Any experience with Maserati quattroporte
 

Does anyone have experience with this car? I'm interested in picking up a 07 or newer with the zf trans but looking for more pros/cons besides Maserati forums. This is probably my first choice but haven't found one close enough to drive yet. Second choice would be s600 mainly because that silky smooth v12 and the idea of being able to tune it into a monster

had a 2010 granturismo. I like to think of them as an Italian Mercedes....but more expensive, with an incredible sounding exhaust:) I got rid of mine when my a/c compressor went out at 25k miles ( outside of warranty ) and it was a $3k fix. georgous looking cars, but not budget friendly. Maint is expensive ( $1k + oil change/annual service) .Cars dont' seem to hold their values at all ( prolly b/c of how expesive they can be to maintain). when something goes wrong....parts can be stupidly expensive. have a good indy mechanic. Id rather own an e63 amg Mercedes.

Don't know much about foreign econoboxes, but I would be leery of a ZF transmission if you intend to put much power through it. Their truck transmissions are quite fragile. The main issue is the weak aluminum cases they use, flex under any significant torque and eventually crack or break. Aside from that the internals are a decent design even if the shifter feel is terribly detached. Just should have used a stronger cast iron case.

Id never take mechanical advice from anyone who thinks any Maserati is a econobox

Man I was this close (proverbial thumb and pointer finger 1/4 Inch apart) from picking up a Quattroport just last week. The exhaust sounds awesome!
But then I was tempted with a Brand new 0 mile Ghilbli, for the same price as a 5 or 6 year old Quattroport.
Then I got bummed out that what was once an Exotic car maker started making a car that was basically a Chrysler with a Maseratti trident badge.
Soooo. I kept looking and someone suggested I check out Bentley.. and man am I glad I did.
Picked it up last week and am so much happier then had I of gone with the Quattroport. I dont want to pee in your cheerios here or be a Debbie downer, But I would suggest looking at a Bentley or even a Porsche Panamara. You might drive both and then go back to the Quattroport but you will at least have fun on the test drives. :)

:confused: Corvette and Bentley Cont GT both had ZF transmissions. I guess 550hp in the Cont GT doesn't qualify as putting much power through it?

I know that have problem with the automatic clutches about every 20,000 mi. There was a recall on the the rear subframes also.

That's pretty decent HP actually, but probably from a wee little engine spinning to the moon. That generally means powercomes on fairly smoothly. Very different than dealing with real engines that have a mountain of torque right off idle or whenever they get into the powerband. I could be wrong though and maybe this is a 400+ cubic inch engine pushing 500+ ft/lbs without a bunch of BS insulating the driver from the engine and car.

As stated, my experience is primarily with ZF truck transmissions. They have weak aluminum cases which flex under load. Breakage is common behind big blocks and diesels. The transmissions are only rated for 420-470 ft/lbs. Push 550+ ft/lbs through it in a 6000 lbs truck, problems arise. Other people putting less torque through them and still breaking with stock engines. They are weak transmissions and must be babied to last. Probably less of a problem using weak aluminum cases in a light car, but at high power levels I'd still be concerned. Just saw mention of a ZF trans and thought I'd mention what I know about them from breaking many and rebuilding a few.

http://www.fordf150.net/photos/data/3869/broken2.jpg

http://i206.photobucket.com/albums/b...Diesel/006.jpg

http://www.powerstroke.org/forum/att...ny-crack-2.jpg

http://www.thedieselstop.com/forums/...on-housing.jpg

The Bentley is just a little 6.0 liter twin turbocharged W12, like ~530 lb ft of torque. :) http://www.bentleymotors.com/en/mode...ification.html
It looks like lots of cars use the ZF transmission.

The Bentley Continental GT Speed has 626hp

Just sayin

http://www.bentleymotors.com/en/mode...ification.html

The Maserati isn't a torque monster and rated for 400hp and nobody has said anything bad about the zf on the Maserati site.. After driving one I was interested in, it is a must have. There might be other cars that have more power, faster, etc but there's something about it I can't get out of my head. Hopefully I can find a mechanic closer to me than San Jose but I intend on doing a lot of the maintenance myself anyway. It's just a matter of finding the right deal in the colors I want at this point.

welp i pulled the trigger after waiting for the right deal and color/condition/mileage i wanted to come along.. Literally searched across the country multiple times a week until i found what i wanted. Needless to say my wife is glad i'm not staring at the computer, but she has to call me in from staring in the garage. Relationships are give and take right? :D. (beer is also located in the garage as is my dog and a comfortable chair)

beautiful car. congrats

Beauty! Congrats!

Nice! Does it go 185?

Thanks guys, II actually just got asked about the 185 by a stranger yesterday and had to look up the song. I knew it, but didn't recognize the Maserati reference which apparently was a popular line. I was born in 81 so it's a little before my time. The car he would've been referencing wouldn't do 185. These can do about 170, although my cutoff switch will happen well before it reaches that.

Awesome lab...car is pretty cool.

Sweet, congrats! I love Maserati's, my favorite brand. I had a Biturbo Si before I moved to Costa Rica, pretty wild car.
Enjoy!