1985-1998 [Subscribe to Daily Digest] |
IMHO they are possibly the highest maintenance vehicle on the road. Actually, usually, OFF the road. You will need at least one other car if you buy this, (or any Maserati) you didn't say if you wanted it as a daily driver. Depending where you are in the country, there are a few decent specialists scattered throught the lower 48, most of them were dealers when Maserati were sold here. I know of one in MA, I think a couple in CT. There are a few cars advertised on http://www.excite.com classifieds section, including Biturbos, one in particular comes to mind, a seemingly very nice mid-late 80's Biturbo on the west coast with mileage in the 50K range I believe... There are plenty of support groups on the 'net if you want to find out more, run a search in Yahoo.com for maserati, it will also bring up webpages of various Maserati owners, take a read of the things they have done to keep them running, it's basically a part-time job. I would never want one as a daily driver, so it would always be a limited mileage car anyway. I concluded that I would be better off importing a used car from Europe. If you import a car of 'rarity' and 'significance' which was not available here new, as long as the car is driven less than 2,500 miles per year, it does not have to be Federalized (a $20,000 process). May have to meet emissions, but you are off te hook on most of the rest. One of the sites tells you more about it. There is a guy in The Netherlands called Arthur Kniebbler (spelling?) who buys very good used Maseratis in Italy and resells them around Europe. If you can't find him on the net I have his email somewhere, I can dig it out for you. You would probably need to spend $15-20k to get a car worth going through the process with, but you would be getting a vastly better car. 2.0 liter turbo was much more developed and while not as powerful, a whole lot more reliable. And you would probably spend less in the end. But if you want to spend less than $10k, then you are probably better off searching here. Early US Biturbos (carburetted) are best avoided. If you did find a really good low mileage late 1980's car here, it might be worth it. But no matter how cheap the car is (even if it is FREE), it is probably more than it is worth! These cars just do not sell, and most of them I would not take for free. Even if that ad says 'posted: June 10, 2001, that was probably the 50th post of the same ad. The maintenance is Hellaciously expensive, and many of the people who have owned them cannot afford it, so it does not get done right or often not at all. Do not be remotely shy about offering vastly less than any seller is asking. He/she has probably been trying to get rid of the thing for ages, and hasn't even had a bite. Most people selling cars privately get annoyed when a dealer calls and offers half what the seller wants. Maserati sellers don't usually get calls from dealers. If the car is new to the market, reality may have not yet set in, so reasonable offers might not be accepted. Their loss, not yours. Rust can be a problem, so I'd definitely prefer a car from the South or CA. The electrics are the usual Italian mystery. No matter who the seller is or how nice they appear, assume they are not telling you the truth, unless they document a list of problems. If they tell you nothing has ever gone wrong with the car and it has only needed regular maintenance, be very doubtful. These cars are all 10+ years old (seals, rubber, gaskets etc). Another thing, the engines won't go 200,000 miles without a rebuild, if you're lucky 70,000. Even if you are in Nova Scotia, it is worth the trip to CA or TX or wherever to find a good car. If you think spending $1,000 and a couple of weekends to check out a car that looks promising is expensive, it will be far less expensive than buying a clunker from 50 miles away. Parts availability is not actually as bad as it could be, there is a company in WA state or OR that sells pretty much anything you could need, new or used.
So that's my 2c... of course, when it's running right, it will be unlike nothing else, a roomy Ferrari. Only Maserati could name a car 'Fourdoor' and have it still sound exciting. It has spirit, soul, history, charm, charisma, performance, and puts you in a very exclusive club. It will be frustrating, rewarding and numerous other emotions. More than anything, Good Luck!!!!!!!
, Thu, 14 Jun 2001 22:57:18
, Thu, 14 Jun 2001 19:37:31
No Site Registration is Required to Post - Site Membership is optional (Member Features List), but helps to keep the site online
for all Saabers. If the site helps you, please consider helping the site by becoming a member.
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
