New Maserati Levante owner - few questions

J

jv021

New Member
Messages
4
Hi All
After almost 20yrs of owning BMWs, I recently bought a 2018 Levante V6S. I was close to buying a Ghibli V6S few yrs ago but the dealer was useless so ended up with a 6 series GC - so I had an itch to scratch!

So far I am loving many things about the car exhaust note being the big one!), getting used to the Italianess of the car...

I do however have a few questions / issues and would like to know if they are common issues and if there are easy fixes
  • When driving in the wet, there seems to be water ingress coming from the passenger rear from the bottom leaving a slight amount of wetness on the carpet. When parked up in the pouring rain, car is bone dry. I have checked the pano roof, windows and it doesnt seem like there is water coming from there. I have shaken the door after a downpour and there seems to be no water sloshing around in the door so I guess the drains are not blocked. The underlay under the carpets does not seem wet so the water seems to be working through the door seals - is this a known issue as the door seal looks fine to the eye, I have given it a clean to ensure nothing was causing it not to sit flush with the body.
  • Driver rear illuminated entry strip doesnt light up, is there a quick way to change the bulb?
  • Heater has on a couple of occasions either stuck at max heat or max cold on one side (once Driver side other time Passenger side). It fixes itself after a few cycles of turning the fan on/off or changing from max heat to max cold. Not something I want in the cold with kids in the car
  • Suspension on one occasion got itself stuck on the highest position for the whole journey then on turning the car off, it give a message on the info screen saying the suspension cannot be changed (or something along those lines). At next start up, and ever since it works fine!
  • Annoying rattle - seems to be coming from passenger front cannot pin point it any more than that. This may just be me as my last few BMWs have been completely rattle and squeak free (I know this is lucky!)

Lastly, is there anything I need to watch for on these?

Thanks in advance
 
safrane

safrane

Member
Messages
16,863
Keep an ear open for the suspension air compressor staying on. It indicates a leaking airbag and will eventually burn out.

I have had a similar issue on my XC90 and it was a 3k fix on that car... dread to think of the Maserati tax on that same issue.
 
Ewan

Ewan

Member
Messages
6,812
The main thing to remember is that it’s a Maserati. So the items you mention are features, not faults. And as long as you keep that in mind, your Maserati days will be fabulous.
 
spkennyuk

spkennyuk

Member
Messages
5,960
jv021 said:
Hi All
After almost 20yrs of owning BMWs, I recently bought a 2018 Levante V6S. I was close to buying a Ghibli V6S few yrs ago but the dealer was useless so ended up with a 6 series GC - so I had an itch to scratch!

So far I am loving many things about the car exhaust note being the big one!), getting used to the Italianess of the car...

I do however have a few questions / issues and would like to know if they are common issues and if there are easy fixes
  • When driving in the wet, there seems to be water ingress coming from the passenger rear from the bottom leaving a slight amount of wetness on the carpet. When parked up in the pouring rain, car is bone dry. I have checked the pano roof, windows and it doesnt seem like there is water coming from there. I have shaken the door after a downpour and there seems to be no water sloshing around in the door so I guess the drains are not blocked. The underlay under the carpets does not seem wet so the water seems to be working through the door seals - is this a known issue as the door seal looks fine to the eye, I have given it a clean to ensure nothing was causing it not to sit flush with the body.
  • Driver rear illuminated entry strip doesnt light up, is there a quick way to change the bulb?
  • Heater has on a couple of occasions either stuck at max heat or max cold on one side (once Driver side other time Passenger side). It fixes itself after a few cycles of turning the fan on/off or changing from max heat to max cold. Not something I want in the cold with kids in the car
  • Suspension on one occasion got itself stuck on the highest position for the whole journey then on turning the car off, it give a message on the info screen saying the suspension cannot be changed (or something along those lines). At next start up, and ever since it works fine!
  • Annoying rattle - seems to be coming from passenger front cannot pin point it any more than that. This may just be me as my last few BMWs have been completely rattle and squeak free (I know this is lucky!)

Lastly, is there anything I need to watch for on these?

Thanks in advance
Click to expand...
If you thing water is getting in past the door seals and no obvious damage to them. Treat them with Gummi Pflege. Its around £8 for a small bottle that will last you a few years. Its a rubber feed / restorer that will plump up the seals like new again. Also stops the seals getting frozen in the winter.

If that still doesnt cure it then consider a smoke bomb best to see where the leak is.

The other place it could be getting in is through the door skin membrane. Does it look like the water is dripping onto the rear foot plate and into the car from there ?
 
J

jv021

New Member
Messages
4
Thank you all for the replies!
I have set the suspension to the highest setting and will see if it drops over the course of a day or 2... I guess if there is no drop, airbags are ok.
Good shout on Gummi Pflege - will give that a try! there is water on the footplate, however only after driving when the roads are wet, if it rains, footplate are dry.
 
outrun

outrun

Member
Messages
5,017
I had a Cayenne that leaked into the footwell, took ages to find the issue which was a sunroof drain pipe that has come away from it's cheapo plastic union. Although you say you have checked the drains, I would be double checking. Just pour water down them with the pan roof open and see that they are draining to the ground.
 
S

star2k8

New Member
Messages
5
Hi @jv021

I got my Levante Friday and just noticed I may have the exact same thing on mine, could I ask of you have found the root cause and what you did to resolve it?

Thanks
 
E

Ewster

New Member
Messages
3
Please help, also got one recently. 2 issues, sat nav staying in day mode all the time thus blinding me at night. I’ve tried all the settings.

Also Autobeam says lights are on full beam when they are clearly not.

Any help greatfully appreciated
 
CJ Romeo

CJ Romeo

Member
Messages
128
Ewster said:
Please help, also got one recently. 2 issues, sat nav staying in day mode all the time thus blinding me at night. I’ve tried all the settings.

Also Autobeam says lights are on full beam when they are clearly not.

Any help greatfully appreciated
Click to expand...
try turning the dash dimmer next to the lightswitch down, fully up causes this and also some of the interior lights to stay on. Mine is quite slow to respond to light conditions though.
 
J

jv021

New Member
Messages
4
star2k8 said:
Hi @jv021

I got my Levante Friday and just noticed I may have the exact same thing on mine, could I ask of you have found the root cause and what you did to resolve it?

Thanks
Click to expand...
With regard to the water getting in to the rear, my valeter gave all the seals a good clean and tested with his jet washer, nothing was getting in. I have driven in the wet a fair few times and touch wood, looks like the issue has been sorted!
 
J

jv021

New Member
Messages
4
Ewster said:
Please help, also got one recently. 2 issues, sat nav staying in day mode all the time thus blinding me at night. I’ve tried all the settings.

Also Autobeam says lights are on full beam when they are clearly not.

Any help greatfully appreciated
Click to expand...
there is a menu on the dash that you access via the steering wheel controls and under one of the sub menus i found via a stroke of luck, there is a option to enable auto night mode as well as dimming the ambient lighting.

I cant help with the full beam question.
 
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