Looking at 4200

Gp79

Gp79

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1,398
Luke G said:
I remember before I bought my 1984 911 there were all sorts of major problems that could go wrong ie engine rebuild, but most of the problems I did have were electrics...
Ive also read sensors can be a problem?
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Only had one abs sensor fail in my ownership and that seems to be the most common, not heard of any other sensors failing frequently.
 
Zep

Zep

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FIFTY said:
Subframe corrosion £? - New subframe is around £850 IIRC plus labour which will be 6-10hrs at a guess... but you will be very unlucky... mine has some surface rust on the lower portion of the subframe where it bolts onto the chasis, i have had it fully inspected by my specialist and have been advised to scrub the rust off, treat paint and protect because it is overall in a good state (job for the spring) I do not want to be controversial but I have noticed it is mainly the post 2005 GS and 4200's that get written off subframes on the MOT, it might be that these have been used year round more so than the older cars. Anyway my rear sub frame will be dropped out soon to fit a formula dynamics uprated anti roll bar so you can find reasons to repair/restore/protect/improve depending on what your goals are.


Clutch and F1 pumps £? - Manual cars can have their clutches relined by a specialist with no problems, this costs around £250-300 i believe. Cambio Corsa can ruin the clutch tangs because of the way the actuator slams the clutch closed when the car is being driven aggressively... so a relining the clutch is risks tang failure, often the tangs fail before the clutch totally wears out on cambiocorsas. Back to the point, a new clutch is circa £1000-1200 flywheel is £300ish thrust bearing £450 spigot bearing £100. With Cambio Corsas you also need to worry about F1 pump, F1 pump relay, actuators blah blah. Believe it or not the CC F1 gearbox is actually less troublesome than the equivilent BMW SMG gear box but my wallet and I much prefer a "manual manual"

Suspension and wishbones £? - Euro Spares do pattern wishbones for the rear £650 IIRC, from the dealer they are closer to £1000. Skyhook shocks are £1000/each for new ones (rare that they fail but occasionally can spring a leak)... Springs are £60/each... track rods/drop links etc. £60-100

Heater matrix £? - Part is less than £100 but around 10-12hrs labour... I paid £1000ish with AV Engineering along with some other bids that needed doing they did a great job.

Sticky interior buttons £ - You can send them off to Lorenz/Larry on Maserati Life (he has an account on here too) cannot remember the exact figure but I am pretty sure it was around £650 for the entire lot of buttons (dont quote me of I am out on that!) he tends to keep a rolling stock so upon receipt of your old buttons he will dispatch the new ones straight away. With the soft plastic on the vents I just scrubbed off the sticky using solvents and left it as hard plastic it does not look bad at all.

Cat failure £? - If you get a face lift car with US spec cats then cat failure is unlikely. The Euro Spec ceramic cats have a tendency to fail unless if the car has been driven by a saint for all of its life (i think it has something to do with how hot they get and the number of intense heat cycles that eventually degrades the ceramic). If you go Larini at full price its around £1450 inc VAT, they often come around used £750ish. You can go down the custom route for about £950 but you need a find a good fabricator not some oaf with a lift tube bender and a MIG welder.

Leaking cam covers - Parts are about £80ish and labour 6 hours both sides... It is very DIYable but it took me 12 hours lol.
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The clutch tang issue is understood to be related to a batch of poor components, it is also not isolated to CC cars, Mike X had a fairly energetic tang failure in a manual car. The cost of the clutch, flywheel, spigot bearing and release bearing will be the same for a CC as for a manual and given the amount of effort to get at them I cannot envisage not changing them when replacing the clutch on a manual or a CC. You can reline the clutch on a manual - see above about tang failures. All clutches "should" be balanced with the SD3 when replaced.

Suspension bushes. These can be replaced, provided the arms are not cracked or the ball joints knackered, this is about £1200 for every bush front and rear plus the fitting. If you don't fancy that then ES do lower front and rear wishbones for £500 + VAT front and £400 + VAT rear. Upper ones F&R are only available OEM, front upper ball joints are replaceable. A thorough inspection is a must.

Cat failure - these are mercifully rare but again are not just related to euro specification manifolds and the consequences of a US spec failure can be more severe. Both types are ceramic as std. I have seen US spec manifolds what have had a proper beating on the bottom of the CAT from speed humps. Cat replacement on euro spec exhausts is pretty much as above, some have paid less. Used parts are available including OEM. If you have a failure on a US spec, this will involve new manifolds. Once again, a thorough inspection is a must.
 
FIFTY

FIFTY

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3,100
That's spot on Zep.

Another note... These are good cars, maybe there are less prime examples on the market than a few years ago but take me as an example - I really should know better than this...

I bought the first car I viewed with 4 owners (me the 5th) 58k miles on a 53 plate manual... owners 1 and 2 looked after her impecibly while owner 3 did little maintenance and a lot of miles with no service stamps... Owner 4 kept it for 7 months and did an ABS sensor (new hub) and part ex'd for a spyder... The dealer who took it in and replaced all of the suspension bushes and the main oil feed line for the engine... I picked up on the fact that the cam covers were leaking, brake discs were shot and the exhaust was making strange noises (blown cats). I picked up on the fact the windscreen kept steaming up but was not aware of the heater matrix issue. Also the SPORTS button didn't work

The dealer didnt really budge as he knew it is a rare spec and he probably spent enough on it so had little profit margin left so I bought it at £15k with a warranty. I have not seen another manual Argentine blue with grey interior manual on the market since so no regrets there.

I have fixed all of these problems plus a lot of preventative maintenance, modifications and improvements such as a new hi fi, various formula dynamics bits etc... Clean MOT every year since I bought it. Warranty absorbed a bit and I am only £7k in which is less than £2500/year. When I researched one of these typical advice was 2k-3k/year maintenance I think this year I could get away with sending £1k if i could control my impulses. I was not looking for a garage queen as I'm modifying it so no point getting a spray can to a perfect master piece.
 
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Nibby

Nibby

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2,076
As MaserTel pointed out in another thread on the manual car it tends to be the release bearing go before the clutch wears out, in my case at 69000 miles, not bad going imho on it's first clutch. I think after reading about Mike X's post any bearing noise coming from the clutch area needs sorting before anymore damage is done, this spurred me on to have my clutch sorted and my release bearing wasn't far off from completely seizing.
Really liking my car and no regrets.
 
M12 WOL

M12 WOL

New Member
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23
Hi Luke sorry I’m finding this forum a bit confusing ...
this is a brief description
Ifs a Face lift model 54 plate in Rosso mondiale with black leather and red piping
I’m the 4 th owner and had it 18 mths
Just done 45000 miles
Just been serviced at migloire cars ( specialist )
And waxoiled underneath
I have an extra front grill for the car , black mesh grandsport one , makes a change takes 2 mins to swap over , looks mean
Had a new clutch 1000 miles ago so runs like a dream £2500
Have a folder full of receipts , oridginal purchase receipt from graypaul Nottingham
Superb service history first 9 yrs all at graypaul Nottingham then specialist then on after ....
Receipt for a tubi sports exhaust £1700 fitted so sounds awesome
Wheels all refurbed gloss black with new chrome an red trident centres ( have brand new black with chrome trident ones aswell ) and red Calipers
Absolutely mint
Have all the books etc and even a Maserati umbrella never used tucks away in the the door trim
£19000 sensible offers considered
Anyone interested here’s my number
07920180500 Lichfield area ( midlands uk )
 
Corranga

Corranga

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1,223
Just to add to the above, manual clutches cost a bit more parts wise, but don't need SD computer so can be fitted by more garages, or potentially DIY.
The relining when I was a lot more than mentioned above. More like £700 to £800, plus postage, from a specialist who also does Ferrari ones.
Maybe I didn't look hard enough..
 
T

TimR

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2,731
Corranga said:
Just to add to the above, manual clutches cost a bit more parts wise, but don't need SD computer so can be fitted by more garages, or potentially DIY.
The relining when I was a lot more than mentioned above. More like £700 to £800, plus postage, from a specialist who also does Ferrari ones.
Maybe I didn't look hard enough..
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MD Clutches ( aka Mad Dog) ?
 
T

TimR

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2,731
Im still a little unclear about the balancing thing too...
Surely it needs done ? SD2/3 or otherwise, regardless of whether its a manual or CC...and probably on the bench (off the car) from anything I can find on the subject...?
Probably muddying the waters for others here too...:p
 
Corranga

Corranga

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1,223
TimR said:
Im still a little unclear about the balancing thing too...
Surely it needs done ? SD2/3 or otherwise, regardless of whether its a manual or CC...and probably on the bench (off the car) from anything I can find on the subject...?
Probably muddying the waters for others here too...:p
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I'm far from an expert, but I can't see why... Surely a machine shop is required to balance them, not a computer...
 
philw696

philw696

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25,391
Corranga said:
I'm far from an expert, but I can't see why... Surely a machine shop is required to balance them, not a computer...
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When I worked at Maserati we never balanced the clutch with the Diagnosi as the assembly comes balanced from the factory.
I don't know if independents do as I know its a faff.
Changed a few and never a problem.
 
Geo

Geo

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Messages
616
Could the term "balance" in this case refer to electronically adjusting the point at which the clutch automatically bites? The clutch unit will have been balanced dynamically to fine tolerance during manufacture.
 
CatmanV2

CatmanV2

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48,737
No there is a balance process but AIUI you can actually do it by opening the door and seeing if there's too much movement <shrug>
Setting the PIS (which is where the clutch bites) *does* need an SD2/3/whatever on the CC cars

C
 
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