Which Maserati should I buy and from where?

evoke

New Member
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31
Firstly, hello to everyone from a new member. I posted this on another Maserati forum and i'm hoping I can get some good advice from the members here:

Any buying tips for buying a used Maserati? I'm particularly interested in whether it is better to buy from a Maserati dealership or an independent dealer. If the latter, are there any independents who really stand out in terms of knowledge, customer satisfaction, aftersales care, etc?

I'll be changing my current car next year and am looking at the possibility of purchasing a used Gran Sport or Gran Turismo. I haven't owned cars in this league before although I have owned a couple of Porsches recently. Budgetwise I should have around £50K to £60K to spend. Currently the Gran Turismo would be out of my budget range but i'm hoping that it should fall within that range by late next year.

I need some advice on deciding which car would be best for my requirements, which are:

1. Daily driver (around 15K miles per year, a mixture of town and motorway driving);

2. Four seats (must seat up to four adults in comfort);

3. Climate control;

4. Navigation system;

5. Good music system with iPod integration;

6. Auto/semi-auto box with manual override;

7. A plush, cosseting interior;

8. Would a Gran Tursimo fall into my price range by 2011?

So, given the criteria above, and bearing in mind that my purchase won't be until late next year, which car and specific model would best fit my needs?

So, to summarise, i'm looking for renowned independent Maserati dealerships ( if some are better than official Maserati dealerships) and also some guidance on which Maserati model I should be considering for purchase next year (i.e. Gran Sport or Gran Turismo) based on my requirements.
 
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conaero

Forum Owner
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34,593
Well, I have a Gransport and luv it to bits, but if you have 50-60k to spend then you have plonked yourself in the Grantorismo sector.

They are very nice cars, the only thing that would concern me if I am honest is the 15k miles a year. Being what they are, mileage is very important and usual is 5-7k miles a year. Its not a problem, just expect to be hit fairly ******* depreciation. You have enough money now to get a GT4.2 easily. The think for us die hard 32/42/GS owners, the 4.2 GT is a little too much tourer and not enough GT and the general consensus for us it the GTS 4.7 is the way to go and yes the prices are very high and not in your bracket. If you are new to the marque, and are not viewing at as an out and out sports car, the 4.2 GT will be more than enough.

I would look to pay early £50's

As for where to buy, well, its safer through a main dealer, but its going to cost you. What I would do is buy from an enthusiast, the HAVE IT INSPECTED BY A MASERATI MAIN DEALER OR SPECIALIST. It should still be under warranty, so I cant see why not to buy is private, have a look here but there are no private ads, all trade, so probably 5-8k over priced:

http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/li...t=&px=&xsl=list&pagesize=15&filter=TP&o=q&pc=

Here is a private one and he could not be even be bothered to clean it to adversities it. He probably got offered such a low trade in for it by the main dealer he is trying to sell it himself, so Id be cheeky and go in low, like £50k and then go up from there, the dealer would have offered him less than £50 so dont be shy, **** take anything better than what the dealer offered him, as they probably p!ssed him off.

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classif...postcode/bt746bf/radius/1501/page/1?logcode=p

Hope this helps, and good luck let us know how you get on.
 
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urbanmaser

Member
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2,908
Errrrrrrr I do not totally agree with Conaero. I agree that the Granturismo will suit your needs more than the Gransport which although more sports coupe is nowhere near as refined as the Granturismo.

If buying next year I would opt for a 2008 car which will be nearing the end of original warranty but I think I would be more inclined to buy from a main dealer. Whilst this may cost you a bit more, you maybe able to negotiate a further year of free Maserati extended warranty which would certainly give you more peace of mind. If you are buying from a main dealer the car you purchase would have been subject to Maserati Used Car check which would provide even more peace of mind.

If you do decide to buy from an indie then there are some very good ones out there like Nuvola but like Conaero I would urge you to have it independently checked. In the world of Maserati cheap is not a word that fits. If a car is being offered for a bargain price there is usually an underlying reason.
 

evoke

New Member
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31
Thank you very much for your very helpful reply, Conaero. It's early days yet but i'm really smitten by the Maserati brand! I've been looking at the ads on Pistonheads and the interior of the Gran Sport is truly beautiful whereas the exterior of the Gran Turismo is also truly beautiful!

I still have a lot of time to do as much research as I can as my purchase won't be until next year. I need to factor in the cost of insurance and maintenance in my budget as well, which I assume will not be cheap!

I do like more of a sporty car based on my recent car purchases so the GS would appeal to me from that point of view but I am hoping that a more recent GT will fall into my budget too.

In terms of my annual mileage, how do these cars fare as daily drivers? I do a lot of motorway driving (probably 60% motorway, 40% town). Are these cars reliable enough to be daily drivers?

And from your post, is it correct to conclude that official Maserati dealers will carry out inspections if I were to buy a car privately?

Finally, how much are extended warranties on these cars?
 

conaero

Forum Owner
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34,593
The cars, especially the GT will cope with the mileage no problem, but its just from a depreciation point of view.

Main dealer, if you pay them, will do anything, plus they are always looking for work, so they will be picky. I would personally go to a specialist if we were talking GS, but GT are much newer and the knowledge base is better at main dealer at the moment.

The Trident warranty, the only one to get, is going to be expensive, probably in the £2-3k a year region.

You could get a GS and save yourself a packet, a nice one from a dealer with a warranty, late 06 plate, your looking at £35k, £30k if private, but then you have no warranty.
 

urbanmaser

Member
Messages
2,908
Sorry chaps, once again I do not totally agree. A used Maserati from a main dealer will carry one year Maserati Used Car warranty which is probably almost as good as a Maserati new car warranty and certainly more valuable than an indie dealer warranty. Also, the car and history will have been more likely open to scrutiny by the main dealer.

I do agree with Conaero that a Gransport at around £35,000 will easily stand 15,000 miles per year of motorway driving where it will just eat up the miles and the depreciation will be more palatable than a Granturismo which will drop like a brick as the miles pile up.

Finally, it is still possible to buy a 2008 Gransport which will be under original warranty until 2011 and if you then want you can buy a two year extended Maserati warranty. Expect to pay around £40,000 to £42,000 for 2008 car. I think Nuvola have one.
 
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evoke

New Member
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31
Many thanks, urbanmaser.

I need to project everything to mid- to late 2011. Do you think that it would be possible to buy a Gran Sport from a main dealer next year and then get a 2-year extended warranty with it?
 

conaero

Forum Owner
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34,593
A used Maserati from a Main Dealer with a 1 year warranty is the Trident warranty, from Maserati UK, so hence that one is the only one I would go for.

All the aftermarket ones from people like WarrantyWise are not worth the paper they are written on.
 

urbanmaser

Member
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2,908
Evoke

You may be able to make your move next year on a 2008 registered Gransport from a main dealer.That would give you the opportunity of buying the 2 year extended warranty.......Just.

The problem is that production on the Gransport ceased late 2006 which meant that most of the last manufactured cars were sold late 2006 to mid 2007.

There were a few Gransports that were not sold in 2007. Nuvola has one which was registered 2008 and even told me that he was offered a Gransport that was registered in 2009. These will be very few and far between so I would not hold your breath.

I bought a 2007 Gransport last summer which has been under manufacturer's warranty for the past 9 months. I have just had the last service done under warranty and was offered the two year extension for £3,200. My car has only covered a total of 10,000 miles and I do not envisage doing more than 3,000 per year so after much deliberation I decided to take the risk and not go for the extended warranty. If I was planning to do 15,000 per year I may have made a different decision.

At the end of the day the last of the Gransports were pretty reliable and had most of the gremlins from the early years ironed out.

If you are doing predominently motorway driving I cannot see too many issues with the Gransport providing you buy a good car in the first place and keep it serviced.

I still think main dealer will give you the best opportunity of achieving this

When eventually you find a car let the forum know and we will help you as much as we can.
 

dem maser

Moderator
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34,221
look all i can say here is my opinion, what would i do? I have a 3200 i love it but im looking to get into a gransport soon, if i had 50-60k i would get a gransport from main dealer like 07 or 08 with warranty for a year then next year look into the granturismo s, i dont like the normal gt as its little lazy compared to a gransport
 

dem maser

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34,221
gs is better for the money than gt, when the gts becomes 3 years old so say 2011 or 2012 i can see them 45k thats when ill be looking at one
 

conaero

Forum Owner
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34,593
Dem, that's sound advice!

White, with black alloys and the MC kit ooooohhhh yeah!!!!

1536385-1.jpg
 
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urbanmaser

Member
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2,908
I have to agree with you Dem Mas...............Granturismo is a refined cruiser.............Gransport is an animal...............Granturismo S .............is the bees knees
 

dem maser

Moderator
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34,221
a black gts with yellow or red calipers or white gts thats the best looking car on the road for me and for under 45k in 2011 cant buy better, lets all go buy together get a big discount