My New GranSport Spyder!

I just traded my (wife’s) ’04 Maserati Spyder in for a new black/black ’06 GranSport Spyder. This new car is what the Spyder should have been back in ’02! It would have made quite a difference in their sales.

My quick observations:
+ great exhaust note!!!! Especially in sport mode! It’s no longer a complete stealth car.
+ it blips the throttle (my ’04 didn’t), but see the negative list
+ the carbon fiber interior is very good
+ the carbon fiber steering wheel is excellent!
+ the new seats are 100% better
+ shifting is better (no more clunking)
+ 19” wheels look much better
+ new body work is great! E.g., grills, rocker panels, front/rear molding
+ overall looks much better then before

- new rocker panels stick out and hit legs on short passengers getting in/out
- cowl shake still present
- steering wheel shimmy still present. The dealer even had the wheels balanced and aligned before I picked it up – but it didn’t cure the problem.
- throttle blips seem more cosmetic then not in that they don’t really match revs (kinda of like a novice doing fake heel/toe)
- stereo is similar to that on my 360 (I didn’t get the nav on this car) – sucks – UI and sound!! Thank goodness the exhaust sounds so great.
- power is good, but can’t tell it’s really 400 full horses (although I’m still in breakin)
- ahem, time in shop right off the bat: check engine light resulted in bad sensor, also bad crankcase breather value (wheezes), bad rattle turned out to be speaker held on by one bolt instead of 4, and the clutch slips too much in reverse resulting in smoking it backing up my uphill driveway (simple adjustment)

Overall, however, I absolutely love the car! I just might keep this one for awhile! Oops, I mean my *wife* might keep it awhile… ;-}

Tim
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A number of people have mentioned the wheel shimmy on this board over time. One person said that he got the wheels aligned and balanced and had no such problem. That’s why I also did it before picking it up – but to no avail.

Every Maser Spyder (’03-’06) I’ve driven has the shimmy so I think it’s “just like that.” It’s annoying, but a small price to pay for what I think is a great alternative to a Porsche/BMW/etc… However, I keep hoping someone can tell me a fix for it.

I thought about lowering the car, but with the new front body work, I can just barely get it into the garage. Note in the picture I live on a hill with a moderately steep driveway. This new car has about 1.5” clearance at the nose. :-|

Tim

 

Spyder or coupe?

Is the GS coupe a modifed platform from the original Maser coupe of '02 (or whatever year it came out)? I know the GS Spyder is the same old platform, thus it has the same issues.

Tim