The dealer says??? Guess! Help?

V

virginia cambio

New Member
Messages
18
Well.... My nightmare is continuing... Now they (FCI) say its my clutch & they say its $5185 ??? I'm going to check the MAF because they won't check it. I'm frustrated. Thank you for the post I'll try! 6 months I haven't been able to drive my car anymore than 5 ot 10 miles... Sad. And everyone is guessing or refusing to be diligent in finding the problem
 
lozcb

lozcb

Member
Messages
12,586
virginia cambio said:
Well.... My nightmare is continuing... Now they (FCI) say its my clutch & they say its $5185 ??? I'm going to check the MAF because they won't check it. I'm frustrated. Thank you for the post I'll try! 6 months I haven't been able to drive my car anymore than 5 ot 10 miles... Sad. And everyone is guessing or refusing to be diligent in finding the problem
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How many miles has your car done on its existing clutch and how did it drive when you last were able to drive it , for a car to stall at idle when not in gear suggests nothing to do with the transmission side of things , if it was stalling whilst in gear then that is possible that the software (F1 sensor/gearbox ecu) was cutting out the engine, but i have never known this , have you had a clutch reading via the sd2/3 to validate that you require the clutch to be done , My gransport did 46K miles on its first and only clutch, at 31K it was diagnosed as being 100% worn with no symptoms, after a further 15K miles it was still driving normally with only very slight slippage , it was only when it started to drop out of gears 46K did i get a new clutch put in , NEVER once did it make the engine stall ..................................there is something radically wrong here about their diagnosis


regards loz
 
V

virginia cambio

New Member
Messages
18
I feel the same way... I have put 40k plus mls on this clutch & it has not stalled at all. I replaced the F1 relay. They said it is 100% worn but before it went to them it was tested and said to be at about 60%. Since it was tested in July I have probably driven the car maybe 100 miles. They seem to be just guessing... They wouldn't guarantee if I had them fix that problem the car would be fine. So to spend that kind of money is out of the question for a diagnosis that isn't 100%. The initial cause for it going to the shop was an occasional no start every 15-20 starts and a wait time of 10/20 minutes if it didn't start. As of last they gave it back to me it stalled in neutral and once in second as I slowed going over railroad tracks.

lozcb said:
How many miles has your car done on its existing clutch and how did it drive when you last were able to drive it , for a car to stall at idle when not in gear suggests nothing to do with the transmission side of things , if it was stalling whilst in gear then that is possible that the software (F1 sensor/gearbox ecu) was cutting out the engine, but i have never known this , have you had a clutch reading via the sd2/3 to validate that you require the clutch to be done , My gransport did 46K miles on its first and only clutch, at 31K it was diagnosed as being 100% worn with no symptoms, after a further 15K miles it was still driving normally with only very slight slippage , it was only when it started to drop out of gears 46K did i get a new clutch put in , NEVER once did it make the engine stall ..................................there is something radically wrong here about their diagnosis


regards loz
Click to expand...
 
lozcb

lozcb

Member
Messages
12,586
virginia cambio said:
I feel the same way... I have put 40k plus mls on this clutch & it has not stalled at all. I replaced the F1 relay. They said it is 100% worn but before it went to them it was tested and said to be at about 60%. Since it was tested in July I have probably driven the car maybe 100 miles. They seem to be just guessing... They wouldn't guarantee if I had them fix that problem the car would be fine. So to spend that kind of money is out of the question for a diagnosis that isn't 100%. The initial cause for it going to the shop was an occasional no start every 15-20 starts and a wait time of 10/20 minutes if it didn't start. As of last they gave it back to me it stalled in neutral and once in second as I slowed going over railroad tracks.
Click to expand...


Bizzarre that they are saying nothing is logged on the ECU , what symptoms prompted you to change the F1 pump relay , where you having difficulty selecting gears


regards loz
 
lozcb

lozcb

Member
Messages
12,586
Before you go any further down the clutch route i would suggest to check all pipes and hoses for air leaks then change the MAF sensor , then possibly change or check the oil crank sensor ,

have you by anychance ever done a battery reset , turn the isolator off for atleast 30 mins and after you turn it back on wait a full 3 mins before you tun the ignition on , wait another couple of minutes for everything to reset itself start the car and leave it for 10 mins just ticking over without revving.

Then seriously take it out for a drive and drive it like you stole it , the self learning throttle memory will then learn your driving style


regards loz



regards loz
 
bill

bill

Junior Member
Messages
247
Hi I had a very similar problem with my 3200(erratic starting/ cutting out). The problem was the power cable feed to the starter motor through the bulkhead. It was loose. It's very easy to check. It's above the fuse board in the passenger foot well. There are two large diameter cables held in by 10mm nuts. It's these that you would need to check. Take care not to touch anything with the spanner! Better still disconnect the battery beforehand... Good luck! Bill
 
Maser Sod

Maser Sod

Member
Messages
1,965
Hi there,
I remember this post from last year on ML. Sorry to hear you are still having problems.

It seems that your clutch is approaching the end of its life anyway, so at least the money you will throw at that solution is not completely down the drain.

Coming a little from leftfield here, but are the battery terminal connections firmly secured? The symptoms are what you would see for a slightly uncertain connection: occasional stall when approaching lights, stall after bouncing over rail tracks, intermittent failure to start up from cold.

Assuming it's not that, keep the aircon on and you might just get a few extra revs to keep you running when stopped at lights, etc.

One other suggestion - call a few dealerships in the US and just ask what they might think it is at first sight. At least you may get some consensus. If none of them have the first idea, then at least you will feel a little less bad about giving away money to your current dealer.

HTH
 
Maser Sod

Maser Sod

Member
Messages
1,965
BTW Loz, are the MAF's on the Coupe made by Bosch?

They were a piece of **** on the GTV's, they used to go all the time. And a complete rip off - 170GBP for little more than a piece of ribbon sat in plastic housing.
 
lozcb

lozcb

Member
Messages
12,586
Maser Sod said:
BTW Loz, are the MAF's on the Coupe made by Bosch?

They were a piece of **** on the GTV's, they used to go all the time. And a complete rip off - 170GBP for little more than a piece of ribbon sat in plastic housing.
Click to expand...


Thats the one Pat , except for ribbon there's a very fine filament from memory, if one does a search there is a how to post somewhere with full pictoral

Its also the same /very similar unit by bosch used on the VW and they have **** of a lot of problems


regards loz
 
V

virginia cambio

New Member
Messages
18
I will definitely do that when I get it back Mon/Tues. One of the salesman pulled me to the side and suggested a place he sends his customers outside of the dealer due to lack of knowledge. Amazing! So we shall see... I spoke to the guy and he's Italian and has all the Maserati Computers that the dealer has and only works on Mase, Lambo, Ferrari. He said the clutch definitely isn't causing it to cut off. Has to be a sensor or something loose. He said the clutch wouldn't turn the car off it would only revert it back to Neutral. So we shall see! Thank you!


bill said:
Hi I had a very similar problem with my 3200(erratic starting/ cutting out). The problem was the power cable feed to the starter motor through the bulkhead. It was loose. It's very easy to check. It's above the fuse board in the passenger foot well. There are two large diameter cables held in by 10mm nuts. It's these that you would need to check. Take care not to touch anything with the spanner! Better still disconnect the battery beforehand... Good luck! Bill
Click to expand...
 
V

virginia cambio

New Member
Messages
18
I most certainly will! I have called a few places and I have had many remedies. Quick remedies. Unfortunately, the dealer refuses to be diligent and check the small things first.

Maser Sod said:
Hi there,
I remember this post from last year on ML. Sorry to hear you are still having problems.

It seems that your clutch is approaching the end of its life anyway, so at least the money you will throw at that solution is not completely down the drain.

Coming a little from leftfield here, but are the battery terminal connections firmly secured? The symptoms are what you would see for a slightly uncertain connection: occasional stall when approaching lights, stall after bouncing over rail tracks, intermittent failure to start up from cold.

Assuming it's not that, keep the aircon on and you might just get a few extra revs to keep you running when stopped at lights, etc.

One other suggestion - call a few dealerships in the US and just ask what they might think it is at first sight. At least you may get some consensus. If none of them have the first idea, then at least you will feel a little less bad about giving away money to your current dealer.

HTH
Click to expand...
 
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