Off to see 4 Granturismos - which would you pick?

c4sman

c4sman

Member
Messages
1,261
Drove past Romans twice yesterday and saw the red car at the front. A real eye catcher. Guess if it is well serviced at MD the mileage could be a good thing if all the faults have been ironed out and brakes and clutch have been recently refreshed?
 
Andyk

Andyk

Member
Messages
61,165
At 42k even with those miles it looks a great car in a great colour...One of the cheapest GT S for sale. There is the grey one at Nuvola at 39k but this red one just looks so much better.
 
EXCF350

EXCF350

Junior Member
Messages
177
habanero said:
.... I must admit I was a little underwhelmed. The Maser certainly isn't as quick as the M3, isn't as well tied down in either suspension mode and probably not as comfortable either. Having said that, it looked and sounded great and the sense of occasion made my M3 look very dull when parked next to some top Italian flair......
Click to expand...
To me, that is the whole point of the GT - the sense of occasion and wonderful looks and sound. As a GT car it is fantastic, as a sports car to replace an M3 it is no good - that's why i have the Caterham for blasting round the twisties. You need to decide what type of car you want as the GT and M3 are completely different.
 
habanero

habanero

New Member
Messages
30
EXCF350 said:
To me, that is the whole point of the GT - the sense of occasion and wonderful looks and sound. As a GT car it is fantastic, as a sports car to replace an M3 it is no good - that's why i have the Caterham for blasting round the twisties. You need to decide what type of car you want as the GT and M3 are completely different.
Click to expand...

I think you're spot on. It wasn't helped by the sunny blast through the twisties on the way down. On reflection, the GT would have suited my drive today better than the M.

And I'm still wondering if the gearbox on the MC Shift is as it should be. The changes were sooooo slow almost like I was braking between throttle applications. Yes it was never going to be like a double clutch system by Jeeez it was weird. I'll see if I can drive another MC Shift maybe a later version with the software update that has been mentioned on here.

:thumb3:
 
Maser Sod

Maser Sod

Member
Messages
1,965
Yeah, don't confuse the GT with a sports car - those things are just too heavy! I think my current motor is less than half the dry weight of a GT. The GranTurismo is all about comfort and sense of occasion.

The Maserati gearboxes are just old tech, so they are what they are. It's one of my current beefs with Maserati. These aren't cheap cars, and yet still no sign of a dual clutch.
 
Andyk

Andyk

Member
Messages
61,165
habanero said:
I think you're spot on. It wasn't helped by the sunny blast through the twisties on the way down. On reflection, the GT would have suited my drive today better than the M.

And I'm still wondering if the gearbox on the MC Shift is as it should be. The changes were sooooo slow almost like I was braking between throttle applications. Yes it was never going to be like a double clutch system by Jeeez it was weird. I'll see if I can drive another MC Shift maybe a later version with the software update that has been mentioned on here.

:thumb3:
Click to expand...

The Maserati paddle shift has always been behind the rest.....The 4200, Gransport box was always slow. they improved with updates. They got better but never moved as quick as others. Could have had something to do with Ferrari holding back. They are cars that you have to drive for more than a 20 min test drive to understand how good they are and get used to the box.
 
EXCF350

EXCF350

Junior Member
Messages
177
habanero said:
And I'm still wondering if the gearbox on the MC Shift is as it should be. The changes were sooooo slow almost like I was braking between throttle applications.
Click to expand...
It'll never be like the M3 shifts but it's not that slow. When the engine and gearbox are cold then the shifts are very slow and they remain slow if not in Sport mode, but once warmed up and you are in Sport (MC-Shift should display on the dash) and shifting is more than adequate. My guess is that you didn't go for a long enough test drive to properly warm the car up or you didn't test long enough in Sport mode - I drive 100% of the time in Sport otherwise I find the shifting is too slow.
 
MikeyMaser

MikeyMaser

Member
Messages
475
habanero said:
I'll see if I can drive another MC Shift maybe a later version with the software update that has been mentioned on here.
Click to expand...

I don't think the MC Shift has had software update. The software updates was for the Auto which Maserati confusingly decided to call MC Auto Shift!
 
FF1078

FF1078

Member
Messages
1,123
MC doesn't have an update, that's for the later auto box.
When in MC(sport) mode the changes are anything but slow, 400 milliseconds when over 5500rpm and foot hard down.
Go for the red one but I think it needs some carbon on it to break up the lines a bit but then I would say that!
 
B

bigbob

Member
Messages
8,972
MikeyMaser said:
I don't think the MC Shift has had software update. The software updates was for the Auto which Maserati confusingly decided to call MC Auto Shift!
Click to expand...

Maserati has never made this easy. Pre-facelift it was GTS or GTS Auto and post it is Sport MC Shift or Sport MC Auto Shift, no wonder Maserati dealers keep mis-describing them.
 
Colossus

Colossus

Junior Member
Messages
46
As said above, MC Shift not slow at all when properly warm, 100m/s when over 5000rpm and 80% throttle if memory serves right and in use it feels as fast as you realistically need allowing for flat shifts that simply bang home. Even out of this and in normal sport mode it feels plenty quick and certainly not slow witted. When completely cold and not in sport mode it can be somewhat slow but that passes quickly once the engine has warmed slightly. Either there was something wrong with the car you drove or it was a very short drive and didn't allow the car to warm, either way I suggest you have another go, they do take a bit of getting used to but once you do the MC Shift adds greatly to the experience.
 
habanero

habanero

New Member
Messages
30
Hi guys, thanks for the info.

I'm pretty sure something was up with the one I drove. The gearbox was supposedly warm already as it had just come back from another test drive but I can't be 100% sure.

The change was very very slow at full throttle. I'm also pretty sure I was over 5,000.

Having slept on it again, I can certainly see the merits of the Auto and clearly need to drive another MC Shift. I also need to accept the car is a GT and not a rival for what I've got.

Cheers, I'll keep you posted.
 
B

bigbob

Member
Messages
8,972
Indeed, the car is a 650 competitor. The choice of gearboxes actually confuses people which is part of the reason all new Maseratis' going forward have the 8speed ZF auto. Shame they don't offer the Ferrari DCT mind.
 
EXCF350

EXCF350

Junior Member
Messages
177
habanero said:
I'm pretty sure something was up with the one I drove. The gearbox was supposedly warm already as it had just come back from another test drive but I can't be 100% sure.
The change was very very slow at full throttle. I'm also pretty sure I was over 5,000.
Click to expand...
Are you sure you weren't in AUTO mode? I sometimes set off in auto mode by mistake and wonder why it's taking ages to do something when I try to change gear.
 
Classico

Classico

Member
Messages
895
bigbob said:
I'm not that optimistic. I suspect that the Ghibli and GT will be 8 speed auto only.
Click to expand...

I suspect you're right Bigbob.

Has Ferrari ever shared equal or better tech. on current models to its sister company in the past?

As Clarkson once said in relation to the Italian automotive hierarchy, making an Alfa 8C faster than a Ferrari is like vomiting on the Pope.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.