what's the generally accepted pecking-order for GA aircraft?
Michael,
You've opened a can of worms there! I think that it's fair to say that "there are many opinions, but no definitive answer".
Many pilots would tell you that high performance singles like Bonanzas and Mooneys are at the top of the heap ... and indeed that's probably true, if IFR stuff is your game (although even such relatively sophisticated airplanes are trumped by cabin-class twins and Piper's Meridian). Others would say that nosedragger airplanes are for sissys, and that 'real pilots' fly tailwheel bushplanes (C185, PA-18, DHC-2, FBA-2C1, etc.). On the other hand, you'd get a lot of votes for aerobatic airplanes (Pitts, Extra, etc.), or floatplanes.
Generally speaking, the more expensive and more difficult to fly a 'plane is, the more status it has ... but even that rule of thumb is subject to exceptions, e.g. the reverse snob appeal of a pristine J-3 Cub or a vintage Ercoupe.
Most people would agree that common, easy-fly airplanes like the C-172 and PA28 are at the bottom of the status scale ... but if pushed, those same pilots would grudgingly admit that most of their experience is in those same airplanes, and that they are economic,efficient aircraft for most practical purposes (training, $100 hamburgers, medium-distance touring, etc.).
I throw out for consideration the following two propositions that I have found to be true, in my own limited experience:
(1) no matter how fast/expensive/fancy/etc. an airplane is, it's always possible to find one that is 'better';
(2) in their own way, virtually all aircraft are enjoyable to fly.
MLS-12D