03 Coupe GT Project - Plenty of questions incoming...

[Broken]

I bought this car very cheaply recently and it's very usable, but certainly not perfect. First some overview pictures:



Now, I'd like to show more clearly some of the immediately obvious issues:





I'm not someone who is interested in restoring a car to new condition, but I do know that rust only gets worse. With that in mind, this is on my list of work for the car. Unfortunately, I am not good with bodywork. I plan to get the rust corrected, but I'm not going to worry about making it look perfect. I don't think this car is the best candidate for that.

A few jobs to do (this is in no particular order as it's off the top of my head - I have a better list at home):

1: Rear brakes
2: Alignment - it has a slight pull to the left and steering wheel isn't quite straight
3: Wheel refurb. They're all in bad condition, one is an odd colour and one loses tyre pressure
4: Add some kind of way to stream audio. This looks ideal: https://www.sportsmaserati.co.uk/in...ment-the-yatour-yt-mt-06-my-experience.26700/
5: Oil and filter and other service items
6: Investigate engine light on dash. Seller (trusted guy) thinks it's a lambda sensor and has included one. We will see. Engine seems healthy so it's probably ok.
7: Ask lots of questions

Any thoughts and recommendations (and criticisms!) are appreciated. I don't have any experience with these cars yet. I've only been driving this one since the weekend.

I'm not sure if 'project' is quite the right word as I won't be doing some kind of restoration, but I am aiming to make it a bit nicer, keep it maintained (mostly myself) and keep using it as much as possible.

Anyway, that was my introduction!

 

[CatmanV2]

Welcome!

For 4 you can install a Parrot. There's a thread on how I did it.

https://www.sportsmaserati.com/index.php?threads/parrot-install-how-to.10313/

Or I can do it for you

For 6, any decent OBD scanner should be able to confirm or deny.

I'm most worried about the rust (which you haven't mentioned) It tends to be worse than it looks. Coming from old Alfas.... MUCH worse. Hopefully not in this case

C

 

[Broken]

Welcome!

For 4 you can install a Parrot. There's a thread on how I did it.

https://www.sportsmaserati.com/index.php?threads/parrot-install-how-to.10313/

Or I can do it for you

For 6, any decent OBD scanner should be able to confirm or deny.

I'm most worried about the rust (which you haven't mentioned) It tends to be worse than it looks. Coming from old Alfas.... MUCH worse. Hopefully not in this case

C

I am concerned about the rust too....I have mentioned it there but not in detail as it's the bit I won't be doing myself. I'm planning to take it to someone trusted for that. I've been underneath and I'm fairly confident the worst of it is cosmetic. We will have to see!

I may take you up on that Parrot offer! It would be a good opportunity for someone with experience of these cars to give a second opinion - you may notice problems that I haven't

Regarding lambda, that is what the OBD scanner at his local garage said. He bought the part to fit himself but I ended up collecting it early, so he didn't have chance

 

[CatmanV2]

I am concerned about the rust too....I have mentioned it there but not in detail as it's the bit I won't be doing myself. I'm planning to take it to someone trusted for that. I've been underneath and I'm fairly confident the worst of it is cosmetic. We will have to see!

I may take you up on that Parrot offer! It would be a good opportunity for someone with experience of these cars to give a second opinion - you may notice problems that I haven't

Regarding lambda, that is what the OBD scanner at his local garage said. He bought the part to fit himself but I ended up collecting it early, so he didn't have chance

Ahh you did, just not in the list

Well I'm in Essex, so just let me know. Happy to see what my scanner can do as well (I sound like a stuck record but a decent scanner is worth a packet I feel)

C

 

[philw696]

Welcome along and we do like a project and a few of us have taken them onboard.
Get it on a lift asap and check the subframes and the suspension arms.
The rear bumper and lights need to be removed and you will see the full extent of the rust.
Good Luck and keep posting.

 

[Broken]

Welcome along and we do like a project and a few of us have taken them onboard.
Get it on a lift asap and check the subframes and the suspension arms.
The rear bumper and lights need to be removed and you will see the full extent of the rust.
Good Luck and keep posting.

The extent of the rust decides the fate, really. Until that is known, we don't know if it's worth repairing and smartening it up, worth keeping it long term or turning it into a parts car.

I am a little scared as I would like it to be a usable, scruffy car. I don't quite know yet how bad it will be

I'm also curious about what other things I should be checking. I've done basic, normal checks but not much that is specific to this model

 

[philw696]

Aluminium suspension arms can corrode and split.
Ball joints wear out.
Corrosion is the Big Concern especially front subframe and plenty of information on here.
Check for coolant loss as the water pump is part of the oil pump for the dry sump system.
Everything can be expensive but all the knowledge is here.

 

[RussBird82]

Looks like it lived by the seaside? After investigating the extent of the rust I'd get it patched up to prevent any further corrosion and enjoy it presently looks ok from a distance. As it's a manual I'd like to think that pricewise it's day will come so just keep it in a good useable condition until it warrants something like a full respray, which I'd imagine is more than you paid for it.

With regards a useable scruffy car I don't think Italian classics pull that look off as well as the American stuff as it gives off a can't afford to maintain/neglected as opposed classic cool vibe , personal opinion of course.

 

[Gp79]

Nice project, keep the updates coming.
As above the corrosion would be my main worry, not seen one corroded that bad round the rear lights and also one the sill.
Check the subframes asap, pics attached of the front one, normally the offside rots first

 

[Broken]

I thought it was time for an update!

I've been away with work and other things so I haven't done much with the car. I've been driving it a bit and getting to know it a bit. No problems so far apart from the boot lock.... That's in another thread and should be easy enough to fix.

I've booked it in with a trusted bodywork guy but he can't take it until end of summer as he's very busy. It will be done though. He has seen the pictures and he's not worried. I've seen some of the work he has done and this is nothing compared to that.

Next on the list:
1: service. I've gathered most of the parts to do this. Oil, plugs, filters etc
2: rear brakes. The discs don't look great. Got pads but not discs yet
3: alignment. I think I'll call Shiltech about this but haven't yet
4: there's a top mount kind of sound/sensation in the steering. Planned to get Shiltech to do this with alignment
5: wheel refurb. They're all scabby, one is an odd colour and one is also leaking air
6: I'm planning to rent a ramp for a couple of hours to have a good inspection underneath, including a good look at subframes for rust. May ask Shiltech to do this (I can't make a start on any of this for a couple of weeks yet and I'm sure they'll observe at least the obvious problems while they've got it in)

Other than that, I can't seem to find any obvious or concerning problems. Fingers crossed

 

[Broken]

First proper problem!

Seems like a clutch problem. Hydraulic seems likely. Pedal is soft and the clutch is dragging. Can't get gears at idle and you have to rev match to change car once on the move

 

[Nibby]

First proper problem!

Seems like a clutch problem. Hydraulic seems likely. Pedal is soft and the clutch is dragging. Can't get gears at idle and you have to rev match to change car once on the move

It could be the master cylinder made by Sachs. The genuine Maserati part is £££ but there’s a way round it.
Read this

4200 GT Clutch Master Cylinder Alternative

www.maseratilife.com

 

[doodlebug]

Sounds similar to what happened to mine.

I might have this all wrong, but the clutch shares the same hydraulic system as the brakes. When the brakes are bled, the residual fluid in the clutch slave cylinder doesn't get changed and tends to solidify over time.

I think the clutch pedal has to be physically raised to its highest position each time the new fluid is pushed through to ensure the slave is filled with clean fluid.

 

[TimR]

Sounds similar to what happened to mine.

I might have this all wrong, but the clutch shares the same hydraulic system as the brakes. When the brakes are bled, the residual fluid in the clutch slave cylinder doesn't get changed and tends to solidify over time.

I think the clutch pedal has to be physically raised to its highest position each time the new fluid is pushed through to ensure the slave is filled with clean fluid.

Correct. It has a bleed nipple as you’d expect. Located, perhaps a little counter intuitively, on the passenger side (UK) of the bell housing. I guess lazy servicing sees it overlooked. Hopefully an easy fix….

 

[Broken]

I have already posted this on another forum, but wanted to post it here for insight (plus the pictures could be useful to anyone else with my problem)

"Here are photos I took on Sunday when I was looking over the car.



You'll see in the first one the master cylinder on the back of the pedal and in the other you'll see the brake/clutch fluid reservoir. As you can see, access to the master cylinder looks good.

Fluid level looked fine, but fluid was very grotty. Can't find any evidence of leaks or drop in level.

Unfortunately I won't have time to do the job this weekend as I'm collecting a friend from the airport on Saturday morning who is staying with me until Wednesday and we have a packed agenda for that time. Garage friend may be able to do it next week but not sure. If he can, I think I'll get him to do it as I just want the car working now. It would reduce my stress a lot and that's priceless!

If he can't, I should be free to do the job myself next weekend.



I'd appreciate any thoughts on this:

What do we think are my chances of it being as simple as master cylinder? Parts in Motion sells the VW one for £38.....



Symptoms are mainly these - clutch is constantly engaged. If you push the pedal to the floor in 1st gear, it continues to drive along at idle. Pedal feels soft. I think there is some pressure still, but not enough to actually separate clutch and flywheel. Fluid level looks fine, no obvious leaks, but fluid itself looks bad."

 

[philw696]

You need to try bleeding it first to see if you can get a good pedal.
It could be the hydraulic release bearing in the bell housing that's at fault.

 

[Broken]

You need to try bleeding it first to see if you can get a good pedal.
It could be the hydraulic release bearing in the bell housing that's at fault.

I'm happy to do this first but excuse my ignorance - if successful/unsuccessful, what would it conclude?

 

[philw696]

I'm happy to do this first but excuse my ignorance - if successful/unsuccessful, what would it conclude?

If successful all good.
If it doesn't last then you need to find which is the weak component hopefully it's the slave cylinder.

 

[Broken]

If successful all good.
If it doesn't last then you need to find which is the weak component hopefully it's the slave cylinder.

Ah yes, now I see what you're saying. Sorry, I misunderstood. I thought you were saying this could isolate whether it was release bearing or cylinder.

I certainly will be starting with a bleed, but as it went from fine to not working in about a day, I think there is a weak part in the hydraulic system

 

[Nibby]

The pushrod needs to be fully out also to bleed as the bleed hole is at the end of the travel.
My circlip had come loose and the pushrod was not getting pulled back far enough. It’s an absolute pain to get back on. You’ll need some right angled circlip pliers.
Geo on here gave me great advice regarding this.