Quattroporte III catch-all thread

I heard back from them today. Unfortunately, they can no longer deliver the €1000 windshields, as these were sourced from a 3rd party who no longer has any stock available.

They can deliver a new one manufactured in their own shop for €2000, plus shipping (I was quoted €400 to the UK), and require the original windshield from the car in order to copy it. This includes the Wolfram defroster wires laminated into the glass.

So no more €1000 QP3 windscreens, I'm afraid.

 

Just a quick update on the rear parcel shelf speakers. Tony was right, they are 4 ohm, labelled as "Aluperl Italia". About 5 1/8" across, screw holes 4" apart from each other. 2 1/4" deep.

I haven't measured the available space underneath the parcel shelf, but the gas tank is right underneath it. It doesn't look like there's much additional room beyond the stock speaker.

Having done some more checking, I think I'll probably go with either the Focal Access 130CA1 SG or JL Audio C2-525X. Both seem to offer great sound for the money, and will be drop-in replacements.

Also of interest, I found a screw coming out in the trunk that is screwed in from the parcel shelf side, yet must be under the leather covering. At some point I'm going to have to remove it all to re-cover it, but I haven't gotten that far yet. My parcel shelf is definitely fiberglass, just as the instrument binnacle, and is either screwed or glued in place. I'm not quite sure how the leather covering has been installed, but it looks as if it's folded over and attached at the rear end (under the windshield) and left loose at the other to be glued and stretched across after installing, and then finally glued onto the rear seat tub, underneath the rear seat back.
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I guess we all know by now that the IRS on the QP3 is identical to the one on Jaguars (although it's unclear to me *which* Jaguar, and of what era), the guy who did my rear bearings said everything was the same aside from a few beefed up components and slightly different tolerances/settings.

I'm curious to learn more about the front suspension though. Since Maserati didn't have the means to build tooling for the entire car and "borrowed" parts from OEM shelves, where does the front suspension come from? Is it too Jaguar? Someone commented that they thought is was identical to the Jag Mk2. I've also heard that the DeTomaso Deauville shares the same front setup, as well as the Pantera, and would like to know the truth. (yes, I can handle it!)

What do we actually know about the front suspension on these cars?

 

Thanks Tony.

I was more interested in the control arms, bushings, ball joints and such. They must be sourced from some more common care maker, I can't imagine Maserati at the time had the means to make something entirely proprietary.

William had done quite a bit of legwork and preparation in order to get custom made dampers (shocks + springs) for his QP3, based on the original technical data in the manual along with a set taken from a car. Since his car is still in the shop, he was gracious enough to allow me to purchase the first set to test out (thanks yet again William, really appreciate it!). The ride is much better, handling is super precise but not squirrely and there is no body roll whatsoever. In fact today I chose to dial back the fully adjustable mechanism a click or two in order to soften things up a touch and get a better match between front and rear.

These dampers are custom built by a race shop using Öhlins components and are a bolt-in replacement for the originals, just like the MIE. Unlike the MIE, they offer a much better ride height, and are fully adjustable for both ride height and damping (from super soft to extremely firm). Again, kudos to William for taking the time and effort to gather all the data and info and have these people make a set for him.

Price wise they end up being more expensive than the MIE set, but still less than original parts from Campana.

Took a quick pic with my phone, car is dusty and the light is harsh, so sorry about the poor quality, but it gives an impression of the stance the new dampers provide. I might have to raise them a touch more in the front.
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William - I'll be buying us a round or two when I get to London, thanks again (and thanks to David who actually built them and has provided excellent support!).

Hope you get a set fitted soon yourself.

Igino - what size are your tires? They look a tad too small for the car. Are you happy with the performance? I've been looking at tires as mine need to be replaced, and was hoping to find something other than £330/each Michelin XWXs (ouch!).

There's a thread here from 2011 discussing alternatives to the XWX, and several alternatives show up. Might be interesting to try one of them and see. The thread is here: http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/vintage-thru-365-gtc4-sponsored-redline-restorations/316545-best-source-michelin-xwx-215-70-15-225-70-15-a.html

The setting is softer than delivered from the factory, which was pretty harsh, but a lot of fun - absolutely no body roll whatsoever, very quick and precise damping over bumps and rough patches. It didn't match the character of the car though, and was a lot stiffer than the rear (which is MIE after-market). Dialing the adjustment down a few clicks brought it more in line with the rest of the car and it's character, while still maintaining excellent road grip and keeps the car 98% flat through curves. There is only a slight hint of body roll, where before there was none. With the MIE dampers there was quite a bit more roll and bounce, although I still felt that the car handled well, especially considering it's size. These are something completely different, and really can't be compared, they're so much better.

Speed bumps (and there are quite a few here) haven't posed any problem at all, even the one I missed by accident yesterday and hit pretty fast. No bottoming out, the wheels were on the asphalt all the way across, the car didn't dive or jump/go airborne. Really brilliant.

Öhlins offer both adjustable ride height as well as adjustable damping/rebound characteristics, all while the damper is mounted on the car (in fact I dialed down the stiffness while parked at the beach, took all of 30 seconds). You can read more here: Shock Absorber | Road & Track by Öhlins

 

Wow that engine bay needs some TLC, you're right. Looks like some rust on the exhaust, and on the spare tire rim (rust on magnesium?). Too bad (or maybe telling) that he didn't include any pictures of underneath the car.

The ad states that '85 was the first year the lighter leather was available as standard. Not sure how standard it was, but I prefer the natural leather color.

 

Are the front headlights on the QP3 identical to those on BiTurbos?

They look the same, but I don't have a BiTurbo handy to compare with.

Anyone know?

 

No headlight adjustment that I know of, besides popping the hood, removing the access covers and using a screwdriver to adjust the angle.

My climate control is the square box with sliders and buttons. The round dials look to be of a later vintage.

Can't say I mind the bumpers, they suit the car and it's sense of being over dimensioned. I wonder how much lighter the Euro ones look. Will have to find some pictures and compare.

The new stainless steel exhaust you had installed was "modified" at some point to remove the cats. Not especially skillful welding, unfortunately. It passed smog (?!?), but the exhaust fumes get into the cabin and are pretty obvious. I plan to put new cats in, after hearing Igino's experience with the same thing.

Fuel vapor monstrosity? The charcoal canisters and different cams? I was thinking of removing it all, but haven't made it a priority. Is it required in the US, i.e. if someone imports a Euro spec car do they have to add it all? Does it cause much of a horsepower drain?

Anyway, here's a picture of the headlights, if it helps.
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My exhaust pipes are "double skinned" on the rear part, meaning that the smaller diameter pipe is encased in the larger diameter chromed part. There's a ring a few centimeters inside the end to keep the spacing even. From the picture, it looks like someone cut off your outer skin/chromed part and left the inner pipe there naked.

Here you can see how large the rear diameter is, this is the outer chromed skin that encases the smaller pipe that is the actual exhaust pipe.

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