Originally Posted by
Grass_Strip_Goat
582 totally reliable if looked after and cheap to run - if you don't rev it out you can cruise one up on about 12lph of Mogas & oil premix. Two up and revving it will see fuel consumption increase substantially.
Don't expect to go anywhere fast - cruise is approx. 55Kts, flying faster just sucks fuel.
Someone will probably tell you not to do the following, but I found it did wonders for fuel consumption using a 503 if at about 500ft agl, you gently back off the throttle until you see a slight drop on the rev counter, then push it open again a tiny amount.