FiFTY's Manual 4200 Build

FIFTY

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The 5” ones fitted then?

Yup fitted them the other day. There has been a definite improvement in throttle response over those tiny 100 cell cats
 

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FIFTY

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Centre console lift:

With the help of @Vampyrebat I replaced the nasty old gear gaiter boot. The factory glued the internal plastic bit to the leather and other time the glue stained the grey leather into a brown colour.

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Also I mentioned that i got a new Switch panel under warranty when trying to resolve the SPORTS issue. Guess I struck it lucky with a set of brand new switches

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The combination really lifted this area which was looking very tired. Next step is to get the rest of the switches refurbished but not got round to that yet
 

FIFTY

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Heater matrix repaired

Picking up from the previous post on this topic I figured out myself that the heater core is leaking and causing some electrical gremlins back in February 2017. I did the divert and by August of the same year I put the car in to AV Engineering.

Aldous did an extremely thorough job of drying the car and wiring loom out with stuffing the car full of silica cell once the interior was removed. He tested all of the ECUs also found + removed a tracker which was buried back there. The work was carried at an extemely high level, good service/communication and the invoice was very reasonable. This was a big step in getting the car "well sorted"

Several photos of the job was sent accross I am sharing just a few as these are not my photos. Courtesy to Aldous Voice:

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FIFTY

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I'm really enjoying reading your posts, many thanks for taking the time. :clapps:

Very welcome. Hopefully my experiences will help someone looking to buy a 4200 and not make the same mistakes... or at least go in with eyes open willing to restore all of these bits
 
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FIFTY

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SPORTS mode issue resolved

After changing the dash switch panel did nothing to make the SPORTS mode light turn on or for it to even engage the harder suspension setting I was advised to swap out the suspension ECU as the next point of weakness on the system.

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I ordered a used one from Eurospares who mistakenly sent me one from a GS - turns out it is not compatible with the 4200.

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I briefly popped the car to AV engineering for a quick scan go ensure the suspension error light was not the GS ECU throwing up a seperate error other than compatibility. Aldous confirmed it was definitely not compatible.

During brain storming process Aldous decided to use the SD2/3 to delve into the set up menus on the dash ECU... One page showed what the problem was - the sports suspension was switched off within the cars software.

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^Photo courtesy of AV Engineering

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^Photo courtesy of AV Engineering

We now know what the problem is. The incorrect GS suspension ecu goes back to Eurospares for a credit that funds a later project.

I will conclude this issue here. The car goes to AV again a few months later for a service and Aldous takes the time to essentially reset the cars firmware with fresh settings that allow the sports to be switched on in the settings menu enabling it all to work i.e. press the button SPORTS light turns on amd the suspension stiffens but also adjusts.



What I found strange now - until this point having not once driven it in sports mode - the car understeers. While it is overall quite compliant there is something in the suspension set up that is holding it back imo it is the body roll. The plan is to do some suspension fettling either springs coilovers or ARB kit but the aim is not to lose road comfort as I want to keep it as a GT not a track car - to be continued
 
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FIFTY

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Sound system upgrade

I was starting to find the car quite tiring on long journeys because the sound of road noise. My car has the bog standard sound system so not auditorium and the rubbish speakers are driven by the NIT. I had installed a Bluetooth loudlink shortly after buying the car so I had my own music but the quality was terrible with road noise dominating most of the frequencies

Auditorium comes with a 200w amp and better speakers and the idea I had was to do an update along similar lines with everything hidden out of sight so no big amps and subwoofer but with better speakers/sound

I could not afford Focals but did not want to settle for alpine I ended up getting JL component front and 6x7 for the rear quarter panels the price point was about in the middle. The speakers in the parcel shelf were deleted but I popped a Kenwood under seat sub woofer in the void under the parcel shelf (basically behind the third level brake light). For the amp I used a clarion digital mini amp 200w (50w end) which I hid under the NIT inside the center console.

I did an entire thread on this, as a first attempt at doing an audio install I think i did good. Would like to go back and use solders on the crimp connectors but for now it sounds very good no lack of bass or audio clarity.

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FIFTY

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Maserati ashtray script + minor interior improvements

Since i was spending a lot of time inside the car over winter of 2018 doing the audio install I decided to sort some more minor interior blemishes.

One fix to a common problem I am particularly fond of is the replacement sterling silver "Maserati" ashtray script. The original item is made of injection moulded plastic that is chromed. The problem with it is that the edges easily catch on microfibre towels when cleaning and the script breaks in two. I have also heard of owners breaking them by accidentally hitting the script with the seat belt buckle...

The one in my car was broken on purchase... Thinking it would be an easy fix turns out the standard solution is to get an entirely new ashtray costing circa £180 which lets face it is a wasteful approach to a minor blemish

After a successful trident cufflink group buy arranged by @miket with his jeweler contact in Goa he set about to resolve the problem with a solution using a custom silver script that is precision made by hand to fit the existing pin holes. I will save you the entire story as it is on his thread, if you want a script or cufflinks here is the link: https://www.sportsmaserati.com/index.php?threads/maserati-ashtray-script.23349/

The improvement is huge looks better than the plastic script imo it is more like the script on the bootlid. Also it is more robust and no sharp edges that can snag microfiber towels and cause it to snap in half like the plastic original

I used a few blobs of hot glue on the back of the ashtray lid to ensure to pins are retained. Thanks to Mike for sorting this out for everyone

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At the same time I pulled out the sticky flaking vents and scrubbed off the sticky using 99% ISO alcohol leaving the hard plastic. I used a chrome pen to refinish the edges of the vents

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FIFTY

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Really enjoying this Fernando!
Eb

Cheers Eb. I am trying to keep it positive lol. The saga seems endless but none of it is out of the ordinary for being the 5th owner of a 15 year old depreciated luxury car with a fist full of horse power

The car is currently in the custody of AV engineering for its annual service. I have had clutch change in the back of my mind for a while (in reality since buying the car). The bite point on the clutch pedal has always been high up on the pedal throw and the bearings have been grumbling. Upon inspection this year Aldous spotted the thrust bearing is leaking and the clutch plate is visibly thin when looking through the inspection hole. Pile on top of that corroded brake lines, hand brake cables and worn rear anti roll bar bushes mean that the rear subframe also needs lowering.

I have been anticipating this, I went ahead and purchased the formula dynamics Anti roll bar kit a little while ago for this event

Anyway I'll spare the rest of my thoughts until the thread catches up to it but it should be an absolute beast when I get it back with one less thing to worry about going wrong on the Le Mans trip.

Another big leap forward but the fettling for the rest of 2019 will be on a tight budget
 

Nibby

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The car is currently in the custody of AV engineering for its annual service. I have had clutch change in the back of my mind for a while (in reality since buying the car). The bite point on the clutch pedal has always been high up on the pedal throw and the bearings have been grumbling. Upon inspection this year Aldous spotted the thrust bearing is leaking and the clutch plate is visibly thin when looking through the inspection hole. t
Hi Fernando, great thread and take my hat off regarding the jobs you've tackled.
Just my limited bit of knowledge I've gained through here, Maserati Life and my own recent experiences is that the clutch pedal even with a new clutch will only bite right at the top, the thrust bearing goes bad before the actual clutch wears out, the pilot bearing also seems to wear along with the thrust bearing.
I do believe in the right conditions the clutch could last into very high mileage figures but the bearings seem to give up earlier.
Mark
 

FIFTY

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Hi Fernando, great thread and take my hat off regarding the jobs you've tackled.
Just my limited bit of knowledge I've gained through here, Maserati Life and my own recent experiences is that the clutch pedal even with a new clutch will only bite right at the top, the thrust bearing goes bad before the actual clutch wears out, the pilot bearing also seems to wear along with the thrust bearing.
I do believe in the right conditions the clutch could last into very high mileage figures but the bearings seem to give up earlier.
Mark

Cheers Nibby. There is a big wet patch of brake fluid where the thrust bearing is leaking. On top of that for a little while the spigot bearing has been making a loud honk when I pull away when the engine is not fully hot. More recently when I drop the clutch pedal I hear a rattle and chatter come from below me which I assume is the thrust bearing grumbling. Mileage is at 68-69k miles and there is no evidence of a clutch change so I would say the option is do it now, try to stretch it until next year's service (when it is a major service = more cost and subsequent price rises on parts and labour) or scenario three is potentially breaking down before next year and having it recovered to AV for repair...

Point taken on the pedal, it's hydraulic so it would self adjust right? The bite point moving is a characteristic of a fully cable operated clutch. I am changing all associated parts clutch, flywheel, uprated hills engineering thrust bearing and spigot bearing - £2k parts bill just on those but no point leaving something buried in there that could fail
 

Nibby

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2,027
Cheers Nibby. There is a big wet patch of brake fluid where the thrust bearing is leaking. On top of that for a little while the spigot bearing has been making a loud honk when I pull away when the engine is not fully hot. More recently when I drop the clutch pedal I hear a rattle and chatter come from below me which I assume is the thrust bearing grumbling. Mileage is at 68-69k miles and there is no evidence of a clutch change so I would say the option is do it now, try to stretch it until next year's service (when it is a major service = more cost and subsequent price rises on parts and labour) or scenario three is potentially breaking down before next year and having it recovered to AV for repair...

Point taken on the pedal, it's hydraulic so it would self adjust right? The bite point moving is a characteristic of a fully cable operated clutch. I am changing all associated parts clutch, flywheel, uprated hills engineering thrust bearing and spigot bearing - £2k parts bill just on those but no point leaving something buried in there that could fail
My thrust bearing was still turning but rough and noisy when turning it along with a pilot bearing that had a slight tight spot, both these created some awful noises, the clutch was about half worn at 69k mileage, Mike X's post regarding his noisy clutch and sudden failure is what sprung me into action as I'm guessing once the release bearing did actually seize it must act like a grinder on the clutch fingers. In theory with an uprated Hill release bearing and new clutch and perhaps a better quality pilot bearing that should be clutch problems sorted for a very long time.
Maserati don't do us any favours by charging the amount they do on a new clutch on a discontinued model especially when you see the price of a Valeo clutch on more common cars.
 

FIFTY

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My thrust bearing was still turning but rough and noisy when turning it along with a pilot bearing that had a slight tight spot, both these created some awful noises, the clutch was about half worn at 69k mileage, Mike X's post regarding his noisy clutch and sudden failure is what sprung me into action as I'm guessing once the release bearing did actually seize it must act like a grinder on the clutch fingers. In theory with an uprated Hill release bearing and new clutch and perhaps a better quality pilot bearing that should be clutch problems sorted for a very long time.
Maserati don't do us any favours by charging the amount they do on a new clutch on a discontinued model especially when you see the price of a Valeo clutch on more common cars.

My original plan was to get the clutch relined but the guy at MD Clutches is retiring so it's a no go option.

Only half worn at 69k miles thats impressive, you or the previous owners must be gentle on it. Honestly I think mine started slipping when changing up gears aggressively when I was trying to keep up with certain formers in their Stradales going to the Alton meet last April
 

Nibby

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My original plan was to get the clutch relined but the guy at MD Clutches is retiring so it's a no go option.

Only half worn at 69k miles thats impressive, you or the previous owners must be gentle on it. Honestly I think mine started slipping when changing up gears aggressively when I was trying to keep up with certain formers in their Stradales going to the Alton meet last April
There is a chap out near Norwich that I think can reline them I will try and get the number tomorrow and pass it on.
 

Nibby

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Hi Fernando
The firm is Norfork Brake and Clutch, the guy who runs it is called John Cooper and his number is 07939457540.
Not used him myself but he has relined a 4200 clutch before and might be worth a call.