Granturismo purchase advice for a newbie

Hawk13

Member
Messages
1,471

I've specifically wanted black leather - cream leather in a regular use car is a PITA. Constant colour transfer and subsequent cleaning - I've been there before and will not do again.
 

MarkMas

Chief pedant
Messages
8,796
Just had a quick scour of Autotrader and QP6s look amazing value, never been in one but the interior looks lovely.
....

I think the QP6 interiors (the ones I have seen) look depressingly drab and Audi-like, even with their great slabs of 'wood'. Whereas the QPV has a classical, curvy, look. But that's just me.

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I also really don't need a car 6 inches longer and 2 inches wider than my QPV. I'm having enough trouble finding places to put my length and girth as it is.
 

Wanderer

Member
Messages
5,791
I think the QP6 interiors (the ones I have seen) look depressingly drab and Audi-like, even with their great slabs of 'wood'. Whereas the QPV has a classical, curvy, look. But that's just me.

View attachment 65716


I also really don't need a car 6 inches longer and 2 inches wider than my QPV. I'm having enough trouble finding places to put my length and girth as it is.
How can that QP5 DS be in 6th gear with no driver?

Agree by the way, replace Audi-like with Chrysler-like tho...
 

Scaf

Member
Messages
6,512
I have had my GTS for 4 years and 20,000 fun filled miles, it’s been very good to me except routine servicing but now needs many of the usual culprits fixing.
NS wheel bearing
Front bushes
ARB bushes
Cam covers
For good measure I am having:
Under body protection
Coolant expansion tank
New pads all round
And smarten things up inside:
New F1 buttons
Upgraded steering wheel

It’s a lot in one go but in reality it work out at £1000. a year add routine servicing averaging £750 per annum- that’s still a whole lot of fun for less than £2k a year.
 

Phil H

Member
Messages
4,107
I think the QP6 interiors (the ones I have seen) look depressingly drab and Audi-like, even with their great slabs of 'wood'. Whereas the QPV has a classical, curvy, look. But that's just me.

View attachment 65716


I also really don't need a car 6 inches longer and 2 inches wider than my QPV. I'm having enough trouble finding places to put my length and girth as it is.
Different styles for different times and markets, Mark. The V is old school gentleman's club whereas the VI is more office-like, but both offer a nice place to sit, with plenty of performance on tap when the mood takes.

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PH
 

MarkMas

Chief pedant
Messages
8,796
Different styles for different times and markets, Mark. The V is old school gentleman's club whereas the VI is more office-like .....

Exactly that.
Although using the term 'gentleman's club' in the British sense - I can't tell you how confused and annoyed my American boss was when I took him here:

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rather than here:
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Doctor Houx

Member
Messages
791
Put it this way if you want to drive to the south of France for a date with Monica Bellucci (or David Gandy, we’re equal opportunity leches here) get the Maser, if you want to pop to Swindon to walk round a field in a pink jumper get the Jag.
I use my GC almost exclusively for trips between my English and French homes in the summer months. Despite one of my French places being opposite the famous Hotel de France near Le Mans where there are always multiple classics and exotica parked up, the GC never fails to draw the right sort of attention and comments. Only had it just over a year, but other than servicing, usual consumables and having the subframes professionally derusted and coated in dinitrol (£600), it has been trouble free.

The Mrs isn't Monica Bellucci, but she is "bang tidy" IMO and gets her fair share of attention too!
 

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JamieP

Junior Member
Messages
41
In my 3 years of ownership, my car has had:

complete brakes rebuild
2 wheel bearings replaced
new lambda sensors (perhaps unnecessary)
1 window mechanism replaced
droplinks replaced (once mythically by FTech and once actually by Migliore)
wishbone bushes replaced
water leak in boot fixed
3 parking sensors replaced
1 shock absorber replaced (used from David Askew)
1 aircon motor replaced (sheared spindle)
window finger trap sensor replaced (required 3 garage visits to diagnose and fix)
2 new batteries (one replaced free by RAC)

So you never know. Although that has been during 35,000 miles of daily use....
Hi there Mark,
I’m a newbie to the forum and hadn’t had a clue how to start my own thread etc. But I was wondering if you or anyone else for that matter has anything to say on the reliability of a 2012 (onwards) Granturismo Sport with the updated front grill etc... Been tempted for a while but not sure on reliability and price of parts etc.
Budget between 30-40k if that helps anyone’s judgement
Thanks
 

MarkMas

Chief pedant
Messages
8,796
Hi there Mark,
I’m a newbie to the forum and hadn’t had a clue how to start my own thread etc. But I was wondering if you or anyone else for that matter has anything to say on the reliability of a 2012 (onwards) Granturismo Sport with the updated front grill etc... Been tempted for a while but not sure on reliability and price of parts etc.
Budget between 30-40k if that helps anyone’s judgement
Thanks

Hi Jamie

Welcome! I'm afraid I have no clue about Granturismos, but somebody on here will.

I suggest you start a new thread in Newbies, with a sensible title, just introducing yourself and saying what you are interested in and you will get welcomed and helped (plus there will be jokes, thread drift, etc)

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Ewan

Member
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6,757
No particular reliability issues on 2012 onwards GT’s. As good as any other similar car in that regard, and better in most others (e.g, style, sound, scarcit etc.)
 

JamieP

Junior Member
Messages
41
Hi Jamie

Welcome! I'm afraid I have no clue about Granturismos, but somebody on here will.

I suggest you start a new thread in Newbies, with a sensible title, just introducing yourself and saying what you are interested in and you will get welcomed and helped (plus there will be jokes, thread drift, etc)

View attachment 68091
Thanks a lot
 

Bydand

New Member
Messages
7
A good informative Post Conaero, I only had to read a couple of hundred to find it, but it was indeed worth it.

Would leaking / defective coolant expansion tanks, worn engine mounts and defective parking sensors as well as sticky control button surfaces make it on to the list of common woes. The last one may be a hot climate related issue.

Cheaper than the main mechanical issues indicted below but it all adds up in an inspection test list when looking, viewing a prospective purchase.


  • Every other GT/QP that comes into us requires front bushes and that's about a grand indy, twice that in the dealership
Big heavy car. Is the cure some Poly bushes at renewal time?

  • Every one in 4 GT/QP that comes into us requires rust repair to the front subsume, usually done at the same time as the bushes
The 2 bolts on the bottom of each wishbone are £95 each.

Saw your post on this, and added to the list of what to look out for and correct 25% have under body corrosion after 10/11 years of UK winter weather. Buy a car from Way Down south, and have a good look underneath.


  • Clutches will cost you £3k (every 35-40k miles)

  • AC pumps last 20k miles, that's about a grand.
Wonder what is causing that, compressor design, system design, too close to the engine, poor oil feed in gas lines to compressor. Yes does come up a lot.

  • Front discs are expensive, pads not so.
A Big heavy car, requires stopping.

  • Every other GT/QP that comes in has leaking cam cover gaskets which is another £500 job

  • Most pre 2009 GT/QP that comes in had variator issues and that's £2-3k.

A banker, and curable. Still looking at the root cause, Rubbish Oil solenoids??

So my advise is, buy a known, inspected forum car or from Richard Grace and pay a little more so you don't get a nasty surprise.

So they are rubbish cars?....no, not at all, they are very, very good but poor maintenance will kill them off.

Like any other high end sporty Toy, wagon, they would all seem to have their own little, expensive idiosyncrasies. The more I read the more it is the same as all other manufactures. Only the costs and fun factors changing.

£30k will buy you a very nice 4.7GTS (MC Shift)

If in doubt, get it inspected, its the best £250 you will every spend.

Sound advise and if you can do some of the tasks yourself, or at least be aware of them you could have a highly entertaining motor vehicle for a reasonable price. But does pay to do ones homework.The above does not put me off and all are manageable if going into a purchase with ones eyes wide open to possible difficulties past or future.


Bydand.