Good and Bad points of 4200?

[Brendan]

Yes i know i dont have one. But i have to do something until my 996 sells. In my considerable experience(lack of) i would say;

Good

How its looks
The sound
The interior
Lots of space and a bit of a boot
How much they cost


Bad

Running costs

 

[Mr.Cambio]

good:

How the gears change
Low profile super car
SOUND with CATS or boxes
Is Italian,not German

Bad:
i cannot drive her all the time

 

[philw696]

I'm with Mr Cambio on that one but try to use my cars every day. Phil.

 

[Emtee]

Brendan, the good points are a given and you wouldn't be considering a Maserati if you didn't appreciate them, so the not so good points...

The suspension setup is very four seater GT. Cornering at speed can be a wallowy affair, but smooth early turn-in does help.
The paintwork on my 4200 (MY'04 Grigio Nuvolari) was very soft and so attracted stone chips at an alarming rate.
The satnav is cr@p.
The wheel bolts are cr@p.
The prescribed tyres can often be impossible to find, but good alternative are available. (Falken and Vred's)
The CC gearbox is awful in traffic, but you do get used to managing it. (keep it in sport mode and avoid auto at all costs, the car'll thank you in the long run)
A clutch change is expensive by any measure, and you'd be a fool not to change the release bearing and bell / spigot bearings at the same time.
Get used to cabin squeaks. You may think it points towards poor build quality, and perhaps to a small extent that's true, but it's mainly due to heat fluctuations affecting the leather.
It's Italian, so you'll soon find that your local dealer / indi' is on speed-dial and on your Christmas card list.

Other than that it's all good!

 

[Parisien]

I don't know Miles...am not wholly sure those are really negative points......if you're gunna own any super car...then costs are high.

Other "negatives" are more to do with the difference between an Italian hand build car versus robotic built cars lacking in style, flair and individuality....

SAT NAV sh!T........not relevant for me.....plug 'n' play with a new updated one.

Bolts...easy fix......

It is a GT....not an out and out sports car....not a true comparison...you can add/change the setup to a more of a GS setup......not to hard nor too costly if you want

CC box.....just a characteristic of the car....you adapt!!!


Porsche........ok as cars......but lacking in so many areas I wouldn't take one if given it for free!!!


P

 

[Emtee]

I didn't draw any comparisons to their German counterparts and I didn't say they weren't fixable P, I just pointed out that they're items that in stock setup may draw a negative impression.

The positives far outweigh the negatives!

 

[adam01]

Bad point viz a viz 996; fuel consumaption

depending on which 996 model you compare to, varies from 10- 33% worse

 

[Brendan]

Bad point viz a viz 996; fuel consumaption

depending on which 996 model you compare to, varies from 10- 33% worse

What can one expect? Around town and at motorway speeds. My 996 will do 15 and 25-30. 10 and 20 sound about right?

Thanks

 

[BennyD]

I generally get 12-14 around town and on a run anywhere from 15 @ 90 and 25 @ 65-70. When pedalling hard anything down to 8-9. I reckon on getting 15-16 overall. It's worth every penny.

 

[Elliott653]

I enjoy the CC box in town. I always have the car in SPORT mode. Anything else is frankly, dire. It's my daily driver and most of my journeys are in and around London. I average 12 mpg. I've covered my wheel bolts with plastic bolt covers from a Vauxhall and they look acceptable. The sat=nav is useless. But, the screen makes a good place to stick the Tom Tom to. I would like to add that the front seats have a mind of their own. I swear mine are possessed. Sometimes they work correctly, sometimes they don't. Oh and on occasion, the driver's side seatbelt catches on the seat release lever. Which is annoying,

All part of the fun, I suppose.

 

[conaero]

Ran a GranSport 4200 for about 2 years and it was a joy. The clutch collapsed in the middle of France but apart from that and couple of niggle that I fixed, it was bomb proof.

I run a GTS now but can see myself going back to a GS in the future, when the bottom and just have it as a play toy.

Basically, do it, don't worry about it. If you do have any issues, this forum will assist you repair it for the minimum of fuss and cost.

My only advise about buying a 4200/GS is to check the clutch and also have the combined oil/water pump checked out for corrosion. Cases are emerging of this unit backing up and then you need the engine stripped down and re shelled.

 

[stradaman]

I am not used to this engine. So, engine is basically bomb proof? Car overall, pretty well made? Is the 3200 engine, as good as the Ferrari sourced engine, in terms of reliability? Is the 3200 able to put that massive smile on your face, like a 4200 can? How much we talking to change a full clutch, on both engines? And last, is 3200 harder to maintain, over a 4200?
Oh, if this is in wrong place, can you move this post please?

Andy

 

[Maser Sod]

Yes i know i dont have one. But i have to do something until my 996 sells. In my considerable experience(lack of) i would say;

Bad

Running costs

I'd add that to the 'Good' column. If running costs were cheap, everyone would be in a Maser and it wouldn't feel so special to drive one.

 

[Andyk]

I am not used to this engine. So, engine is basically bomb proof? Car overall, pretty well made? Is the 3200 engine, as good as the Ferrari sourced engine, in terms of reliability? Is the 3200 able to put that massive smile on your face, like a 4200 can? How much we talking to change a full clutch, on both engines? And last, is 3200 harder to maintain, over a 4200?
Oh, if this is in wrong place, can you move this post please?

Andy

Some will say that the 3200 will put a bigger smile on your face because of the power delivery....The 4200 is more of a big lazy V8 delivery...don't get me wrong its bloody quick....

The Ferrari sourced engine has better reliability than the 3200 unit...Its not the engine though its all the electrics and sensor they stick in the thing....

Clutch on a 4200 is around £2000...3200, not sure but as it's manual no where near as much as I would say.

 

[dem maser]

Get an auto 3200!!

Cue debate..........

Seriously, the 3200 is not as reliable as the 4200 but just the electrics let it down, get a good one and its more fun than a 4200!!

 

[stradaman]

What are both engines like, for fluid tightness? And do they eat oil, or not bad?
The force is drawing me closer, to owning a Masser. Question is, which one?
The 4200 V8 exhaust, and power curve [revs] or the 3200 power surge? Does turbo mute the exhaust?

 

[dem maser]

No it does not mute the exhuast i can assure you!!

You have to drive both, us explaining wont do either of them justice

 

[stradaman]

Does lhd in uk cost more, over rhd?

Andy

 

[Andyk]

No less I would say

 

[Parisien]

It depends on the car.......depends whose selling it too

P