3500 GT Restoration Project

Very wise comments: this is a project for true "Maser-chists" but my hat off to anyone who actually finishes it properly AND drives it.

Just know it will take a LOT more time, money and aggravation than you estimate to get there.

best regards,

Marc

 

I saw your post about needing some help on you 3500,
Lee Contie in NE Ohio is restoring a 3500...might want to e-mail him...i think he's been working on it for about 4-5 years.
heres his e-mail...
[email protected]
Tell him Dane "with the signs" says hi!

 

4-5 years!

Man....I betta rethink this....

 

If you're truely rethinking then maybe rescue this Mondial t Coupe instead; it's one of 43.

I wanted the car pretty bad but they wouldn't sell it to me (for what its worth).

BTW, don't believe the hype on the current ebay listing. It has a strong motor and trans but needs TLC plus parts


http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/showthread.php?t=200559
http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/showthread.php?p=137837182#post137837182

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So, what's the decision?

 

Need to speak with Luciano, th emechanic in sarasota I'd be doing the resto with. I also want to speak with a body shop about estimating costs.
I'm giving it time so that emotions don't take over...not my strongest suit when it comes to Italian cars!

 

Italiafan:

Having lived 15 years in Florida I can tell you that there are a lot of transient people: they come and they go. Make sure anyone you consider for long term involvement with this will be around for the long run: you can't imagine how many restorations get interrupted due to mechanics leaving, having personal problems or losing their workshop lease: you need a very stable foundation for this. Luc Grondin is a friend of mine with a big heart and a lot of talent but he is overworked: speak to him by all means but he will only confirm this, though hopefully he can fit you in.

You have to be really honest with yourself and decide whether this is for you or not, whether you are going to have the comitment: if you decide to go ahead congratulations! There is a 3500GT owner who restored his car near Orlando: Mike Demyanovich aka Mexico 074 here knows him: that would be a "local" able to advise you.

best regards,

Marc

 

OK......NICE.........I'm regretting posting here.....

The owner got a call from somebody trying to buy the car out from under me.

Thanks guys.

Luckily the owner is a very close friend to a patient of mine who is very grateful for all I have done for him....and has no intention of selling it to someone other than me.

Nice try though.

Live and learn!

 

That's cold, man.

I deleted name and location, per request.

 

Ouch! sorry to hear that. In other news, what is the verdict or are you still mulling it over?

 

My mechanic wants to see the car, and if no obvious surprises to his experienced eye....I'll be giving the owner a check shortly.

 

Thank you.

 

That sucks that some one from here would try and buy the car out from under you. We should give them the bum rush.

 

Well, it is a publicly available thread, so, at the time, the [now deleted] details could just as easily been stumbled upon by someone who saw it via Google.

 

The minute you put things on the internet they are washed down the current: I have had articles stolen, photos of mine have shown up in books without my knowledge: the sheer concept of copyright is being eroded by the internet as fast as proper spelling, good manners and ethics...

MS

 

Well...he left his call back number with the current owner, and I may be able to cross check that to someone here......
The question is....should I, or just chalk it up to experience and let sleeping dogs lie?

 

People may find what happened tasteless or ruthless. That's a good thing in my book. The desire for confrontation might be strong but I say let it go. After all you did hand him the keys.

 

Well, I did it.
I will be transporting the car shortly to the local shop where I will work on it with my mechanic.
It certainly will be a big job, but I'm not going for Pebble Beach at this point.
I want it to be a great driver, 100% meachanically sound, excellent body with a nice paint job, interior close to new.
I plan on posting pix of the entire process for your digestion..
Thanks thus far for all your sage advice.
-Rob

 

Wow, congrats!!!!

I am very much looking forward to restoration pics!

 

Rob, congratulations! I'm glad to hear you got the car...that was an incredible deal. I look forward to comparing notes. Please let me know if I can be of any assistance. My car is vin number 101-530 and touring number 6732. I wonder if our cars sat in the factory together? I see a few subtle differences between our cars, like the lettering on the glovebox and the placement of the trident on the front grill.

 

Congratulations and best wishes!

Don't hesitate to contact me if you need parts from Italy: I spent 6 months in Modena so I got to understand somewhat how things work there

best regards,

Marc

 

Just go the car to her new home for the next 1-2 years...the shop!
Here are a few pix.
I didn't want to disclose this before, but now that the title has been signed over to me....I got it for much less than $15K...you'd shoot me if you knew how cheap I got her for (I thought that posting $15K previously would have scared away people trying to buy it...apparently not).
I plunked down $10K to get the project started!

We put her up on the lift and the chassis looks extremely solid. Everything is there including the original tool kit!
I'll post pix as the project unfolds.

I can't tell you how exciting this is, and how much fun it is going to be bringing her back to life.


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Rob, way to go on the price. I thought $15,000 was a steal. The car looks like it is in fantastic condition. I am amazed at all the minor differences between two cars built so close together. Your's has side marker lights in front, that mine does not have. I just met with my brother today. He gave me a box of literature on the Maserati, including two original owner's or shop manuals....english and italian. They have wiring diagrams and what appears to be blueprint diagrams of the entire car. Please let me know if you need digital photos of any of the diagrams. Have fun!

 

Have fun and keep us posted. I would say well bought.

 

Thanks guys.
The $10K is for the mechanic to start ordering parts and begin labor...the car was even less than that. Crazy times..people need to get their hands on cash quickly these days.
Now is the time for people sitting on some cash to go out and find these sorts of cars and get them...the economy will return (some day).

When we put her up on the lift we had a momentary scare because it looked like the engine was tilting suggesting a broken motor mount....turns out they designed the engine to have a slight angle, motor mounts OK.