Home servicing a GS

[Gp79]

I've had my GS a couple of months now and was thinking about servicing it myself and only visiting the indy when problems i cant solve crop up i.e clutches, warning lights etc etc.

To be honest considering my car has been to a main dealer or independent every year i was a little disappointed...

Pollen filter soaked, full of leaves (been there a long long time), drain choked
Front wheel arch liners in poor condition where air filter access required
Under pan missing few bolts.

I thought the whole point in paying huge service costs was to ensure there things would not be that way.

I have order new wheel arch liners for 25 quid each and various bolts to make everything good again, so not a fortune but it should have been done during a service.

Looking at the service schedule nothing is too challenging (not like cam belts on the 3200) and rather than a garage who are there to make money at the end of the day so wont 'waste' too much time performing a service, i think an enthusiast owner (i am a marine engineer with a decent size garage so of course this helps!) can do the job just as well.

My main point is what do you effect this will have come re-sale time? i plan to keep the car 3-4 years so it will be 13 years old by then and all the invoices for parts and even photographic evidence will be available.

Look forward to hearing your thoughts.

Cheers Greg

 

[allandwf]

Do it yourself, keep all receipts, but still expect people to expect it to be cheaper come resale. They will be the ones who will expect it to be under 30,000 miles also!

 

[keme]

I make all of those small and simply services at my friend workshop I can watch what hes doing with my car and I think it is the best way I know that a lot of people doesnt like when someone is watching their hands at work, but he dont mind

 

[Cox]

If you have the car for any real length of time, you're unlikely to make the money back you spend on servicing when you sell the car, especially if you are paying dealer prices. I've always carried out my own oil changes myself on all of the cars I have owned (at least then I know I am actually getting decent quality oil and the job is being done properly), as well as other service items such as sparks, filters, etc. As you said, clutches etc I leave to my mechanic. But if I did get a service, I would personally take it to a trusted independent. In my opinion the primary purpose of a service is to prolong the life of the car, not to pay a premium to get an expensive stamp in a book...

If you are worried about devaluing it, you could just get the big ones done when they are due at a specialist like Shiltech and then do the others yourself. That way if you have "overlooked" anything, they should pick it up and you will have some evidence to show that it has been checked over by professionals at some point during your ownership.

Anyway, just my two pence,

Dave.

 

[2b1ask1]

4 years in and every bit of servicing by myself; nothing daunting about them, just think of it as two straight 4's when it gets scary. Keep all receipts and photos of it disassembled so if anyone challenges you you can go 'well there it is'. Sure there will be tyre kickers but that doesn't bother me one bit. webuyanycar.com will screw you over if it is missing stamps in the book but I think they screw you over anyway...

Most of the service parts are found cheaper in the alternative parts thread; the one you can't get around is the oil filter as this does seem to be exclusive or nobody has chanced any similar ones as far as I can tell.

 

[philw696]

With Newton on this.
I'm doing a major repair on my project 4200 and I have photo evidence and genuine parts through the dealer in all their lovely packaging.
Dare I say there is something sensual with the Maserati bubble rap?
I'm keeping it anyway.

 

[mjheathcote]

Don't forget those little self seal plastic bags with the Maserati logo.
Might sell them on ebay!!!

 

[Gp79]

Thanks for the feedback, agree with everything said and good to hear folk tackling the work themselves, not getting worked up over a stamp.

Yes quite, the long life of the car is the primary reason fro the service, not a book full of stamps!

I actually quite enjoy doing service work on every car i have owned, even a 3 yr old BMW (bog standard 520d) where the main dealer would charge 160 quid for an oil change!

The alternative parts thread helped me a lot, i have already and replaced the pollen filter and f1 relay at low cost based on this.

Will enter in the service book when its done and keep all receipts etc etc.

 

[CatmanV2]

I've now actually run out of slots for mileage related servicing. Shame they're not all full, but there we are.

C

 

[safrane]

Have to balace the residuals against the savings you will make...sadly I for one would not trust a private sellers word unless I knew them personally. ..and I also have little trust in the majority of garages...so catch 22!

 

[Gp79]

I know where you're coming from Peter!

The thing is i tend to keep normal cars until they are worth sub 2k so come sale time it comes more down to the condition of it rather than whether it has a garage or home service history so this is a bit different.

Maybe i answer my own question with the fact that i wouldn't have bought the car unless the history was with an independent or dealer and it checked out!

As well as Maserati's being hard enough to sell with a garage history!

 

[hodroyd]

I'm all for professional service, not dealers, but guys who know what they are doing for servicing a 180mph flying machine. I do odd bits myself like we all do, but the major stuff leave it to the experts and get your stamp..!!

 

[Fran]

Some official Maserati dealers are rubbish. My car was always maintained at Maserati in west London but I also had missing bolts. leaves in the air system....

They are a Joke! When I bought the car I ask them to make it perfect, paid 750 and was returned with the same defects!!!
One example. The boot was not closing well. They changed a rele' for 50£ which was not faulty and returned the car with the same problems that was appearing every time you tried to close the boot. So no excuses.

I had good experiences at Giallo, an expensive independent but they really know what they are doing.

In general buyers will look for full Maserati service history but I thinks it does not guarantee anything especially for older cars. A tedious owner with good mechanical knowledge like me can only guarantee a good car! Of course an inspection before purchasing is a must.
I know that my car would pass any inspection.

FM

 

[hodroyd]

Have to agree with that Fran, lot's of stories about poor main dealer work, or lack of it, with charges for nothing and it's not just Maserati..!!

 

[karatemaserati]

I get the bare minimum servicing done by main dealer carrs in exeter who are really good and match indy prices. But anything they pic up on the healthcheck I do myself eg discs pads ect.

 

[Zep]

I'm the same. In the months I have had my GS I have done the pollen filter & drain, spark plugs and gearbox oil and handbrake adjustment. But I have had a service done by Shiltech so the book is all up together. I hope to be that tedious owner!!!


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