[RickBullotta]

...after a very anxious moment the other night. I took my son out for pizza after his soccer game (no, pizza not allowed in the car, of course :wink, and went to park. As I pulled in to a relatively normal sized curb, I heard the painful sound of the front cowling being ground and torn. :shock: I slowwwwwlllly backed away (not easy in a CC, I tell you) and prepared myself for the worst. Visions of UPS packages from Italy danced through my head along with large checks. :roll: As I crouched to look, the sky opened up and sun rained down upon me as I found only a minor scratch in an invisible location. But, lesson learned that I need to be careful. If the Maser had have been lowered, even half an inch, the outcome would have tearful... :idea:

Just thought I'd pass it on to those of you who won't be trailering your Maser to the track and need to actually park it.

 

[Swiss-Maserati]

One reason to lower the car : during the test of my next new GT (not lowered), I (re)discover the car understeer a lot, the front wheels skid a lot. Some others people said after a track day the front tyres was destroyed. My previous car was lowered, the car oversteer a bit at high speed and the front tyres wear less than the rears.
That's why I asked to lower my new car...

 

[STARDOC]

I can't take my car through mall parking lots anymore as most of them here in Scottsdale have 'speed humps'. Car's been lowered by 2". Unless I take them at an angle with one side off hump the underside will scratch the ground. Its a God awfull sound. I've now noticed that the aluminum-like casing behind the rear bumper between the mufflers is badly scratched and torn.
Oh well, its the price you pay for better handling and a prettier Italian chikita.

 

[MVP]

It takes practice but after a little while you can get it. I have a lowered Spyder and I scrape every once in a while. I know damaging your car even minorly with a ding is a terrible feeling but when I daily drive my car I expect it to happen. I just decided I'll live with a dent or two and when it comes time to sell, just fix everything. No point in crying about it.

 

[marcw]

"One reason to lower the car : during the test of my next new GT (not lowered), I (re)discover the car understeer a lot, the front wheels skid a lot. Some others people said after a track day the front tyres was destroyed. My previous car was lowered, the car oversteer a bit at high speed and the front tyres wear less than the rears."

Most sports cars are designed to understeer. This way when you go into a turn too hot, the normal reaction of lifting off the gas is less likely to cause a spin. On the track, too much understeer makes you slower so you want a more neutral balance. I wouldn't be comfortable on the street with a car that oversteers. The track is a different story.

My stock coupe CC has pretty crappy handling compared to other sports cars I've had. Instead of trying to "fix" this, I'll be content that the car looks cool, has real back seats and plenty of power. Too bad the Grandsport came out after I bought mine. I hear they improved the handling quite a bit.

Marc