Maserati Forum banner

Buying a low mile duo select 05-08 or ZF 09-139

7K views 26 replies 12 participants last post by  friendgr 
#1 ·
I am interested in getting a quattroporte as a driver, though it won;t be driven that much. I live in the country. I think I understand the duo select versus ZF issues. I strongly prefer the pre-face lift front end and generally think the first of any car model is the best. I would be buying a car with 20,000 miles or less of either vintage series.

I have not owned any automatic in 30 years and have several stick cars. My wife drives a pickup that is automatic and I have no issues driving it.

I kind of like the idea of the duo select as an automated manual, but have heard they are awkward in automatic mode. I'd like my wife to be comfortable driving it, as well. She can drive stick, but prefers automatic and is somewhat clumsy with sticks.

I also wonder about the cost and frequency of clutch replacement on the duo select.

Any comments would be appreciated.

Gordon
 
#3 · (Edited)
I have an 05 that I use as a a daily driver & I love the car. Like you I do not need to drive it a lot especially in the winter (have snow tires on it). Car has 70,000 KM on it now & it had clutch replaced at 35,000 KM just before I bought it.
Trans can be a little jerky at times if you get caught in the wrong gear for a situation, but you can overcome most of it once you get used to it. I drive 3 other cars on & off so I am always getting accustomed to to the vehicle I am driving at the time.
I usually drive in Manual Sport mode but have left it in Drive position at times & it works very well. Your wife will have no problem with it.

I also think this is the car to have. Having said that, the way I usually drive the car (like an old man with a Buick) I think an automatic would have been the way to go. I also have a Ferrari so I drive that hard & drive the QP more leisurely--BUT there are times when that power is put to good use.

The only thing I would recommend is that you drive both & see what suits you the best.

I have been surprised as to how much attention the car gets & get more smiles from the women with the QP than when I am driving the Ferrari.

The cost of clutch job was $5000.00 Canadian when dollar was at par. Also wanted to add I have had car for 5 years now.
 
#4 ·
Thanks, Mario. This is very informative and helpful. I have several other sports cars, including a Modena stick. Of the 3-4 cars I am down to... 2 of them are 2007's that have the later ZF true automatic. While they might lose something in performance (?), there wouldn't be the clutch issues that the duo select would have and I have heard they are smoother (still not having driven either). Btw, my sister lives in north Toronto, which I think is not so far from you. I love the area.

Thanks, again for the input. Sold me on going with an earlier car.

Gordon
 
#5 ·
If you have other sports cars I would suggest you go with the ZF only to take the transmission part of this out of the way. If you don't have that as a bill I think you'd enjoy the car more. Make sure you look at the service history and make sure the cam variators has been taken care of. The first wet sump motors had issues with the check valves. You might want to search on here for threads geared toward this so you can ask the right questions.
 
#6 ·
I've had my 07' sport GT for 4 yrs. I put 12k miles on it and besides the rear tie rod recall, I've only had to replace the 2 water temp sensors.
It now has 48k miles.

You're welcome to take mine for a drive while the roads are still snow free. I'm in NE Pa.
 
#7 ·
Thanks for the replies and comments. I'm still at odds over the transmission, but saw a car the other day with the ZF that looked great in the pictures and had under 20,000 miles. It was terrible in person. Pitting in the paint and the leather was really worn in some areas. I'm down to 2 duo-selects and one ZF. There's an executive GT that has the full works and 20,000 miles with the duo-select box in black with cuio sella interior that really seems nice near me that I'm seeing this weekend.

How often do the clutches need replacing on the duo-selects?

Jack, is yours a ZF or duo-select?

G
 
#8 ·
G
Mine is a ZF automatic.
I think the Duo select clutches last till about 30k miles if used correctly.
If you let them shift automatically and do a lot of reversing up hills, the
clutches don't last as long.
I guess that shifting them yourself prolongs their life.
 
#9 ·
Next month I will have owned by 2008 QP GTS with the ZF Automatica transmission for one year.

I love it. If I were you I wouldn't bother with the duo-select cars and look for a nice ZF car. With the automatic you still get the paddle shift, which is the best of both worlds. Sure it may not give you the same feeling of being "dialed in" with the car that you may get with a duo-select, the paddle shift is great and the automatic is reliable and works well. Not having to plan for an inevitable clutch replacement is one less thing to worry about with these cars (as well as the enormous cost of the repair).

Whether duo-select or ZF, the car drives great, and is designed to be a driver's car. Whatever transmission you get, you will love this car. It is the total package and a great driving experience. It is a car that the true automotive enthusiasts enjoy and appreciate.

I suggest you look for late 2007 or 2008 GTS or a 2009+ Sport GTS - depending on what your purchase budget is. The sporty subtle exterior touches that the GTS trim levels added really set it off from the lesser Executive and Sport GT models, in my opinion. with the 2009 Sport GTS you get the Valved exhaust and the 4.7 engine.

When I am ready to upgrade I'm going to go next to a 2009-2013 4.7 Sport GTS with the valved exhaust.

Just my opinion.
 

Attachments

#11 ·
Well, I'm down to two 2007 cars. Both are 1 owner cars and seem cosmetically perfect. One is a ZF Sport GT and the other is a duo select Executive GT. I am leaning toward the Sport GT with the ZF box. My head prefers the duo select, because it has better weight distribution and the automated manual appeals intellectually. The cost of clutch replacements doesn't. Plus, its not my sports car, but a nice, fast, luxurious sedan. I am likely to go with the Sport GT. I am amazed at how reasonably priced these are for what you get compared to the any newer big BMW or Mercedes. I have always owned BMW's (still have an E30 M3) and this will replace my 1991 BMW 850. Big change. I look forward to it.

Thanks for all the help.

G
 
#13 ·
x2 - ZF is an excellent option and silky smooth on the shifts and a blast in manual mode with the paddle shifters without worry about expensive clutch work down the road. Check on the Cam Variators and see if that work has been done. If not, plan $5-6K to get that done eventually as its likely going to be needed though maybe not for another 20-30K. You'll feel better if you bake that into the TCO analysis you are doing on your different purchase options even if you don't end up needing it later as others have suggested its not an 'always' problem on these cars.

AndrewT
 
#14 ·
Update. I am still going for the 2007 ZF Sport GT. I got a letter from Maserati of Bergen NJ saying that the car had had all recalls checked/done, of which I believe there were three? The brakes has an issue for some, the front bushings not being torqued correctly on some, and the rear tie rod corroding on some. The car is a one owner car and garage kept the entire time. There isn't a scratch on it and the seats and interior are perfect. Even the sill plates are unmarked.

I saw something on here about the Cam Variators and will read up today and be sure to check them.

Lastly, the brochure I have on the 2007's show that the Sport GT's have a black chrome mesh grille and 20 inch wheels. This one has the standard horizontal grille and 19 inch wheels. I did decode the VIN and it is a Sport GT.

G
 
#17 ·
No, Jack. No Sport GT on the B pillar. That's why I decoded the VIN. It sort of means that the only thing it has is a faster shifting gearbox, I think?

Gordon
 
#18 · (Edited)
DeTox... Hehehe. It shows we just have very different views as to what is better weight distribution. I much prefer the 47-53 bias, especially a front mid-engine car, than 49-51. The former improves braking and acceleration more than the latter. More importantly, having the weight between the axles more evenly balanced improves the effect of the polar moment of inertia reduction of having the bulk of the weight between the axles. Having the transmission and differential together where the transmission is attached to the differential is better than having the transmission attached to the back of the engine and just the differential in back. Think of the two setups as two different barbells. One barbell has a 20 pound weight on one end and a 10 and a 5 pound weight on the other. The second barbell has a 20 pound weight and a 5 pound weight on one end and a 10 pound weight on the other. The former is the duo select and the latter the ZF. If you think about each barbell's tendency to spin, the former with have less tendency to spin and the latter a higher tendency to spin. Its not so much the simple front to rear weight bias.

Gordon
 
#19 ·
And to think I almost added the asterisk to my statement and wouldn't have had to eat the foot in my mouth lol I will say I've never driven the duo but the zf is by far the best handling vehicle I've ever driven. Turns I'd be apprehensive about taking at 50 in any other vehicle I've taken at 80 and never blinked an eye. While I also agree there's more to it than equally balanced I'll also add that to me in th real world the zf is still better than any other vehicle I've ever driven.
 
#26 ·
I will say I've never driven the duo but the zf is by far the best handling vehicle I've ever driven. Turns I'd be apprehensive about taking at 50 in any other vehicle I've taken at 80 and never blinked an eye. While I also agree there's more to it than equally balanced I'll also add that to me in th real world the zf is still better than any other vehicle I've ever driven.
I agree. It is the best car I've ever driven and its great to live with.
 
#20 ·
I apologize for the lengthy piece on something simple. I have driven the ZF anyway and its great. I'm not going to use this for a sports car and really shouldn't care, especially since it replaces my rather nose heavy BMW 850! I am very very excited to be getting one of these,

G
 
#21 ·
Hey Gordon!

I bought a 05 duo last year for a daily driver. The car has a few issues but I bought it that way and have been working through them while still putting miles on it. The car is at my fathers house for the winter who you met a few years back. I'm sure he'd be happy to meet up with you and show you the car and tell you all he knows about them (more than me). PM me if you want his number. Either way good luck with your search, you won't be disappointed!

Steve
 
#22 ·
Hi, Steve. Nice to hear from you here! I am not surprised that you or your dad bought one of these. Our tastes are very similar, as you know. I'll PM you.

Really nice running into you here. Puts a big smile on my face.

G
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top