Felix in the Netherlands writes:

"Hi Enrico,

Thanks for the information.

Could you please let me know where the Idle Control Valve is located?

Regards,

Felix."

Reply from Andy:-

Re: Ghibli Idle Control Valve:

"The idle Control valve is stuated on the lower side of the plenum chamber (see diagram below).

Andy."

An input from Yiorgos in Denmark:

"Hi Enrico,

While reading about Oliver's problem with his car's switch panel, I thought that it may be worth mentioning that I have also changed mine (a couple of years ago) for a completely new one.

The reason was that, while stopping at a tank station for the usual refuelling, my fellow companion pressed the button to activate the switch to open the trunk and then the button to activate opening of the fuel cap before I had switched off the engine. The result was that both actuators went bad.

Why? I found out that the engine has to be switched off before any such action in these two buttons take place. This info does not appear anywhere in the owner's manual as far as I remember, so I ended up with actuator problems which could only be solved by replacing the panel with a new one.

So it is worth bearing in mind that the buttons on this panel work in different ways while engine is running or not - not to mention that the springs behind each button have various clicking and distance deepening push actions.

Regards,

Yiorgos."

Oliver in Germany writes:

"Hi Enrico,

Thought you might be interested in what is happening with my Ghibli right now:

ALTERNATOR: According to my mechanic the voltage regulator was faulty, allowing too high a voltage to enter the wiring system. This caused the battery to boil, which in turn resulted in the evaporation of nearly all the acid in the battery (and thus the destruction of the battery). Well, I could have noticed this if I had checked the fluid level of my battery, but then, who checks that more than once a year nowadays? The other, more costly result of this fault (the regulator) was the blowing of some coils in the alternator, which will now set me back about Euro *** for a new alternator including fitting. Nevertheless it is strange - I had never noticed a voltage of more than 14V or seen the headlamps flicker in the night.

SPEEDOMETER: Soldering the connections to the speedo fixed the problem (at least for the two very short test drives).

BATTERY: Now that my present battery is more or less destroyed (they re-charged it and it holds the voltage but you can see some debri on the floor of the battery so it is only a question of whether it will start to fail in a few days or weeks) I decided to buy a new one of the original size (the present is already the second of the car - but the dealer in Stuttgart did put in one of a 3200 GT instead of a Ghibli and the size differs a lot). So with the right battery I should also be able to put the car jack back in place to where it belongs (thank you again for the pictures).

REAR FOG LIGHT SWITCH: I pressed the rear fog light switch two weeks ago and it gave me a shock - sparks could be seen inside the switch and when pressing it again to make the switch come out it took its time to come out again.

Still, if you look very closely you can see that the height of this switch is not at the same level with the other switches (barely noticable). Something with the spring is wrong and I guess it is not only the spring.

Now I usually never use fog lights, but the idea of having a possible source for a fire in my car does not really appeal to me. I wonder how to access the switches to give them a thorough inspection. Through the radio bay? How would you do it?

Well, that is it for today, I wish you a happy day.

Best regards,

Oliver."

Reply from Enrico:-

Re: Ghibli II switch panel removal:

"Hi Oliver,

Thanks for the progress report.

The panel containing the push switches in the centre console can be removed without taking out the radio. This bank of switches is held in by two clips, one on either side of the panel (see images).

FIRST DISCONNECT THE BATTERY!!!!

Gently prise the panel out by sliding a thin screwdriver (preferably with the end covered with a tape of some kind to protect the trim) between the trim and the panel. Try levering alternately on one side and then the other. It should come out quite easily so do not force it. The panel is not that sturdy so be careful. The good news is, that if you break it, it's not expensive to replace.

When I replaced my panel, I bought a spare just in case!

Good luck and don't forget to disconnect the battery first!

Let me know how you get on.

Regards,

Enrico."

An input from Patrice in France:-

Re: Ghibli II problems:

"Hi Enrico,

I regularly check the problems experienced by Ghibli owners on your site and try to find out whether I can help....

Regarding the problems of Oliver, I went downtown to the garage to make some pictures of the jack in my boot, but you made it faster than me!

Regarding the problem Alan has with this famous "Check Engine" light, I think he has a problem with the Lambda measurement (probe), otherwise the engine would not start.

If the problem is experienced each time he starts the engine, referring to the technical documentation, I can say that it is likely a problem with the water temperature sensor, the absolute pressure sensor, or air temperature sensor.

Pressure and water temperature sensors are known to lead to difficulties to start the engine, particularly for the water sensor when the engine is hot.

I think these sensors should be checked or cleaned (the pressure sensor might only need cleaning sometimes).

The electrical values to measure when testing the sensors is in the technical documentation of the engine.

This is not different from what Andy says, but before searching for the Maserati test tool, I think Alan can test these sensors.

Hope this helps.

Best regards,

Patrice."

Enrico in the UK writes:

"Dear Enrico,

Today I went to the Festival of Speed at Goodwood. Evevrything was fine except when I stopped at the entrance to the car park and opened my window, I could smell burning. I parked the car and thought perhaps the clutch had been slipping.

Matterss got worse for Panini's 'Eldorado' and Tipo 63 were under wraps and I couldn't get any photographs. Undettered I went to check out the V12 Tipo 250F and got some nice photos of the engine.

Feeling the heat I decided to leave early. The car started fine but I noticed the warning light in the voltmeter was permanently lit. I switched off the air-con and radio to conserve power and only just made it home. Would you believe that the engine stopped as I was on my drive not 20 metres from my garage.

Any thoughts?

Enrico."

Reply from Andy:-

Re: Ghibli alternator:

"I take it this is about the best Ghibli in the world......

1. Burning smell could be either - alternator bearing knackered and/or alternator belt slipping.

2. Voltmeter light on means no charge and therefore alternator - or just belt faulty.

3. You should be able to see easily whether the belt has been slipping as it will look charred and a bit ragged.

4. Once belt has been removed, try spinning the alternator by hand, should be smooth and turn easily.

5. If it is, put a new belt on, charge battery and try it. When running, assuming no nasty smells or noises, put voltmeter across battery terminals to check charge rate. If 13 to 14 then OK! If not, alternator still needs replacing/overhaul.

6. If alternator notchy to touch, then needs overhaul anyway.

We get our alternators overhauled by a local electrical specialist. Takes a couple of days but a lot cheaper than a new one.

Let me know.

Andy."

Yiorgos in Denmark writes:

"Hi Henry,

"Lately each time I start my engine and then turn (while at standstill) my steering wheel, left-right, I hear a strange sound like a loud whistling; I am not sure were it is coming from.

What I can say is that at times the turning of the steering wheel feels strange as if something obstructs it. I also notice that when I start to drive, a few minutes of driving and the sound disappears; and the same goes for the steering wheel obstruction of movement too.

Do you have any good ideas on this one?

Best regards,

Yiorgos."

Reply from Andy:-

Re: Ghibli power steering:

"I presume that this is a Ghibli. It sounds like you have a problem with the power steering pump. What you are experiencing is a lack of assistance until the steering oil has warmed up. It may be that the whistling you can hear is the drive belt slipping on the pump. I would look at this first as it may be a simple case of tightening the belt. Otherwise, try a new pump.

Andy".

Reply from Tom:-

Re: Ghibli power steering whistle!

"Have you checked the tension of the belt that powers the power steering pump? This may be loose, causing the belt to slip and this can sometimes cause a whistling/screeching sound and the strange effect you feel when turning the steering wheel.

Check tension of the belt. You can do this by twisting the belt in the centre point between the two pulleys. You should only be able to twist the belt around 90 degrees max.

Tom".

Alan in ? writes:

"Hi,

I have a 96 2-litre Ghibli left-hand drive.

The problem is as follows: It takes 3 to 4 attempts to start the car if it has not been started for over 5 minutes. When it starts the 'Check Engine' light comes on but if I switch off and start it will start straight away with NO 'Check Engine' light.

WHY?

Alan."

Reply from Andy:-

Re: Ghibli 'CHECK ENGINE' warning light:

"Hi Alan,

If the check engine light is coming on then it should be possible to easily diagnose this fault using the Maserati diagnostic kit at a dealer. The light comes on if there is any difference to normal fuel mixture noted by the lambda sensors. This may be due to a faulty air or water temp sensor but you will need to do the diagnosis with the correct equipment because there are two of everything on that engine and you could spend a long time on this swapping parts around. However, most starting problems stem from poor contacts on the five bulkhead mounted relays which govern the fuel injection (although these do not normally put the check light on).

Hope this makes sense!

Andy".

Oliver in Germany writes:

"Enrico,

I live in Germany and just dropped over your i-net pages and would like to congratulate you on them. You put so much caring effort in them. Now I own a '94 Ghibli 2.0 which was imported new by a local German dealer from the original dealer in Italy and registered by its first owner in April '95. It is a pre-ABS version which sports the second wheel (duct cover) style alloys. Having aquired the car about 1.5 years ago with 30.000 km on the clock (but five owners...) from the original German importer I have now put 7.000 troublefree km on it (leave aside the malfunctioning of the locking mechanism of the fuel filler lid which could be cured with a spray of silicon oil). Unfortunately now I also start having my electrical fun with the car. It is not only that after a drive in the rain some lights go on in the dashboard and go off after a week of drying in the garage. I presently face two problems:

1. Lately my speedometer does not work until I have maybe driven 3 to 6 km (equivalent to 5 minutes of town traffic). Once on, it usually works fine. Seems to me that it has something to do with the temperature of the mechanics/electrics/electronics, but then if I park my car for just a very short visit of the boy's restroom of no more than five minutes and restart it afterwards sometimes it will work perfectly, sometimes it is dead again for a few miles. Do you have any idea on where to look and what to do? My local dealer is very quick on changing parts and working on the bill....

2. Last weekend disaster struck! Driving home from a 600 km trip to the south of Germany with temperatures climaxing 44° C I suddenly noticed that my Voltmeter from the dashboard showed only 12 V instead of close to 14 V. Now as this happened in the middle of the trip I guess it will not be the battery (although I will check this) but the alternator (generator). I do have a strange battery inside which seems to be a bit larger than originally intended as the car-jack does not fit into the originally intended position and the battery is held in place by a homemade metal clamp and a big chunk of wood (which prevents the battery from sliding too far backwards to the backlights)! My questions: Who is the producer of the alternator (generator)? I have not demounted it yet. Is it possible to aquire the regulator of the generator separately? What is type of the original battery (size, measurements, capacity)? The internet offers models ranging from 55 Ah up to 70 Ah capacity.

3. Finally I would appreciate very much if someone could mail me a picture showing how the original installation of the car-jack was inside the right rear fender compartment. In my car there is nothing which would keep the car-jack in place, but there is a small picture in the owners's handbook which shows that there must be something.

Thank you very much and enjoy,

Oliver."

Reply from Andy:-

Re: Ghibli II:

"Hi Oliver,

You should measure the charge output of the alternator by placing a voltmeter across the battery and running the engine. Do not rely on the gauge in the car to be accurate. If you do not have 14v across the battery, then you probably do have an alternator fault. Your alternator should have been made by Delco-Remy and you should be able to find a car electric specialist who will fit a new voltage regulator for you - Maserati will only sell a complete new alternator. The original battery size was 55Ah and should as you say fit inside the cubby hole in the boot with the jack placed vertically to the right of it. There should be a spring loaded catch on the top of this area which you slot the jack into. Sorry, don't have a diagram.

Regarding the speedo, you should try cleaning the connections to the sender (on the axle) and also to the instrument itself as these could well be the cause of your problem. If no luck, then ask your dealer to renew the sender and try this.

Andy".

Reply from Enrico:-

Re: Ghibli Jack:

"Hi Oliver,

Here are some photos of the car jack in place in my Ghibli.