Alexpie
Member
- Messages
- 172
Hi all..
Another potential owner here, read good things about this forum on my search for buying advice etc, so thought I would sign up and speak to some people who really know these cars!
I have been wanting a second car for a while now, as my daily diesel is boring the life out of me, so I have been looking around at potential buys.. originally I was looking at buying a Porsche Cayman S or AM V8 Vantage, and have viewed a few but none have really got me excited.
Searching through what was available in my price range I was surprised to find that a GranTurismo S was in my budget.. or there abouts! Always been a huge fan of these cars, but never did I think I would be in a position to own one!
I found one for sale locally, so thought why not go and take a look and I was blown away..! I don't think I stopped grinning throughout the whole test drive, and for a good while after and came away wanting one badly. I came to the conclusion the one I had viewed and test drove was not the one to be buying really (The bodywork had been modified a bit, and the work wasnt the best - didnt do the car justice.) So I set about looking around for another one.
I have found a few online that look interesting for around the right money(Looking around £35K) so I thought I would come and ask a few questions (Which I am sure you guys have probably answered a bunch of times before, so I apologise if this is the case, just looking to get as educated as I can before buying.)
- The car I viewed had no paperwork other than the owners manuals and MOT.. The owner told me all service history is electronic and I would have to phone the dealer to look at the history - Is this the case with all GT's?
- Is the 4.7 the one to be buying? I have seen a lot of 4.2's for a lot less money.. other than the performance figures is there a vast difference between the two?
- I have read a lot about the cam variators.. How common is this and what is the best way of looking out for it? I read on an article that "A lot" of the earlier cars will have had this done by dealers whilst still in warranty - is this the case?
- I am aware the maintenance on these cars is high, its to be expected of a car of this calibre, but if I was doing say 4000 miles a year of spirited weekend driving, how long should I expect the brakes and tires to last?
- As above, I am aware the maintenance is high on these cars specifically things like brake discs.. I read somewhere online the discs can be purchased direct from brembo for almost half the price as from Maserati.. Anyone know if this is true?
- Other than the specific faults e.g. the variators, I have read these are very reliable and not like their former reputation.. is this true in your experiences?
- Ideally I thought I should buy from a dealer to get a warranty etc.. is that so much of an issue that I shout steer away from a private sale?
- Any other advice you would give when looking for one of these?
Any knowledge and advice you can share would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks
Another potential owner here, read good things about this forum on my search for buying advice etc, so thought I would sign up and speak to some people who really know these cars!
I have been wanting a second car for a while now, as my daily diesel is boring the life out of me, so I have been looking around at potential buys.. originally I was looking at buying a Porsche Cayman S or AM V8 Vantage, and have viewed a few but none have really got me excited.
Searching through what was available in my price range I was surprised to find that a GranTurismo S was in my budget.. or there abouts! Always been a huge fan of these cars, but never did I think I would be in a position to own one!
I found one for sale locally, so thought why not go and take a look and I was blown away..! I don't think I stopped grinning throughout the whole test drive, and for a good while after and came away wanting one badly. I came to the conclusion the one I had viewed and test drove was not the one to be buying really (The bodywork had been modified a bit, and the work wasnt the best - didnt do the car justice.) So I set about looking around for another one.
I have found a few online that look interesting for around the right money(Looking around £35K) so I thought I would come and ask a few questions (Which I am sure you guys have probably answered a bunch of times before, so I apologise if this is the case, just looking to get as educated as I can before buying.)
- The car I viewed had no paperwork other than the owners manuals and MOT.. The owner told me all service history is electronic and I would have to phone the dealer to look at the history - Is this the case with all GT's?
- Is the 4.7 the one to be buying? I have seen a lot of 4.2's for a lot less money.. other than the performance figures is there a vast difference between the two?
- I have read a lot about the cam variators.. How common is this and what is the best way of looking out for it? I read on an article that "A lot" of the earlier cars will have had this done by dealers whilst still in warranty - is this the case?
- I am aware the maintenance on these cars is high, its to be expected of a car of this calibre, but if I was doing say 4000 miles a year of spirited weekend driving, how long should I expect the brakes and tires to last?
- As above, I am aware the maintenance is high on these cars specifically things like brake discs.. I read somewhere online the discs can be purchased direct from brembo for almost half the price as from Maserati.. Anyone know if this is true?
- Other than the specific faults e.g. the variators, I have read these are very reliable and not like their former reputation.. is this true in your experiences?
- Ideally I thought I should buy from a dealer to get a warranty etc.. is that so much of an issue that I shout steer away from a private sale?
- Any other advice you would give when looking for one of these?
Any knowledge and advice you can share would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks