Kevin from the UK writes:

"I've only had my 2.24v for a couple of days and I love it ! However I'm wondering if I actually have a problem.

If I accelerate hard the revs whiz up then the cart starts lurching and popping and I lose power until I change gear. I assumed this was the rev limiter and I was just not used to changing gear fast enough. Today I had a passenger watch the rev counter and on one occasion it did it at 5000 revs, it then did it 30 seconds later after I had slowed down to 30mph in 3rd gear ? It hasn't done that before ... but then I've only had the car 3 days.

The car seems in excellent order and has recently been tuned - you could eat your dinner off the engine bay! Your thoughts would be appreciated.

Kevin."

Reply from Kevin

Re: 2.24v. ignition problems:

"Hi Enrico,

Finally got to the bottom of the misfire at 4000 rpm and smoking problems. Took the car to Emblem Sportscars in Bournmouth and they immediately spotted the problem.

The misfire wasn't actually a misfire but the ignition cutting out. This was caused by a warped front pulley and exacerbated by the sensor being too far away from the pulley triggers. They also found a pipe from one of the turbos had come off. So I guess the smoking was being caused by the car not running properly. The car is now transformed - goes like a rocket and revs as it should. There was also an oil leak from behind the pulley so I took the opportunity to get that sorted and all the belts replaced.

Looking thru the problems reported on your site it seems that this could explain some others' problems too. Don't know if I'm allowed to do this, edit this part out if you have too, but I would wholeheartedly recommend Emblem Sports Cars for their professionalism and service.

Keep up the good work - this is one of my favourite web sites.

Kevin."

Reply from Andy

Re: Revs whizzing up!

"This could be a number of things, but most likely are either a faulty rotor arm in the distributor or possibly an under reading rev counter.

Andy."

Attila from Hungary writes:

"Dear Enrico!

I have a Maserati 2.24v-1991, and I have a problem too. The control unit cuts off the ignition not at the factory-limited 6300rpm, but at about 4000rpm.

It seems to be a control unit failure. If anybody knows something about this problem, please answer me on the forum.

Thanks very much for any help.

Attila."

Reply from Attila from Hungary

Re: Ignition cutting out!

"Dear Enrico!

For a couple of months I wrote You about my problem of cutting ignition at 4000rpm in my car. Now I have the solution, maybe it can help others too.

The crankshaft sensor caused the problem. It had a wrong angular position. In the service manual is a special tool (page 0-64, no 96) to use to take the right position, but it can do without it. If any piston is right at the power stroke-TDC position, there is one of the teethts of the pulley at the sensor, but it need to be not directly face to face. With the support it's needed to shift the sensor so, that the left edge of the sensor is at the right edge of the neerest tooth, when viewing direction is facing the car (piston no.1. at the left side).

Regards,

Attila from Hungary."

"Thank you Attila, Enrico and all Maserati owners!"

Kevin in the UK writes:

"Hello,

I have just bought a 2.24v. which was imported from Italy last year. I'd like to replace the speedometer with a MPH one and the headlamps too.

How easy/difficult are these jobs and where is the best place to buy them?

Cheers,

Kevin."

Tom in Belgium writes:

"Hello,

A year ago I was in Italy and I bought myself a Maserati 2.24v. of year 1990.

I am very happy with the car and hadn’t encountered a problem until now.

Last, when I started the car all the dashboard instruments failed to work (no fuel meter, no speedometer, no voltmeter, no turbometer).

Together with the dashboard instruments all the related instruments, such as the frontlights and indicators failed to work.

My questions:

1. Is it a common problem for the type of Maserati that I possess?

2. What could have caused the problem?

3. It it a fuse problem?

4. Can I repair the problem myself (by changing fuses)?

5. How can I prevent it happens again?

6. Can I buy somewhere a very easy manual in Dutch or English for my Maserati 2.24v (I am not a car mechanic), so I can fix little problems myself ? (It’s a genuine Italian car with a Italian Manual and unfortunately I can not understand Italian).

Thanks for any help.

Greetings,

Tom."

Wietze in The Netherlands writes:

"Hello,

My name is Wietze from Amsterdam and I own a 222SR from 1993. Originally is was fitted with an 2.8-litre 18-valve engine and an automatic gearbox. I bought it with a rebuilt 2.8-litre 24-valve engine and a manual 5-speed Getrag gearbox. It was changed to my request as I bought the parts separately.

I have a problem with disappearing coolant. After putting pressure on the system it showed that some rubber hoses were leaking. With an endoscope we overlooked the inside of the engine and no failure of the head gaskets was to be found. The oil contained no coolant and the exhaust showed no white smoke.

At first a set of rubber hose was replaced. After that we put pressure on the system (5 atm. for a few days) no leaking was found anymore. So I thought that the problem was eliminated. The fans (both) come in at approx. 80 degrees. Nevertheless after a long drive from a few 100 km coolant is missing. After a days drive sometimes up to a liter. Nowhere on the engine it shows that there is a coolant leakage. The small pipe leading from the coolant reservoir shows small signs of coolant (the pipe that leads to the fender).

Up to now the engine works very well and never overheats. When speeding up to 250 kmph the engine temperature never exeecds 100-110 degrees. Nevertheless I am worried about the disappearing coolant.

Maybe there is a solution to this problem??

Best regards.

Wietze."

Reply from Rene

Re: Disappearing coolant!

"Regarding to Wietze and his 222SR.

I think what he needs to do is get a read out of the ohm resistance between:

The body and engine.

Thebody and minus lead battery.

The engine and alternator.

The minus lead battery and engine.

These read outs should be very low, for example, on my car I had a read out of 80 ohms between body and engine, I fitted a negative lead strip between the AC mounting bracket and the torsion bar mounting, read out is now less then 1 ohm.

The read out between body and minus lead battery baffled me even more, 25 ohms of resistance.

I took out the battery and disconnected the minus lead from the body, there was some kind of bracket on that end of the lead that can be used to connect additional negative leads, I got rid of that one and replaced it with a ring type connector, I tin welded it onto the lead and refitted the whole lot, ohm resistance is now next to nothing.

Also I cleaned the ignition coils mounting brackets they should also be low in ohm resistance.

Before this I had a rough idle, engine holding back in the red zone (boost) rough start when hot, higher fuel consumption and I too had disappearing coolant.

Result: better idle, engine screaming all the way up to the red zone and more if I want to, better starts smoother run through the refs and no coolant loss.

Why I hear you say, in my humble opinion an engine which has to struggle for its ignition timing will pre detonate, pre detonation means more heat which has to transported by the coolant, pressure rises coolant level rises result loss of coolant.

The ignition system is connected to the body but it has to manage an engine which almost is not, years of use and moisture will build up corrosion and will create ohm resistance, like from here to the moon if you know what I mean.

I hope I could be of help to you and other Maserati drivers,

Best wishes to you all.

Rene.

Ron in the UK writes:

"Hi,

I want to source the aftermarket wheel for my 91' 224 in UK. Does anyone know the correct fitment?

Thanks very much!

Ron."

Erik in Belgium writes:

"Hi everybody,

I have a 2.24V Biturbo from 1992....great car but.....sometimes (actually very often) I have to drive without lights..window wipers...dashboard lights....or without air-conditioning or the electric windows.

It all works fine for days and other days nothing will work properly....it's with ups and downs.. actually more downs ...the electric system is living a life of its own!!

Could it be the Bosch relays or the fuse box???

By the way... while driving everything can pop up again and work properly for....minutes... hours or even days!!!!

Erik."

Reply from Andy

Re: 2.24v Blackouts!

"Sounds like fusebox. Next time it does it, try 'massaging' the fuse rail on the box. Usually works but you do need a new one.

Andy."

Robert in The Netherlands writes:

Reply from Andy

Re: 2.24v

"Can't really sort this from the information given. Sounds like an ignition fault. Could be crankshaft sensor, coil etc.

Andy."

Reply from Rossano

Re: 2.24v

Happy New Year Enrico,

Robert would appear to have an electrical problem with his car, this is a common problem with Biturbo cars. The engine starts OK and then after switching off is difficult to re-start. This stems from an electrical fault and unexploded fuel 'floods' the engine causing the strong smell of petrol. This problem could be caused by several things.

First check the negative terminal on the battery. Check the lead and the negative terminal for oxidisation as it can easily oxidise preventing proper contact.

Check the negative wire on the fuel injection control module.

Check the connections on the spark plug leads, the distributor and the ignition coil.

Check the throttle valve potentiometer.

I recommend replacing ALL 15 relays on the car. This would eliminate most likely problems as it could be the fuel pump rellay that could be at fault!

Thomas in The Netherlands writes:

Reply from Enrico

Lars from Denmark writes:

Reply from Rene

Re: 2.24v tachometer.

For the tachometer on Lars his 2.24v. I only can say, look for the obvious, take a look at the pickup module fitted onto the gearbox, if a new one does not solve the problem try to clean all of the connections behind the dashboard, for that you have to take apart the whole dash assembly.

Rene."

Hugo from France writes:

"Dear Enrico,

I own a fantastic Cosworth 2wd with 340 bhp, which has been amazingly tuned by a good friend of mine who is engineer and a big Cosworth fan. That means really low costs whatever happens to my engine, body or box...

The reason I'm writing you is quite simple. As you certainly already know, the Maserati is the greatest constructor ever. And among its perfect creations, the most attractive seem to be the 2.24v, the Racing, 222 4V and naturally the Ghibli (Cup!!!).

So, I'm seriously about to buy a 2.24v. There's actually one near Grenoble with low mileage and good image... at only €6500.00. I smell a trap or great problems in perspective, but the car has obsessed me.

Now my question (sorry for the wait!):

- Do you know any magician (like my friend for the Cosworth) in France and maybe near Nice or the Italian proximity who could assume the running of this sort of car (at lower costs...).

- My friend should be OK to accept the challenge it but worries for the spares (rare and expensive), especially if I hope increasing the power... Any possibilities in France?

Please don't yell at me.

Thank you for your genius site.

Best regards,

Reply from Henri

Re: 2.24v.

Hello Enrico,

My experiences with 5 Biturbos can help new owners to enjoy their cars. I know it can be a nightmare sometimes.

Answering to Hugo, you can tell him that in Beausoleil, close to Monaco there is the former Maserati dealer who knows pretty well those cars. I bought him a 222SE and a Mexico. The name is Garage Paul Doumer.

Otherwise, as spare parts are rather expensive in France, I used to go in Italy in Cuneo. It's 2 hours from Nice and here, there is an official Maserati garage. They are quite competent, the labor cost is at least 30% less than in France and the spare parts almost one third. The name is "Garelli Automobili" in Borgo San Dalmazzo.

You can forward this note to Hugo then, I can explain him directly.

Another thing also, I see that one reader, may be an Italian, recommends to get rid of all the relays and put new ones; I also strongly recommend to do this first, even if the car runs fine. I also recommend to check all the groundings of the car. It's self explanatory once you start the car, put the lights and measure the voltage drop between the center of the battery "minus" and several other supposed grounds on the car. Another recommendation is to check the various sensors with an ohmmeter. They are easily accessible and in 10 minutes you have a good idea of the most sensitive components. Last recommendation: keep a spare rev sensor, the sensor which is on the toothwheel on the camshaft or on the crankshaft.

This in mind, the reliability of the Biturbo is not worse than any other car, at least for injection models.

Best regards,

Henri."

Reply from Andy

Bernd from ? writes:

Reply from Andy

Johan from Germany writes:

Reply from Enrico:-

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Yannis from Greece writes:

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