What range do you safely get on your aircraft and what is the difference on the Gt as I know someone interested in Buying a Gt.
The zero-fuel range, assuming a climb to ~FL100, is about 1350nm at a TAS of 140kt. This is at peak EGT and is well above the book figure which is at a higher power setting.
The GT changes are numerous, with the ~2-3" extra headroom (composite roof) and the retracting footsteps being the most visible. Many small changes e.g. beefed up gear relays. However I have never seen an exhaustive list. The GT is well worth going for if you can afford the extra cost (a good one is about £140k, though some advertisers are asking silly money) and anyway a privately operated hangared 2002/2003 GT should be close to new in terms of general condition.
The doors - not the best for emergency egress in a forced landing.
Why? They seem to work just fine, unlike e.g. the Piper door which is held by two locks and potentially much more likely to jam. To use a metaphor, all the single door planes are death traps. If you have an obese person in the front RHS, nobody is getting out in a hurry.
Relatively high best glide speed (as does the Arrow 4)
That goes with aerodynamic efficiency. The designer will always aim for Vs to be just below the max permitted for SE (61kt IIRC) which is why all the IFR tourers have a Vs of 59-60kt, and Vbg follows directly from that.
The instrument panel looks like Renault designed it (granted, older Pipers are not much better but have you seen a TB10/20's after years of student use?)
I agree; you cannot stick a jackboot into it too many times, whereas you can into a steam boiler panel. I don't see a solution however, you will have the same issue with modern glass cockpits. One cannot just throw a headset on it, like so many people do. One has to show people where to put stuff, and where to grip to adjust the seats, etc.
not so fantastic visibility from either front seat
I don't see that. It is much better than anything "old" I have flown (PA28, C152, C172, etc). Other pilots comment similarly.
It's all a matter of personal opinion Peter, horses for courses. I've instructed on both TB's and the Piper range. Most students seem to prefer the Piper range, certainly most instructional/rental operators do.
I don't think the TB is suitable for kicking around the school scene. But there are other factors. Few operators want to train ab initio in a retractable (I believe TB20s were/are used in Indonesia etc) which leads to the TB10 etc and they were hugely overpriced during most of their manufacturing life. If you looked at the deals Cessna were offering on C172s, the TB10 was about 30% more.
But a TB20 cannot be compared with a TB10. They share only the similar looks. The TB20 totally outclasses the TB10, and every C172/182/PA28.
Must say I was looking at a TB10 yesterday and the windshield seemed very narrow in depth, whats the view out like Peter?
Not sure I understand you... narrow in depth? The view out is very good. Great for flying tight circuits to land.