Hi all I'm from germany and found this fantastic forum. Now it's time to post this : Last week i realized a dream, i bought a 99' 550 Maranello in rossocorsa, now standing in my garage beside my Maserati Ghibli 2,0 and my Maserati Biturbo S 2,0. I hope i made no mistake. this is my first Ferrari. The car has the Fiorano package, straight middle pipes and sport silencers (I don't know the brand). The sound ist fantastic. In April i will make some pics, now the winter is still present, we have still some snow. Sorry for my bad gramatics, english wasn't my 1st choice in school. Daniel
Daniel- Welcome to the forum and the Maranello and V12 brotherhood. Your car sounds very nice and the previous owner obviously set it up correctly. Your English is way better than my German, so not to worry. Let me know if you need Workshop or Owner's Manuals and I can send you a CD or DVD with them. Taz Terry Phillips
Welcome to FChat Daniel! You've made a great choice with your new car, Maranello's will be classic's into the future. Tritone 01 TdF/Cuoio
@ tritone "Maranello's will be classic's into the future." I hope you are right. For me it's the best looking Ferrari the last 35 years. I never was a big Ferrari fan like the stupid german Volkswagen Passat/Golf/Rabbit and Audi drivers with Ferrari Shirt, Ferrari Cap and Ferrari flag, watching Schuhmacher in the Formula one car, no plan from the technical backround of these cars or the models the factory have made the last 60 years. I was interested in some models, but never possible to get one (250 GTO, 250 Berlinetta SWB, Daytona or the Gobone, at last the Maranello models) After driving a Maranello 2 years before, i was sure that i have to get this fantastic car, with the impressive engine and the great design from Pininfarina. @ 599 GTB No, daily car is my Alfa Romeo 166 3,0 V6, for having fun there is a Maserati Ghibli 2,0 (about 340 HP) and now the Maranello in the garage. I believe you don't know the Ghibli, the car was never sold in USA. @ tazandjan Thanks for your welcome. I sent a message to you. Daniel
Congratulations Daniel! I would love to see some pictures of your Maranello. Where in Germany do you live? Gr. Martin
Looking forward to the pictures Daniel. You will find your way through this website quite easily. Gr. Martin
Daniel, Congratulations on your Maranello now keeping company with your two other fine cars! Drive it in good health. Barry
@DZ-96 while we wait for pix of your 550, post up some pix of the Maserati....(I believe we never got that car in the states, only a low-powered version burdened by emissions equipment.....;-)
The Maranello is what first got me interested in pondering a Ferrari purchase. That is an absolutely beautiful machine. Enjoy it! Ray
Hey Daniel, nice part of the world you're in! Fellow F-chatters Hans, Eve_P, King250Cal and myself visited Konstanz two years ago, in Hans' 308GT4 and my 550. You have not made a mistake. The 550 is not only (very) slowly starting to appreciate in value in Europe but they are very reliable too. I've been pleasantly surprised by the running costs, but you do have to realise that they are Ferraris. As long as you are realistic then you're unlikely to be surprised in any nasty ways. The main costs I've had have been tires and fuel, but even tires have been replaced much less often than I expected. Enjoy her in good health, and please be careful in this time of year: cold tyres are rock hard and if the road is a bit damp white lines are very slippery too. The ASR is very primitive and won't help you much, and the 550 has tonnes of torque. Someone wrote off an F-50 here in Holland three months ago - the impact speed was only 32 km/h but the tree wouldn't budge.... Onno
Congrats! Let's see some pix soon. You did not make a mistake...and that comes form a guy who has 2 Maseratis too!
@tritone "while we wait for pix of your 550, post up some pix of the Maserati" Here are some pics of the Ghibli and the Biturbo S Some data: Ghibli : V6, 2,0 liter, 4 valve, Biturbo, about 340 HP wit about 1350 Kg weight, race suspension, fantastic to drive Biturbo : V6 2,0 liter, 3 valve, Biturbo with carburetor with 205 HP Every morning and every evening (before leaving for work and coming from work) i take a short look in the garage. This red is damned good. Pics from the red will follow. Promised ! Many many thanks for the "warm" welcome. Daniel Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
Ah, i know Füssen in the "Allgäu", so we call this area. You know the cheese Allgäuer Emmentaler There are fantastic driving roads into direction "the Alpes". I love them. Many bike drivers drive in this area, they love the streets. Daniel
Congratulations Daniel!! I remember you put your two Maseratis in a website when "internet" was pretty new back in 1999/2000/2001.... I loved and still love both of them.. The sound of the Birutbo S really make my heart beat when I hear them I have had several Maseratis too.. 1988 Biturbo 222 1991 Biturbo 222 4v. (daily driver for over 60.000 kms.. 1993 Ghibli Serie 1a 2,8 distributor 1993 Ghibli Serie 1a 2,8 static ignition 1996 Ghibli GT 2,0 2000 3200 GT (dayly driver for 35.000 km) Lots of fuel!! Those Maseratis, you either love them or you hate them, because they treat you very well or very bad. But if you start treating them good first, they usually do the same back! ...and now I have a 1999 456M GT! Daytona black met. with green and black leather, imported from Germany. Super car, I love it. Have had 296 kph here once, but looking to test the real top speed in Germany soon. Yes the 550 is the best looking Ferrari for many many years, along with the 512TR. I would love to see a picture of yours! To all americans: You should get a Maserati Ghibli!! That car is insanely nice to do travels in. We drove from Puerto Banus (south of Spain/close to Gibraltar) to Oslo, Norway in two days. First day was 2080 kmt done in 14 houres included 7 fuel stops. And the rest the next day. It was a Ghibli Primatist 2,0. Erik, Norway
Hi Erik, yes i know you. Seems that we both are even crazy. You have also changed (or added) to the cars from Maranello. Daniel
Yes Daniel, the Maseratis are nice, but I wanted something that felt more "compact" and better build. The 3200 GT was nice, but like all turbocharged hi perf cars, they are no fun to run when they become worn. There were in fact very few cars that attracted me. I wanted a configuration that I had not owned before. So a V12 with manual tranny was perfect. I also wanted 4 seats.. Then there were not many to choose from. I tested a BMW 850, but I felt it was to boring from the inside although I liked the exterior. I also hated the fuel gauge that constantly showed 2 litres per 10 km... Jaguar XJS was tested, but that is a miserable car to drive in all other condtions than heavy traffic going 20 kph. A stable 2nd hand value was also one of the most important factors. I bought the 456 from a company that went bankrupt, and then the choise was easy. I also wanted to join the great community of italian car owners. To join the BMW community was out of the question. I know because I have also had a BMW 635 CSI many years ago.. i could resire a mint condition Biturbo convertible with carburetor for short evening cruises in the neighbourhoos just because of the sound.. Manybe we meet one time during a Ferrari or Maserati meet.. Would be nice!!
Some news. Got the rims from the paint shop, new PS2 were fitted, the new distance plates arrived also. I love it, for me this was the correct choice of color. Sorry, car is not cleaned and polished. Tomorrow new oil and filters, cleaning inside and outside. 2 weeks (1st may) and the season can start. Daniel Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login