[Formula1]

As posted earlier, I am trading in my 911 Targa for a Gransport. It should be here in a month or 2. I was curious if any Coupe owners could give me some opinions about how the car is reliability wise. I live in NYC and will use it once to twice a weekend. But I drive it everywhere. Do you find these new Maseratis as reliable as porsches? Thoughts please.

 

[scott]

I use my Spyder every single day to go to work and do what ever driving I must do. I put my truck away every year In April and drive whatever car I have till at least the end of November. Even though I have only had my car two weeks now I have had no problems, and after doing extensive research before buying car I have very little doubt that i will not be able to do this till I put it away for the winter. I had a Porsche boxster S and find this car to be no different when it comes to it being an everyday driver. Thats a big reason I picked this car over what i thought was allways my dream car, Ferrari.

 

[GregD]

ride quality

Scott, since you drive daily, you probably have hit all the various road conditions from smooth to chewed up.
How do you like the ride? Is there another car you can compare it to with regards to road noise, feeling bumps etc. Is the suspension set up to where you feel every bump or is it somewhat insulated?

 

[scott]

The best I can give is a comparison to my past few cars. I live just north of Boston where the roads are terrible due to winter conditions, and the big dig drained most of the money out of our state budget to fix roads. so unless its the size of a 500lb bomb crater roads are pretty much not fixed. Had a Honda S2000 and in that car you felt the bumps with a solid jolt, While that was a fun car I got rid of quick cause of the ride. Then went to a Boxster S and found that ride much better. Next car was BMW M3 and that car was very stiff and not that good for road conditions here. Then saw a Maserati and loved the looks and the Idea of finally being able to get a V8 roadster. Was worried at first about how it would do on our roads especially after reading some not so great reviews but in the end I decided I wanted that V8 and would take a chance. Then a couple of weeks before I picked up my car I started to study the roads I normally drive and practice avoiding all bumps. When I picked car up from dealership and started to drive home on roads that I was not familial with (plus add in the fact this was April 1st and we got a record setting 6 inch rain storm that day) I could hardly see out the window let alone pot holes. I was very surprised when I hit my first water covered pot hole, and while I felt it, it was not the sharp jolt I was expecting. I found my fears were unwarranted, Things like manhole covers and cracks in road you hardly even feel and when you hit some bigger bumps it seems to be a cushioned feel, Much better than my M3 and about the same as the Boxster. I think Maserati made some big improvements on the newer models as most reviews were from 2002's and while they talked about bad cowl shake I find next to nothing with my car. Also I only hit the sport button when I really feel like playing with car otherwise I leave it off and the car gives a more comfortable ride this way. It seems people with the Cambio use the sport button much more as it speeds up the shift, But with my GT the sport button only affects my suspension.