray the surface you see from behind.

Cats I am pretty certain need replacing or removal. Seats and amp etc agree £1,000 would deal with bits.

Looked good underneath but didn't get too involved. Both lower wishbones are new. Nothing nasty visible at a glance.

The problem I suppose is that all bits are so expensive what seems like a bargain soon becomes pretty expensive potentially BUT it has had lots spent recently so you'd like to think the big items are taken care of?

 

[mjheathcote]

The problem I suppose is that all bits are so expensive what seems like a bargain soon becomes pretty expensive potentially BUT it has had lots spent recently so you'd like to think the big items are taken care of?

That is always the problem, you end up spending so much that you could buy one in better condition with less mileage.

 

[b9boy]

That is always the problem, you end up spending so much that you could buy one in better condition with less mileage.

But then you never know that the 'better one' with less miles won't let you down with big bills. Probably safest to assume they will all cost you a certain amount and at least if you start from a lower entry point you've got some room.

TBH I already have a GS so the idea here for me would be to tuck my black one up in the garage for best and use this as my daily driver putting miles on this one. The thought of having two that could generate bills though is sobering. Haven't weighed it up fully yet in my head..

 

[Ewan]

Sounds like less than £2k could turn certainly turn this into a nice car. And let's face it, it's easy to spend £2k on any 10 year old Maser that's done this mileage. So I don't see anything in that report that stops it being a viable purchase. Still sounds like a great deal to me, given that there's no other comparable GS for sale at this price and hasn't been for several years.

 

[BRR]

Thanks for taking the time to give us your thoughts on the car, I think if it was spring even with the faults you mention this would've been snapped up, issues put right then be back on the market for £25k

 

[midlifecrisis]

With a bit of time and effort and shrewd part purchasing it would make a profit. Especially if it got a 'clean bill of health' fro an Indie inspection. What people forget is that these engines do go on for a long time. Phil's has done over 100k and is still going strong.