Jan in South Africa writes:

"Hi Enrico,

Long time no "see" eh? I hope you have advice: The cam belt on my Ghibli is rather "audible", but only when the engine gets warm. It sounds like it may be rubbing against the cam belt cover. Is this normal(ish), or would you recommend some serious inspection? I was planning to replace the cam belt in December anyway, but if you think it will be safer I'll move the work forward. The manuals are great!

Looking forward to hear from you.

Kind Regards,

Jan."

Reply from Andy:-

Re: Ghibli II cambelt:

"Hi,

Yes, it should be checked straight away. Could be:

1) the belt is rubbing on the cover as you say

2) the pulleys are rusty

3) the water pump bearing is worn.

Andy."

Ashy in the UK writes:

"Hi Enrico,

I forgot to mention that I also did a leakage test on cylinder number 5 and it checked out OK. Andy's kind response reminded me of that one. Sorry guys, I'm really stuck with this idling problem.

By the way, has anyone encountered a creaking/knocking sound upon turning the steering wheel when the car warms up? it seems to be coming from the right hand front wheel.

Finally, I was wondering how much I should expect to pay to get the cam belt changed. What else do I need to change in addition? Some have said the bearings (cheap) and some have said the tensioner (expensive). What do you guys think?

Thanks,

Ashy."

Reply from Andy:-

Re: Ghibli II idling problem:

"Hi,

Have you checked the valve clearances? I know you have checked the injector has fuel to it but have you checked the spray pattern. This is not easy to see and the best way would be to substitute injector from another cylinder. Also if you are substituting, try leads, plugs etc.

Re: Creaking/knocking sound upon turning the steering wheel when the car warms up?

Could be a worn or seized steering idler, could be a worn track rod end, could be a chassis crack (very common). Check the area above the steering rack where the two main chassis legs go under the bulkhead.

Re: Cost of changing the cam belt

There are no hard and fast rules on whether to change bearings/tensioners etc. They are certainly not throwaway items. How much it costs to change the belt is also difficult as it should be part of a service. Independent specialist will charge around £800 for this complete service. Main dealer £1200 plus. The main thing to beware of is that there are two different cam belts that were fitted to Ghiblis over the years and use two different types of pulley. Whoever does you service needs to be aware of this - also makes a big difference to the cost of the belt. No way of telling until you get in there!

Andy."

Karel from Belgium writes:

"Hi Enrico,

Thank you very much for the gear ratios. It seems that they are the same as in the 222 4v.

I bought my '94 Ghibli with 102000 kms on the counter early this year after driving seven joyful years in an Alfa Romeo 155 with a seemingly indestructible 2.0 Twin Spark engine. I like the Ghibli very very much (have already 120000 kms now) but there are a few small problems that I have at this moment:

Sometimes at full throttle the power drops very suddenly for a few times. If we atomize some water with a plant spray we se that the spark plug cables are leaking (already ten years old). New ones have been ordered (I hope this will solve the problem).

I have the Dunlop SP9000 Sport 225/45 tyres at rear with 16 inch rims. In combination with the 205/45 16 front tyres this gives a real problem with the sleeping police men in my country. I know that the '95 Ghiblis changed to 17 inch rims and 245/40 and 215/45 tyres, which gives a respectively 3.1% and 5,8% increase in diameter or 9.5 mm and 17 mm height (Did the gear ratio of the differential change too?).

If I change my tyres to 225/50 and 205/50 it would mean an increase of 3.7% and 3.5% or +/- 11 mm height, which could help me pass some more speed bumps. It would also mean a decrease of torque of 3.7% at the wheels (not a real problem with the enormous torque of the 2.8 since I can never floor the pedal in first gear without producing a rubber cloud) and perhaps a less stiff road-holding. Mounting 235/45 (1,5% or 4,5mm) and 215/45 (1,5% or 4,5mm) is no option I guess because the rims are only 8 and 7 inch wide.

What would you suggest in my case?

Have a nice weekend!

Karel."

Reply from Andy:-

Re: Ghibli ground clearance:

"Hi,

Would suggest suspension spacers. These can be made from aluminium and fitted between the front suspension struts and the body. They should be one inch (approx. 25 mm) in thickness and will alleviate any problems with speed humps while still maintaining the handling and without the car looking odd.

If you change for higher profile tyres, the handling will not be so good and you could have problems at the front with clearance between tyres and wheelarches. By the way, its no surprise that you can light up the rear tyres using Dunlop SP9000s !!!!!!

Sounds like you are on the right track with plug leads though..

Andy."

Karel from Belgium writes:

"Hi Enrico,

I have a '94 Ghibli 2.8 with a 5-speed gearbox. Do you have information on the gear ratio's of this gearbox? In '95 Maserati started to use the 6-speed from the 2-litre and the 2.8-litre and that's probably why I can only find the specifications of this 6-speed.

Thanks in advance!

Best Regards,

Karel."

From Enrico:-

Re: Ghibli 5-speed gearbox:

"Hi,

The gear ratios for the Ghibli 5-speed gearbox fitted to the earlier 2.8-litre models are as follows:

1st =3.51 / 2nd = 1.94 / 3rd = 1.35 / 4th = 1.00 / 5th = 0.809 and REV = 3.71

Regards,

Enrico."

HELPFUL INFORMATION from Frank in Luxemburg:-

Re: Ghiblis:

"Hi Enrico, long time now.

Hope you are doing fine. I have some information that you can maybe insert on your page.

I had with my Ghibli GT a long time different engine problems. Example not running properly when cold etc...

The solution with the cold engine and the explosion in the exhaust is the fuel pressure.

I have a friend with a Quattroporte Evoluzione and he had the same problem. So the best to do, go the the nearest Maserati dealer told them to control the fuel pressure and normally they know what to do.

Second solution is to measure the electrical resistance of the induction coil (has to be done when parts are cold).

Maybe it is the best and cheapest to start with the fuel pressure and the ignition coil and if it doesn't work start to replace the different parts such as air pressure sensor, water temperature sensor etc.

I also saw questions regarding sport air filters, I have been in contact with K&N in Germany they told me that they only offer those direct air filters (conical filters) but you have to remove the original air boxes, for me not a good solution.

But there is a second company very reputated in the racing world called BMC.

You have only to measure the original filter and give them the technical data for your car such as horsepower, if it's with turbo etc...

I have those filters fitted on one of my Ghiblis and they are great.

I hope that this information can help.

Hope to hear from you.

Kind Regards,

Frank from Luxemburg."

Ashy in the UK writes:

"Hi Enrico,

After hours of investigation, the lack of boost turned out to be disconnected wires to the wastegate control, causing the wastgates to open prematurely and bleed boost.

Major difference in performance! I realise what gets people so hooked on this car.

Now I have a problem with the way the car idles. At tickover there's a vibration from the engine which is so chronic that bits of trim in the cockpit resonate! I pulled the ignition lead from each cylinder to see if one wasn't firing and it turned out to be cylinder number 5. On all other cylinders, pulling the lead made it run worse but on number 5 it made no difference.

I then made the following checks:

- tested the ignition lead itself. OK!

- inspected the rotor arm and distributor cap. OK!

- removed the spark plug and examined for fouling. OK!

- removed the injectors from the bank and turned over the engine. OK!

- sprayed around the inlet manifold to test for vacuum leaks. OK!

Does anyone have any ideas? I've almost eliminated the possiblity of idle control valve because I pinpointed a misfire caused by cylinder number 5 only. What do you guys think? OK!

Thanks,OK!

Ashy."

From Andy:-

Re: Ghibli No 5:

"Hi,

You need to do a cylinder leakage test to establish the condition of valves/pistons/head gasket.

As usual, it follows that if you have spark and fuel then the only element missing is compression.

Andy."

Ashy in the UK writes:

Hi Enrico,

Congratulations on a very informative website that gave me the confidence to go ahead and buy one of these awesome machines!

when I bought my '92 2.0 Ghibli the 'CHECK ENGINE' light was on and I drove the car from Germany to the UK with only half turbo boost, thinking that this was the result of the engine management cutting boost to protect the engine.

I soon changed the lambda sensor and the 'check engine' light went off but the car still only runs with the boost guage at the end of the white zone only. The car is quick but there is none of that brutal acceleration that my friend's old Ghibli had and that this car is famous for.

I'm dying to get to the bottom of this problem so if anyone has any tips to check for the culprit, I would really appreciate it.

many thanks in advance,

Ashy."

From Andy:-

Re: Ghibli performance:

"Saw this car on Friday! Have suggested he looks at either air leak in boost system or a fault in the ignition system. Because this is an early car, it has a distributor on the engine and therefore has the potential to have ignition problems which the later cars do not seem to have.

Andy."

Nick in the UK writes:

Hi Enrico,

I'm looking at fitting some K&N type air filters to my Ghibli, but K&N do not do a direct replacement, do you know of anyone who manufactures performance filter for this application. I've had a good look on the web and so far drawn a blank.

Also I have two slight problems with the car which I didn't mention to you before.

1. When driving there is a loud click from underneath the dashboard, it click quite regularly approximately once a minute. It sounds like a relay but is probably too loud to be that.This click might coincide with the second problem and with a change in the voltage reading on the dashboard.

2. There is a heavy 'click' from the engine, which seems to put additional load on the engine, in that the revs will drop by approx 200rpm when it occurs. I first assumed it was the clutch on the A/C compressor, but the noise continues even with the A/C off so I am guessing that it is related to the alternator, which I know can cause problems.

Any help/contacts would be a great help, think in advance.

Regards,

Nick."

From Andy:-

Re: Ghibli performance air filters:

I am afraid I don't know of any after-market direct replacement performance air filters.

Re: Ghibli 'HEAVY CLICK!':

It sounds like this is normal! When driving at night, dom you notice whether a slight dimming of the headlights occurs at the same time as the click? If so then all Ghiblis do this, although some more than others. If you are worried about your charging system then have a garage put a voltmeter across the battery and check that it charges correctly at around 13.5 volts.

Hope this helps,

Andy."

Bob in the USA writes:

Re: Changing oil in the diff and transmission:

"I've finally gotten around to this task only to discover that access to the filling plugs is extremely tight. This is an Open Cup car but I think the differential situation is the same as the street version.

I'm not sure about the transmission since this car has straight pipes but maybe it's just as stupidly done as well.

The diff takes a 12mm hex wrench but it is too tight a space for a standard socket style so I think I need a very tight and stubby allen type wrench. Perhaps one that has been cut off as short as possible on the short end. Does anyone have any experience with this out there?

The transmission is even tighter and I'm not sure but it looks like a 17mm. That would match the drain plug size but it's such a constricted space because they mounted the support bracket for the oxygen sensor harness directly opposite!

Bob."

Enrico writes:

"Hi Ghibli owners,

I was sorting through my e-mails and came across this on from Hironobu Satoh in Japan concerning the dreaded CHECK ENGINE warning light.

Enrico."

From Hironobu Satoh:-

Re: Ghibli CHECK ENGINE warning light:

"Dear Mr. Enrico,

How are you?

Almost every Japanese Maserati owner trouble themselves about the "CHECK ENGINE" warning light.

They do not understand the cause and leave a matter as it is.

They say "Don't worry about the "CHECK-ENGINE" light.......Really?

I don't think so.

My experience shows that my "CHECK ENGINE" light lit up on one occasion, because 2 or 3 cylinders were dead at idling.

Reason? Because the "Idle Control Valve" had failed.

How do you think about "CHECK ENGINE"?

Would you please tell me your idea?

Best regards,

Hironobu Satoh."

Gert in Belgium writes:

"Hello Enrico,

Can you help me with the following?

I know of a Ghibli Cup for sale and am really interested in buying this one because it is black/black and looks just fine with 72,000km on the clock.

The only problem is that the carbon-inlay trim on these cars always gets dull ... and of course you know what my question is ... is there some kind of product to fix this?

I have also send my question to the Belgian Maserati importer and am awaiting their reply.

Can you also post this message on your website at 'Can anyone help?'

Gert."

Erkki in Finland writes:

"Dear Enrico,

As a Ghibli Coupe and Biturbo owner I would like to thank you for your interesting site which offers so much information and links.

Do you happen to know where I could get a light swich column for my Ghibli?

Best regards,

Erkki."

Reply from Enrico:-

Re: Ghibli steering column combination switches:

"Hi Erkki,

Thank you for your e-mail. The steering column combination switch is all one unit (lights, washer/wiper controls, horn, direction indicator). The image attached shows the part number you require.

You can order it from your nearest Maserati dealer in Finland or order it from Italy, which may be cheaper! If they do not have it in stock, there may be a delay as the Maserati factory has been closed for summer holidays for the last four weeks. First check out the price from your nearest Maserati dealer in Finland, then try phoning:

Bill McGrath (UK) on 0044 1438 832161

Maranello Sales (UK) on 0044 1784 433043

Meridien Modena (UK) on 2380 283404

or

Giuseppe Candini (I) on 0039 059 828280 [Marcello speaks English]

Carrozzeria Campana (I) 0039 059 828079 [They speak English]

I don't think it's possible to repair this complicated combination switch.

If you wish to try the cheaper option with a used part?

Try the stockists below and you might be lucky:

Bill McGrath (UK) on 0044 1438 832161

Giuseppe Candini (I) on 0039 059 828280 [Marcello speaks English]

David Askew (UK) at davidaskew@onetel.net.uk

Eurospares (UK) on 0044 1787 473678

Hope this helps,

Enrico."

Jan in South Africa writes:

"Hi,

Could you help with the following please? 1. Oil leak on oil breather connections on cam covers, will the covers have to be removed to eliminate the leak?

Looking forward to hearing from you.

Kind Regards,

Jan."

Reply from Enrico:-

Re: Ghibli cam cover oil breather pipe:

Hi Jan,

As can be seen from the images taken from the Ghibli Parts Manual, normally, the rocker/camshaft cover (7) comes complete with the breather pipe (19). I believe it is held in place with a sealant and it could be that through vibration and heat the seal has broken. Are you losing much oil?

Try to remove it by gently twisting it, (DO NOT FORCE IT!), be careful not to break it. If it does come free, clean it using petrol to remove any traces of oil (do not use thinners or any other strong solvents) and replace it using a gasket sealant. Do not use an adhesive as this will be attacked by the oil.

Hope this helps,

Enrico."