Advice on used Grancabrio

H

HydrogenBadger

New Member
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4
Dear all, for the last 6 months I have been considering buying a Grancabrio. My max budget is around 60K which limits me to cars from 2010/2011. I am slightly concerned with buying such an old car - am I right to be? Some have around 30K miles on the clock; are the grancabs proving reliable over higher mileage? And others have an astonishingly low mileage for a 6 year car (7K).

I will have to finance the car over 3 years, at which point it will be 9-10years old and am worried the price will have fallen through the floor at that point, particularly as this may coincide with the release of the Alfieri. On a positive note regards age I would not expect to put more than 2K-3K miles on the clock each year.

My main concern is although the Maserati is definitely my heart's choice, my head says I can get a less that 1 year old jag F-Type for the same money.

Does anyone have any advice on this?


Any help much appreciated.
 
safrane

safrane

Member
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16,822
Thats not old for a modern car.

Low miles is expected for a soft top, but watch out for service gaps in v.low miles cars. I doubt the price will drop too much...what other 4 seat sports convertible with good looks can you buy.

Check for brake wear in the 4.7 as they are ££££ to change.
 
FF1078

FF1078

Member
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1,123
The prices for GT are holding quite well at the moment but as you rightly say when the new model comes out they may well drop some.
I have a 60 Plate GT/s and it's been one of if not THE most reliable car I've ever had. There are little niggles but this forum covers all and there are ways around them all mainly to do with battery voltage drops.
Dont do the Jag thing as they are as common as Aston's.
Masser all the way and good luck
 
Andyk

Andyk

Member
Messages
61,120
As above, Grancab prices are very firm and show no sign of slipping. I'm sure I read it was the best model in the range for residual. I would say the Jag, which is a lovely car, will drop like a stone price wise. If you can stretch to a Gramcab Sport that seems to be the one that holds its price. Not heard of any horror stories reliability wis and with all cars they like to be used.
 
blue520

blue520

Junior Member
Messages
186
After 2 4200 Spyders and a QP I went for 2010 Grancabrio a few months ago and so far all good . Using a lot more than the 4200`s and I don`t get that "which light will appear" today feeling which I used to with the earlier cars. Oh and the 4.7 sounds awesome when the valves open!
 
H

HydrogenBadger

New Member
Messages
4
Thanks for the feedback, it sounds very encouraging. The battery issue is of slight concern however, does this result from the battery running flat? I may not get to drive it except for weekends on numerous occasions because of work.

Regarding break wear, how would I check for that? I must confess to being next to useless on the maintenance side.
 
safrane

safrane

Member
Messages
16,822
Put the car on a trickle charger...I have not been out in my GS since Sept...but it starts fine each time as the charger keeps the battery 100%

Feel the outside edge of the disks for a slight lip...the disk are only hardened for 2mm and then recommended to be changed.

Give Richard Grace of Richard Grace Cars...he is a decent bloke who will not give you a hard sell and is happy to pass on what he knows...he may also have an ideal car in the wings or know where to source one for you. I have used his services three times now.
 
H

HydrogenBadger

New Member
Messages
4
Brilliant, thanks very much for your help. Looking to pull the trigger in the new year, albeit the dealers are desperate for me to commit this side of Christmas.
 
Andyk

Andyk

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Messages
61,120
A brief piece from Autocar....

Pretty wonderful to be honest, so long as you find the right road, the right weather and have the right attitude with which to drive it. But the key thing to realise is that despite the addition of a range of upgrades intended to make it more sporting, the GranCabrio Sport isn’t the bone rattling madman of a car you’d half expect it to be. It’s actually a much more complete machine than the regular GranCab, featuring a more mature ride, crisper feeling steering, much better body control and an exhaust note to die for – so long as you press the right button.

Do so and, at a stroke, the throttle response gets punchier, the dampers become stiffer, the steering weight deepens, the shift times within the excellent six-speed semi-automatic gearbox are cut – and the exhaust note goes completely berserk. The transformation is a bit like what happens when Clark Kent emerges from the telephone box, and the effect it has on the GranCabrio Sport’s personality is as close to total as it gets.
 
H

HydrogenBadger

New Member
Messages
4
Slight spanner in the works, I have just seen that the Grancabrio is to be discontinued in 2018. If I was to by now I would still be paying off after its discontinued date and I would effectively be the owner of a living fossil. This is very concerning it terms of resale price and also parts/maintenance. This has completely thrown me. Can't believe they are killing off such a beautiful car.

I always knew I would lose money overall on the car but this news surely means the price will drop like a stone?
 
Fangio63

Fangio63

Member
Messages
614
HydrogenBadger said:
Slight spanner in the works, I have just seen that the Grancabrio is to be discontinued in 2018. If I was to by now I would still be paying off after its discontinued date and I would effectively be the owner of a living fossil. This is very concerning it terms of resale price and also parts/maintenance. This has completely thrown me. Can't believe they are killing off such a beautiful car.

I always knew I would lose money overall on the car but this news surely means the price will drop like a stone?
Click to expand...

Doubt that very much... Maserati have a habit of drifting a bit with launch dates etc.. ... And anyway ... there's nothing to touch it now, and there'll never be another NAV8 ...After this lot dies... Worry not and take the plunge..
 
safrane

safrane

Member
Messages
16,822
The main loss is in the first three years so no need to worry. The 'New' model will be over £120k so anyone in the market for a second hand one is not going to be making a decision if they get the £50k one or the £120k one are they?
 
Andyk

Andyk

Member
Messages
61,120
HydrogenBadger said:
Slight spanner in the works, I have just seen that the Grancabrio is to be discontinued in 2018. If I was to by now I would still be paying off after its discontinued date and I would effectively be the owner of a living fossil. This is very concerning it terms of resale price and also parts/maintenance. This has completely thrown me. Can't believe they are killing off such a beautiful car.

I always knew I would lose money overall on the car but this news surely means the price will drop like a stone?
Click to expand...

As above..wouldn't worry about the above if you are buying a 60k Grancab......Especially when you look at the new Maserati range......These cars with a 'proper' engine will always be desirable.
 
B

bigbob

Member
Messages
8,964
HydrogenBadger said:
Slight spanner in the works, I have just seen that the Grancabrio is to be discontinued in 2018. If I was to by now I would still be paying off after its discontinued date and I would effectively be the owner of a living fossil. This is very concerning it terms of resale price and also parts/maintenance. This has completely thrown me. Can't believe they are killing off such a beautiful car.

I always knew I would lose money overall on the car but this news surely means the price will drop like a stone?
Click to expand...

I find your comment really strange. Cars are replaced all the time and model life cycles are getting shorter and shorter, often now only 5 or 6 years. I really like the six series BMW but that is going in about 2017 having been out only about five years.

Others have well answered the attractiveness of the GC in terms of engine and price versus a replacement and at least with Maserati - like Aston Martin - you get long product life cycles. The benefit of this is better residuals than 6 series, 911 etc. If you like it buy it, if you want to spreadsheet it to high heaven then lease a 640d cab, pay through the nose per month but with protected downside and be done with it.
 
StuartW

StuartW

Member
Messages
9,311
Andyk said:
As above..wouldn't worry about the above if you are buying a 60k Grancab......Especially when you look at the new Maserati range......These cars with a 'proper' engine will always be desirable.
Click to expand...

Agreed, they haven't made many GCs and are going to continue to hold an excellent residual value. Plus if you really want one, there isn't much else like it so go for it I'd say
 
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