I have a friend and fellow exotic car owner who runs an auto service facility where they handle a lot of domestic vehicles. When I told him I bought the STR he said "I have no sympathy for you for any problems you have with that car. You deserve everything that happens to you with that vehicle. They're just a glorified Ford Taurus".

He works on a lot of cars but ... I've owned an 82 Mercury Sable sedan. A lot of repairs on that car but it got totaled way before it wasd worn out. I also have a 2001 Sable wagon with 140K miles that's been beaten to near death on the lovely NJ roads and hit 5 times by some of our finest road pilots in this state! The repairs haven't been very frequent but there have been a few. Neither of these cars are remotely like the STR and I'm not just talking about the power or handling.

So he's way off base. Except ... I've been to dealer with warranty stuff (not insignificant) more often with the STR than I've been to the dealer with the Sable wagon. I had a couple minor recalls for that one.I've only owned the STR for 6 months. But it's also true that I will be holding the STR to a higher standard. Busted headlamps are pretty basic though.

 

Wow, if that's how your 'friends' talk to you imagine what your enemies say.

I'd venture to say the guy was more than a little ignorant with his technical knowledge also. Jealousy makes people do strange things.

 

I doubt the guy was jealous at all. Just uninformed. Many independent repair shops in my neck of the woods view any Jaguar built in the past ten years as a glorified Ford. And many folks still believe that if they were to buy a Jaguar, they would have to hire a tow truck to follow them around....

 

Ummmm, the only thing even remotely related to the Taurus is the 3.0..

An this from a guy that should know cars....

 

He's a real sharp guy but I think he must have gotten an early one in his shop once that had a lot of issues and never got all that far into the car. Then the usual prejudices took over. He owns a Ferrari 360 Challenge car so it's not like he's never seen the unusual stuff.

 

You know,

Between the British Leyland days of Jaguar, and their terrible reputation for reliability, and the new perception that they are just glorified Fords, these cars have an gotten an undeservedly bad reputation.

The bright / good side of that is that for people in the know, these cars are spectacular bargains used. Resale values are pennies on the dollar and you can pick up a good car for cheap. The converse side of that is I pitty the people that buy these cars brand new off the showroom floor, and the atrocious depreciation they are forced to eat.

George

 

It's a very similar story with Maserati today especially when you compare the resale value with it's (now) cousin Ferrari.

 

That's funny that you mention that.. I'm actually actively looking for an 03-04 spyder cambiocorsa at the moment. Ferrari drivetrain (Dry sump 4.2 v8, and f1 paddle shift trans), for American money. You can seriously get a sub 30k mile car for under 30 grand. Granted at that point plan to have the 4k for the clutch / f1 trans pump replacement on standby, but it's still the deal of a lifetime.

George

 

Please, PLEASE don't take your car to a guy that knows so little!!! He is a dumb-*** do NOT let him anywhere near your car. His lack of knowledge is very apparent!!

I am sure his repairs reflect his intimate knowledge of the Ford Taurus! I say this as a guy who drove a 1993 SHO before I got the STR!! So I have an extreme amount of experience with both cars. They share nothing and one is nothing like the other. Plus I like both cars!!! But for different reasons obviously!!
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It's a glorified Lincoln LS or Thunderbird. End of story.

 

Whom are you addressing?

 

And to add something constructive:

Annoys:

Heated seat off feature.
Stop turning the A/C on when I didn't press A/C.
Stop turning the rear screen on.
Stop turning off recirculation.
Stop YELLING "low fuel" or "low washer fluid" at me. Tell me once every 5 minutes.
Consistently turn the fuel off going downhill in 4th with the brakes on.
Please remember if I wanted the DSC off when I turn the car off.
Please let me aim the washer nozzles so that I can see the lower left road clearly.
Please let me FULLY turn off traction control while in motion. Try it in the snow before you mock me.
Don't break my hand when trying to get my sunglasses out of the RECOIL cassette holder.
Let me pop the trunk with the keys in ignition the from the fob. Your dodgy electrics make it he only way the electrically open the boot after 10 years.
Why are there no battery jumper points under the hood?
Dipstick? Duh.
Who the HELL designed the A/C moisture drains?
This car cost how much new and there is NO lsd? $0.50 worth of code was a crappy shortcut.
STOP using plastic for cooling parts.

I could go on...

 

Oh dear ...

 

That bad eh?
What the hell, you only live once lol...

 

Trying to nitpick....

I find the instrument cluster kind of low rent. The X type had a nicer set of gauges than my STR. Would it have killed them to throw a little bit of style in there?

Boost gauge would have been kewl too....

 

George,

If you add the Maserati to your current stable, plan on just living in your garage. You won't the time or money for anything else. I did notice that the Maseratis are getting relatively cheap these days as well. The early models did have problems with the transmissions. I'm not sure how close the $4K estimate is though.

Mike

 

No, it's not about Maserati automobiles. I own 3 of them myself. It's about your disease. I've been following some of your threads and guy, you've got a serious case there. I should know 8 - cars

I've driven a few of my friends 4200 coupes and convertibles but never one of the manual 6 speed models. I thought about one of these when I was looking for the STR. It would have been 5 to 10 grand more depending. The interior is a bit fancier. The interior room is really very good in one of these. These are probably the best real world almost every day car Maserati has ever produced. But parts and maintenance are on a completely different level than Jaguar. I could go into why that is but I'll skip that here. You will wait for parts a lot longer than for a Jag. You will pay a lot more.

Count the number of Jag dealers versus Maserati dealers. Service is going to be much more difficult.

The Ferrari designed motor is nice and finally the service levels for Ferrari and Maserati have been made much more reasonable. No more valve shims or belts to replace. Hallelujah!

If you have any reservations about the sophistication level of the eletrics on the jags don't expect too much from the Maserati. it ain't no Audi, BMW, Mercedes or Lexus in that respect.

Stay away from the early spiders. I suggest going to Maseratilife.com as they specialize in these cars over there.

The cambiocorsa can be driven reasonably well and for fun but the automatic program is to be avoided as it wears out the clutches and sucks anyway. Reverse is another very weird encounter especially if you use it a lot in urban settings.

But finally here's the main reason why I didn't get one. The STR is a much better and faster car for less money. I also needed an automatic. I'm pretty sure the service will be a lot less as well. The 4200 Maserati just doesn't excite me when I drive it. Other people really like them though and I haven't driven one of the Grand Sport versions. Those are supposed to be a lot nicer if you're looking for a sportier vehicle. It's still going to be slower than the STR. But the Maserati isn't a slouch either.

I think if you stay with 2005 and newer you will be better off but I don't think the earlier ones are terrible cars either.

Bob S.

 

Thanks to the several who educated me on the channel toggle BEHIND the volume toggle, driven for two months without knowing that! About the Bentley SS, there's one on Autotrader right now and you can get it for just $1,300,000....that's dollars not pesos! Just a tad more than the $13,500 I paid for my '05. Happy holidays to all.

 

Yes, a boost gauge would be nice....still trying to find a nice way to install a boost, and a/f wide band gauge on the car

 

The 4k estimate is straight from Classic Coach in Elizabeth NJ. Who is probably the best independent Ferarri / Maserati shop in the state.

Staatsof - Disease? I prefer to call it a hobby. Although it may be a symptom of NWS - No wife syndrome, as I don't have a wife to spend my money on my behalf....

I hear you on the electrics - My Jags have been OK. I'm an EE so I generally am pretty good with them.

I don't care about absolute speed. I have a drag car I share with my brother for that. 9 second passes in a 1987 IrocZ hit the spot as far as need for speed. As does my Superhawk 996.

Honestly after having my 3.0 S-Type I couldn't imagine that much power in an S-Type (as far as the STR). It's almost unbecoming of the character of the car... My S-Type is my drive to work and cruise car, not my street warrior.

What has led me to the Maserati is partly price, partly looks, partly performance, and honestly the fact that you don't run into them on every other block...

I want a nice open grand tourer, that I can take to work when it's nice out (I have private indoor garage parking at work), have some fun with on the commute, and something to take out on the weekend and just enjoy.

Now as far as service, I know I'll be behind the 8 ball as far as ever having to visit a dealer and or parts. My brother owns an independent shop, and although I can bet there's never been a Ferarri or Maserati in the bay, how hard can maintenance be? Fluids are fluids, brakes are brakes. It's not like the Italians reinvented the wheel lol... Especially with the more modern motors that don't need constant valve adjustments and have clutches that give you a leg workout and are almost impossible to drive in traffic. I've heard that the automatic mode on the cambiocorsas is brutal, basically the car drives as if someone is learning how to drive a stick. - Similar to the BMW SMG transmissions. The automatic downshifts at 1300 rpm are nice though, as is the ability to be in traffic without working the clutch constantly. I look at it as the best of both worlds...

I've browsed on maseratilife a bit. - Can you explain the reverse situation? I know people have had to fight with the gear selector to get the reverse lights to engage, but nothing relative to the actual use of reverse gear.

Take care,

George