Gregory in the UK writes:

RE: Unsatisfactory service:

"Dear Enrico,

I only found your website recently and I think it's vital to make and keep a community of Maserati owners connected and informed.

I think this e-mail will interest yourself and your readers:

My problem is on a 2000 3200GT Auto. I bought the car with 19,000 miles and it was in pristine condition with 6 months left of an extended trident warranty still on the car.

I decided to have an annual service just after I bought the car so they would also give the car a good check over before the trident warranty ran out. The only problem I was having was that the steering was making a swishing noise when I turned the wheel full lock either way. I took the car to ********** a Ferrari/Maserati dealer where the car had been serviced during it's life.

I had a very interesting experience with them as all they had to perform was an annual service, plus fix the swishing noise in the steering, fix any problems they found under the warranty for which they found they needed to change a ball joint in the suspension.

They could have easily performed the aforementioned in 2 weeks maximum. As they had kept my car for over a month, I started to feel as if they had damaged or scratched my car somehow and were trying to fix it behind my back.

I nagged them for two weeks to return my car, when eventually it was delivered back to me. However, on inspection of the car as it was being offloaded, I found they had scratched my front bumper and kerbed one of my alloys, then on driving the car I found the steering swishing noise was still there.

I immediately contacted them and demanded these to be fixed at there expense.

However during the next week after delivery of the car a new problem arose where the check engine sign would come on and the car would not accelerate over 3000 revs. However this happened intermediately on and off when starting the car from cold.

I am now going on Tues 26/3/05, with the car to demand they sort out the damages to my car including fixing the steering at their cost.

Can you or any of your readers give me any info of what the check engine/lack of acceleration problem plus steering noise and is due to and if any readers have had similar problems with ********** re the above stated problems.

If anyone could give me a reply asap it would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks and regards,

Gregory."

Reply from Enrico:

"Hi Gregory,

I think you have been the victim of poor customer service but nothing more and I'm sorry that you feel you have had unsatisfactory service from **********. As you mention in your email they are a rrepuable Ferrari/Maserati garage and have great experience with this model. I an sure that by talking to someone at managerial level, you should be able to reach a satisfactory conclusion.

There may actually be nothing wrong with his steering as a swishing noise can sometimes be heard anyway. The check engine light coming on is a common problem and not necessarily anything serious (although no less irritating!) or as a result of the service – it sounds as though it has gone onto limp home mode which means another trip to ********** anyway.

Regards,

Enrico."

Steve in the UK writes:

"Does anyone know where a alternative set of front and rear pads can be obtained for my 3200.

Are the pads easy to change, any unusual methods??

Regards,

Steve."

Philip in the UK writes:

RE: CHECK ENGINE WARNING LIGHT:

"Enrico,

I noticed several comments about the engine check warning illuminated on 3200GTs.

I have had this 3 or 4 times over the 70k miles that I have had my 3200GT. It has always been due to the brake-pedal sensor/switch.

I assume that the engine management system needs to know when you brake, so that it can cut of the fuel supply and/or open the waste gates to get maximum engine braking. Recalibrating the brake sensor and on one occasion replacing the sensor mounting bracket, has always solved the problem.

I have had no other problems, other than high maintenance costs [running costs at approx. £1/mile or £#128;1/km], a warning to those who are tempted as prices for earlier models drop to £20k.

I am about to have my first brake disc replacements after 70k miles. This doesn´t seem too bad for such a heavy car; view the natural driving style from such a beast, however, I am still on my second set of pads. I thought that the pads were the sacrificial component not the discs!!

Add to this a clutch at 50k miles and rear shocks at 60k and tyres every 15-20k. The new clutch design is a vast improvement over the original [2001] and has gone a long way to removing the perceived drive-train shunt.

I am now due my big [i.e. expensive] engine-out service, for the cam drive chain replacement.

Another point for all owners to consider is how critical the suspension geometry is to good handling. A slight change from the book settings, and the driving pleasure all but disappears. Even some main dealers seem to have inadequate equipment to do a proper 3D dynamic adjustment. I wonder how many owners have never experienced the car´s real capabilities. It's an expensive job [ more than 5 hours labour I believe] but well worth it. Owners will probably save this investment on tyres.

On the subject of maintenance, do you know when Maserati will "declassify" workshop manual? As the car is out of production, it would seem sensible to let enthusiasts taken on some of the maintenance.

Great site.

Thanks,

Philip.."

Reply from Enrico:

"Hi Philip,

Thank you so much for your useful information on the 'Check Engine' warning light, which I am sure will be most useful to all 3200GT owners.

No news on the "declassification" of the 3200GT workshop manuals, but I've no doubt this will happen soon!

Regards,

Enrico."

Mauro in Brazil writes:

"I´m Mauro, from Brasil.

If is it possible please give a hint about the 3200GT engine oil pump: where is it located and how to remove it?

Thanks in advance.

Mauro."

Reply from Enrico:

"Hope these relevant pages from the 3200GT engine manual are of help.

Regards,

Enrico."

Jed in the UK writes:

"Hi,

My next mission is to locate the Lambda sensor connection box I have traced the wires from the sensor and they disappear up behind the gear well. I suspect they are under the centre console somewhere.

Im just getting into your site and think it is great so far. I think we can all help each other a lot god knows there are a whole host of minor problems with these cars but we still love them to death.

Im just changing the back boxes to Quicksilver I will let you know how it goes!

Cheers,

Jed."

Reply from Enrico:

"Hope these two pages from the 3200GT engine manual are of help.

Regards,

Enrico."

Jed in the UK writes:

"Hi,

I have a 1999 3200 GTA and while I have loads of fun driving it it can be problematic. The Check engine light came on a while ago when a plug had blown and that was easy to sort out but it is coming on now every time I drive the car. What I have noticed is that there is a power loss when the light is on and speed is limited to around 60 mph.

Any ideas? Could it be a cat problem I know the rear silencers are near the end of their life is the cat in the silencers?

Some of your writers mention sensors where are they? I have noticed the car temperature seems to be lower than normal can anyone point me in the right direction.

Also I have noticed that there is a small oil leak on the rear suspension struts any idea where is the best place for aftermarket bits in the UK i.e. exhaust, brakes, cambelt change, etc.

Cheers,

Jed.

Kevan in the UK writes:

"Hi,

My car is a 2002 3200GT (6 speed manual) with 15,500 miles on the clock. I am experiencing a lot of gearbox noise at idle. When I push the clutch in the noise stops, then starts on release of the pedal.

Any comments?

Also it takes almost 1 hour to fill the washer tank - any ideas?

Regards,

Kevan.

Reply from Jed:

"I have recently changed the discs on my car £740 for rear discs and pads and around £600 for the front set. I think it is disgusting the price I was charged from a dealer so after the horse had bolted I decided to do some research and found an alternative supplier who stock the pads and send next day.

COMPARE dealer price for rear pads 150 notes and alternative £57 inc vat and delivery to your door.

Try Dave hope it helps but too late for me!!!

There is a small filter in the neck of the washer bottle and it will slow you down. If you are sure of the water you are using then I suggest you pop your finger into the filter and pull it out. Fill up and pop the filter back in.

Jed."

Ramez in the UK writes:

"Just bought a 2000 Maserati 3200GT with 44,000 miles on the clock, with a full service carried out one day ago. Had it checked and it cam well. Two days later the warning light engine check came on.

I checked the oil level and it was down a lot. Loads of oil leak in my garage.

What is your experience with this?

Thanks,

Ramez."

Reply from Enrico:

"Hi Ramez,

Thank you for your email. My expert friend is away this week on a skiing holiday and should be back next week.

In the meantime could you please give me some more information about the car.

1. Where did you buy it?
2. Did you buy it privately?
3. Who carried out the 'full service'?
4. Have you looked under the car to see where the oil is coming from?
5. Have you checked the oil filter and made sure it was screwed back correctly?
6. Is the sump cracked?
7. Have you taken it back to the vendor? Was it bought privately?

It could be the main oil seal that is leaking. This seems to be a problem with this model. If it is, there's some good news and some bad news!

The good news is that the seal only cost a few pounds. The bad news is that it can take between eight and ten hours to replace! This work should only be carried out by a main dealer or someone with knowledge of Maseratis.

Regards,

Enrico."

Steve in the UK writes:

"Hi Enrico,

Do you know if brake discs for the 3200 are available through an alternative source other than main dealer. May bring the cost down???

Regards,

Steve."

Reply from Andy:

"3200GT brake discs - quite possibly these are available on the aftermarket from Brembo stockists but I have not tried to get any yet.

Cheers,

Andy."

Roy in the UK writes:

"Enrico,

I recently bought a 3200 GT auto for my wife. It has several unrelated problems which you may be able to shed some light on.

1: When the wipers are on the intermittent setting the wiper motor stutters with a poor electrical feed as the blades return on each stroke. This doesn`t happen on any other setting leading me to think it`s probably the relay?

2: The electric windows stopped working but when I switched off the power cut off in the boot and re-powered up the system it fixed itself. Is it a glitch in the brain which operates the windows, as this seems a common fault as my Ferrari has done the same thing before and it seems to use the same system?

3: The radio stopped working. No power, but I dont have a wiring diagram or anything to show me the location of the fuses. A workshop manual or a wiring diagram would be a really big help!!!

Regards,

Roy."

Reply from Andy:

"Henry,

I have never had a wiper problem like that on a Maserati but bizarrely, my Alfa has exactly the same problem and it is due to the wiper delay relay. The windows are entirely normal as far as I can gather but as far as the radio goes, I have no idea!

Regards,

Andy"

Graham in the UK writes:

"Hi Enrico,

Great website! Have been keeping an eye on it for the last 8 months.

I have a 2000 3200GT with 35K now on the clock. I used to get Hot starting problems (to the extent of engine turning over 8-10 times), but since being serviced, now starts immediately (throttle potentiometer apparently!).

I get the 'check engine' light on very occasionally, accompanied by loss of turbo power, but stopping and restarting has resolved all four occurrances.

I would be interested to know if anyone has put Good Year Eagle F1s on, and how they perform. I currently have Michelin Pilots, they are OK, but not brilliant in the wet.

Thanks,

Graham."

Kevan in the UK writes:

"Dear Enrico,

I wonder if you can help ? I have a 2002 3200GT ( build 3939 ). Over the past few months the engine has developed a tappet type noise ( nearside rear of the engine - Top ) when started hot, this will go after a couple of minutes. The engine has been rebuilt but still experiences this problem. Although the engine oil pressure gauge shows max I believe this could be a weak oil pump - has anyone else experienced this?

With reference to several other 3200GT owners hot start problem - this I also have experienced , it turned out to be a fuel supply problem when starting immediately from hot. Lancaster Maserati did resolve this problem.

My car has now covered 15,000 miles.

Kind Regards,

Kevan."

Reply from Kevan:

"Hi,

This is my second email, the tappet noise was caused by a blocked breather pipe causing the tappets to flutter - finally resolved.

Regards,

Kevan."

Paul in the UK writes:

"Hi Enrico,

Hope you are recovering well.

Just thought I'd share some more experiences of my 3200 GT, now on 31,000 miles. I've recently replaced the standard rear silencers with a TubiStyle sports system. It wasn't cheap but the quality and sound are fantastic. It's not too loud but gives the car that purposeful deep rumble you expect from an Italian V8, you also get a mini explosion out of the back when changing gear or backing off, superb! I know it could be psychological but the throttle doesn't seem to be as hyper-sensitive now either.

Anyone got any thoughts on tyres? Mine came with P-Zeros which were awful in the wet, lots of scary aquaplaning on the motorway. I've tried Falkens which gripped well and dispersed water but wore the rears in 6000 miles. I'm now trying Continental ContiSports which so far seem pretty good.

I too seem to be suffering from 'Check Engine' light syndrome. The light has come on and off before with no effect on performance whatsoever, its now been on for over a week, again with no apparent fault. Am I OK in ignoring this or could there be a serious fault - I guess its hard to say without taking it to the dealer.

Any ideas on the starting fault - mine still will not re-start when hot without leaving it switched off for up to a minute.

Finally I saw a 2001, Y reg 3200 GT the other week with 128000 miles showing, is this a record. It was in superb condition and apparently drove well. Hate to think how much had been spent on it over 3 years though!

Regards,

Paul."

Reply from Andy:

"Hi,

Anyone got any thoughts on tyres? Mine came with P-Zeros which were awful in the wet, lots of scary aquaplaning on the motorway. I've tried Falkens which gripped well and dispersed water but wore the rears in 6000 miles. I'm now trying Continental ContiSports which so far seem pretty good.

Good compromise! There are not that many options but we have also tried Dunlop 9000 which seem pretty good.

I too seem to be suffering from 'Check Engine' light syndrome. The light has come on and off before with no effect on performance whatsoever, its now been on for over a week, again with no apparent fault. Am I OK in ignoring this or could there be a serious fault - I guess its hard to say without taking it to the dealer.

You should really get it looked at. Persistent check engine lights usually mean a lambda sensor problem which could get worse. As long as the engine performs normally then you can continue to drive it, but you run the risk of the situation deteriorating inconveniently!

Any ideas on the starting fault - mine still will not re-start when hot without leaving it switched off for up to a minute.

Not heard of this one!

Andy."

Finally I saw a 2001, Y reg 3200 GT the other week with 128000 miles showing, is this a record. It was in superb condition and apparently drove well. Hate to think how much had been spent on it over 3 years though!

It's the same old story, some owners swear by the 3200GT and others swear at them! From the feedback I'm getting, most 3200GTs that come with a COMPLETE MASERATI service history with no breaks, seem to be pretty reliable. Others that have changed hands and have been tinkered about with by the local garage with no experience in servicing these cars seem to be those with problems.

Enrico.