Advice on a car for my Mom

[Maxspeed]

My mom is in the market for a new car. She's looking at a 2008 Maserati Gran Turismo with 9,900 miles on it. The list price is about 70 grand. How reliable are these cars out of warranty?
It wouldn't be her daily driver. Probably something she drives 1-3 days a week.
Does it seem like a good deal? And since it is a 5 year old car, how reliable would it be?
Thanks.

[keepittrill]

DO NOT GET A MASERATI. Maintenance is HORRIBLE. Look at the new F-type or a 911 Carerra. Maseratis are a NIGHTMARE to maintain. There's always a 6 series or an SL as well.

[manutdas11]

Bugatti Veyron.
Ariel Atom.
Geo Metro.
Pinto...

[Kwando]

Drop 70k on a 5 year old Maserati that's out of warranty. Sounds like a good idea. Why spend so much on a car that gets driven less than half the days of the week for a person who doesn't know a lick about cars?

[F1Venom]

Get her an Audi TTS, or the new Cayman. I like GT's though, but only with a warranty.

[Who?]

much like girlfriends, moms should get what they want
convincing them otherwise is foolish

[amanda hor$t]

i think porsche makes a better car than maserati at a comparable price.

and there's always an m5 or 7 series.

[FVM3]

Make sure she gets the gts

[paradoxical3]

Originally Posted by keepittrill

DO NOT GET A MASERATI. Maintenance is HORRIBLE. Look at the new F-type or a 911 Carerra. Maseratis are a NIGHTMARE to maintain. There's always a 6 series or an SL as well.

Not true at all. My parents have a 2011 GTS with 40k miles on it and it's had the trunk get stuck closed once and the battery died once. That's it - it's a daily driver and is abused all four seasons.

My BMW has more issues per month than the Maserati did over the last 40k.

Not to mention how much better the dealers are...the dealer actually installed a ECU flash, transmission piggyback, and a few other things, and immediately take care of any problem. Good luck finding a BMW dealer like that.

The F type is a beautiful car (probably my next car), but the 911 leaves me cold. You don't really cross shop a 911 and Maserati anyway. The Maserati is an occasion to drive. The 911 is not.

That being said, I'd stay away from the 2008 just because the GTS automatica wasn't out yet. The 08 will have an expensive clutch to replace. For 70k you can get a 2010 at least probably.

[keepittrill]

It takes a simple google search to find out the reliability of Maseratis in general. I would do that, OP.

[paradoxical3]

Originally Posted by keepittrill

It takes a simple google search to find out the reliability of Maseratis in general. I would do that, OP.

Totally agree, you'll see what I mean. Keep in mind that the Granturismo/Quattroporte platforms are totally different than previous Maseratis. Go on the owner forums - they are easily more reliable than any N54 or N55 engine car. And it's not even close.

Maintenance costs aren't bad - $300 oil change, add $700 every other oil change. That's pretty much it other than brakes. Tires are literally exactly the same cost as BMW ones (they came with Pirelli P Zeros, but we switched to Michelin PSS). There's no belt service, no clutch replacement, or any other big ticket items. If you can afford an out of warranty 335, you can afford a Granturismo or Quattroporte. Especially because there are no turbos to blow

The truly expensive things would be body issues to repair - for example, if you need a new bumper. This is where the price difference between cars shows up. Replacing a little mesh grill costs like $2000 because of how it's attached to the bumper. But that's the kind of stuff insurance takes care of anyway.

[fireline43]

Base model mustang convertible. Women love them

[boris]

[amanda hor$t]

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Porsc...c7dda2&vxp=mtr

you can afford it!

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Ferra...8f9dbe&vxp=mtr


http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Lambo...fabd87&vxp=mtr


http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Mayba...7bd23d&vxp=mtr

not for sale by just wanted to throw this in: