Spoon stirring

[Scaf]

Car looks lovely and with luck the issues you describe could all be minor gremlins.
You have 14days in which to reject to get yourself down to Sportsitalia for a check over !

 

[philw696]

Sorry to say it but this car is going to be a money pit.
As an ex MOT tester I can't believe there's no advisories.
The coil overs are factory Skyhook.
Good Luck.

 

[Markc]

Sorry to say it but this car is going to be a money pit.
As an ex MOT tester I can't believe there's no advisories.
The coil overs are factory Skyhook.
Good Luck.

Wa ha ha that’ll cheer him up!
Destination fvcked!
Hope it isn’t.

 

[MarkMas]

It does look as if there is quite a lot of work to do. If this was a private sale with 'I dunno, mate, maybe it needs some care and attention' then, fine. If this is supposed to be a dealer car, it is very rough.


The MOT history looks troubling, with advisories uncorrected for years including drop link play and 'rotten subframe'.

HX08GJO

MOT history

5 October 2021
PASS
Mileage77,160 miles
MOT test number7686 9222 5513
Expiry date4 October 2022

1 March 2021
PASS
Mileage74,890 miles
MOT test number8097 6701 4521
Expiry date28 February 2022
Monitor and repair if necessary (advisories):
Nearside Front Exhaust has a minor leak of exhaust gases (6.1.2 (a))
Nearside Rear Exhaust noisy (8.1.1 (a))
Front subframe support brackets corroded and fractured

24 February 2021
FAIL
Mileage74,887 miles
MOT test number6374 2959 3819
Do not drive until repaired (dangerous defects):
Nearside Rear Tyre tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm (5.2.3 (e))
Repair immediately (major defects):
Nearside Front Coil spring fractured or broken (5.3.1 (b) (i))
Monitor and repair if necessary (advisories):
Offside Rear Tyre worn close to legal limit/worn on edge (5.2.3 (e))
Nearside Front Exhaust has a minor leak of exhaust gases (6.1.2 (a))
Nearside Rear Exhaust noisy (8.1.1 (a))
Front subframe support brackets corroded and fractured

22 July 2020
PASS
Mileage73,336 miles
MOT test number3785 7928 0227
Expiry date21 July 2021
Monitor and repair if necessary (advisories):
Nearside Front Upper Anti-roll bar linkage ball joint has slight play (5.3.4 (a) (i))
Offside Front Upper Anti-roll bar linkage ball joint has slight play (5.3.4 (a) (i))

Nearside Front Sub frame plate rotten
Offside Front Sub frame plate rotten

22 July 2020
FAIL
Mileage73,336 miles
MOT test number3688 3968 5967
Repair immediately (major defects):
Offside Front Windscreen washer provides insufficient washer liquid (3.5 (a))
Monitor and repair if necessary (advisories):
Nearside Front Upper Anti-roll bar linkage ball joint has slight play (5.3.4 (a) (i))
Offside Front Upper Anti-roll bar linkage ball joint has slight play (5.3.4 (a) (i))
Nearside Front Sub frame plate rotten
Offside Front Sub frame plate rotten

14 June 2019
PASS
Mileage69,659 miles
MOT test number8724 0933 6365
Expiry date13 December 2020

2 May 2018
PASS
Mileage 66,395 miles
MOT test number 4122 5153 1992
Expiry date1 May 2019
Advisory notice item(s)
Nearside Front Anti-roll bar linkage has slight play in a ball joint (2.4.G.2)
Offside Front Anti-roll bar linkage has slight play in a ball joint (2.4.G.2)

1 May 2018
FAIL
Mileage 66,395 miles
MOT test number 4122 7937 0566
Reason(s) for failure
Nearside Rear Passenger's seat insecure base part (6.2.A.1)
Nearside Headlamp aim too high and too far to the right. (1.8)
Offside Windscreen wiper does not clear the windscreen effectively (8.2.2)
Advisory notice item(s)
Nearside passenger door does not latch closed fully
coolant level low
Nearside Front Anti-roll bar linkage has slight play in a ball joint (2.4.G.2)
Offside Front Anti-roll bar linkage has slight play in a ball joint (2.4.G.2)

15 April 2017
PASS
Mileage 64,835 miles
MOT test number 2749 8055 2837
Expiry date21 April 2018
Advisory notice item(s)
Front brake disc worn, pitted or scored, but not seriously weakened (3.5.1i)
Rear brake disc worn, pitted or scored, but not seriously weakened (3.5.1i)
Offside Front Anti-roll bar has slight play in a ball joint (2.4.G.2)
Offside Rear Tyre worn close to the legal limit 285/40/19 2mm (4.1.E.1)
Nearside Rear Tyre worn close to the legal limit 285/40/19 2mm (4.1.E.1)

 

[montravia]

Grief.
Even a well maintained and cherished GT of this age can easily eat £15k. I know. Variators, subframe treatment, bushes, wheel bearings several, suspension springs 2 and 4 year service, NIT Discs, electrics, door locks, microswitches, new trims and insignia, leather treatment, external detailing, wheel refurbishment and so on and so on, much of which I choose to forget. A very thick file.

I'd run now.

 

[Sam McGoo]

Not the worst I've seen, and I hate to say it, but I'd return it. Or at least get a specialist inspection and potential costs.... Unless your very brave and lucky.

The dealer is obviously a liar, saying he's done things that he hasn't, and the poor car prep etc...

The previous MOTs mention the subframe, and the latest one, not even a mention or an advisory...I'd question the quality of the mot.. And it clearly hasn't been replaced, repaired or treated.

The wishbone mounts look pretty poor

 

[philw696]

From my experiences working on these cars there is hours of work there to get it right.
British Winter weather wreaks havoc on delicate Italian eealxotica.
That's like the one I came over to do in Yorkshire and I did a really bad one in New Zealand that a Kiwi shipped over from Scotland.

 

[TimR]

The dealer is obviously a liar, saying he's done things that he hasn't, and the poor car prep etc...

The previous MOTs mention the subframe, and the latest one, not even a mention or an advisory...

The wishbone mounts look pretty poor

Something is off...
O/S & N/S sub frame plates rotten...then they just disappear from the list of advisories...Have they been replaced..?
Something is off with the dealer story too...

 

[Sam McGoo]

Something is off...
O/S & N/S sub frame plates rotten...then they just disappear from the list of advisories...Have they been replaced..?
Something is off with the dealer story too...

The plates have just been pulled off by the look of it. They are just pipework protection plates, that do go rusty even on a looked after car.
Only £30 to replace, so the fact they couldn't be bothered to replace them and just ripped them off, makes me pretty sure it's been owned on a budget.

 

[TimR]

¥¥ interesting...
...makes you wonder why they bother flagging it up as an advisory tbh!
No hum. Everything is fixable. It’s just cost, ball ache, and how you feel about the deal when all’s said’n’done I s’pose?

 

[Sam McGoo]

The wishbone mounts, are they replaceable parts?

No. I believe, some welding can be done, but if bad, it's a new subfame.

 

[Oneball]

I think you’ll get a better car for the same money

is the @CatmanV2 old car https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-de...ati&include-delivery-option=on&sort=relevance

 

[MarkMas]

Thanks everyone for your comments. Here's a video of the interior issues.

Again, most of them can be sorted. But not what you expect for a Maserati delivery.

I spoke to the dealer this afternoon. He said all the right stuff but I imagine this could be more flannel. He said he would get back to me Monday, so I have 14 days under distance selling to return the motor. I'll drive it very little over the weekend whilst I consider my options.

The suggestion of putting the car through an MOT and it fail was enough for him to want to think about doing something. What that is, I'll need to find out.

Quick question ladies and gents, for £20k how much better a car could there be? Am I shooting the bottom of the barrel already, so will they all be in similar condition underneath?

I've no intention of going to a Maserati garage or specialist. I've a very good friend who owns a garage so as long as parts are available, labour will be cheap almost free which will help.

Please be brutal in your comments.

The cosmetic interior condition is dreadful for a dealer. Again, if you had bought it privately off a widow, or taken a punt at an auction, OK, but this dealer is taking the pi55. Not really sure about pricing of these, but if you paid 'dealer prices' it's 'reject' or 'refund £3k'.

Also all that loose boot trim is very suspicious. I suggest you pull off a bit more to look for rear end damage, and bad welding. Also look under the trim into the boot tray to see if there is water under there.

 

[MAF260]

You're very fortunate that you have the option to 'reconsider' your purchase without losing a load of money. I'm sorry to say but I would have sent the car back already; it smacks of poor maintenance, budget ownership, a slightly less than honest dealer (who'd have thought it?!) and a massive future headache, ball ache and wallet ache.

I'd be looking at this instead. Last owner spent £14k on it less than 3k miles ago, it has new tyres, looks in decent condition and has the safety net of being sold by a dealer:

Auto Trader UK - New and Used Cars For Sale

Find your next car with Auto Trader UK, the official #1 site to buy and sell new and used cars. Over 400,000 cars online. Simple, easy, quick!

www.autotrader.co.uk

Wood trim isn't to my taste, but suggests a more 'mature' owner and can also be swapped out/wrapped etc.

 

[Mr Spoon]

The cosmetic interior condition is dreadful for a dealer. Again, if you had bought it privately off a widow, or taken a punt at an auction, OK, but this dealer is taking the pi55. Not really sure about pricing of these, but if you paid 'dealer prices' it's 'reject' or 'refund £3k'.

Also all that loose boot trim is very suspicious. I suggest you pull off a bit more to look for rear end damage, and bad welding. Also look under the trim into the boot tray to see if there is water under there.

I paid £19750 for this motor, wit a service, mot, full tank of fuel and delivery.

It came with half tank of fuel, no v5, and the condition it's in.

As always, the photos and the advert were tip top. So was the video of the car sent to me.

I'll sit on this a little bit longer. Rejecting I imagine won't go smoothly, not that it's an issue, I can wait for the money and or pursue legally, but some money back and a bit of work might do the job.

 

[TimR]

We’re all different I guess...
Personally, I would be seeing red already, given the claims made by the vendor are manifest in an endless trail of indifference and outright bullsh1t honestly...
I’ve seen enough. Classic case of look before you leap for me !
Good luck....

 

[PhillV8S]

Yes, in an ideal world I'd be buying a £100k car not a £20k one. That said, it's very easy to look at the negative side of this.

On the face of it, as many cars do, the car looked great. It also doesn't mean this car isn't a good buy. It entirely depends on the comparable options..

I'm not sure how or what the dealer will do, probably nothing. So I may have to force his hand and if that doesn't work, use the law.

As @MarkMas says above, paying £16k for this car or even £17k means the saving offsets some work. It's doubtful the dealer will want to give away £2k-£3k but I'd probably consider that.

How much of the £14k mentioned with the car above was Maserati tax and labour?

Looks like you have to find out how much it will cost you (with mates rates and parts) to bring the car upto a standard you are happy with and trying to recover the difference or send it back to the dealer.
At least if you fix the issues you have peace of mind going forward but it is cost dependent and it will diminish the warm cozy new car glow you were hoping for!
It’s a personal choice that only you can decide will be the right way.
I have got cars unseen before and got lucky but they were cheap. When it’s a decent amount I make the effort to view it in person. But appreciate everyone has different risk thresholds.
Good luck with whatever solution you decide is right for you.

 

[Scaf]

I paid £19750 for this motor, wit a service, mot, full tank of fuel and delivery.

It came with half tank of fuel, no v5, and the condition it's in.

As always, the photos and the advert were tip top. So was the video of the car sent to me.

I'll sit on this a little bit longer. Rejecting I imagine won't go smoothly, not that it's an issue, I can wait for the money and or pursue legally, but some money back and a bit of work might do the job.

Don’t forget that if you paid a deposit by credit card you have some added protection.

Personally I would start the rejection process now and see if the dealer negotiates.

I would also say again, if you are really planing on keeping and fixing (even with a discount) get the car checked by Sportsitalia or another specialist whi will know these cars inside and out, and all the pitfalls.

Only then will you know what you might be taking on.

 

[JJbing]

I'd be rejecting it. That's a dodgy wrap if I've ever seen one. Hence why you have trim all over the place, that's what it would look like if I tried to do it.

 

[Sam McGoo]

Just to give you a rough guide , if you haven't seen it already, here is a post from Matt at Sportsitalia listing the most seen maintenance items and their cost done at a good indy.

https://www.sportsmaserati.com/index.php?threads/gt-running-costs.34216/post-881913

Then if you look on this one, you can see how much the parts are alone.

https://www.eurospares.co.uk/parts/maserati/granturismo-2008/

Obviously you'd be unlucky to get even half of them, but on a car that hasn't been looked after there's a good chance a few will come at once, and they soon add up.

And if you were very unlucky and needed new subframe/s - front and rear are between £2-3k each plus labour.