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Easy choice.

Like the Johnie Walker ads years ago....the plane you would rather fly or the plane you would rather buy.

Which leads me to one of the best bits of advice I have heard. Buy your last plane first!

Therefore the answer is a V35. The V35B is the pick of them. Now onto all the variations, the IO520 is nice, and IO550 is better. A TAT TN IO550 is the ultimate, and add tip tanks for range payload etc, and what a machine :ok:

The F33A is simply a Vtail with an extra feather ;)

If you want more economy, and les speed and payload, the Mooney is hard to beat.

All depends on what you find that fits your mission now and in the future. No matter which you buy, it will cost you way more than whatever you think it is going to!

Enjoy.

Socata TB20/21 vs. Mooney 201J/252 vs. Beechcraft Bonanza V35
 

Yep- don't discount the Mooney because you think it may be cramped. It's only slightly squeezier inside, but the speed and the fuel burn easily make up for it. They do like a bit of runway though, particularly at altitude during our very hot summers here in Australia.

Beechcraft wins!
 

Lot of short runways here in California and the west mountain strips. I need something than can land in short airfields like KPAO. Looking at Beechcraft V35B-TC for plane at this point.

I'm somewhat bemused that 745m of asphalt is considered a short airfield for an SEP. I learned to fly off less than that & regularly saw BE90's operating from 735m.

I would start with a normally aspirated F33A, V35B, or A36. As you gain more experience you can add TurboNormalizer to make it really sing. The TN installation is more performance and less maintenance than the factory TC.

There is quite a difference in W&B range between the short and long-fuselage Bonanzas. I still fly the A36, A36TN, and have flown the V35B. You get very good information on Beechtalk as you have noticed.

If you consider 745 m hard cover runway "short" then something is seriously wrong with your training!!

I operate a Mooney M20C out of 500m grass without any problem whatsoever, actually it was based there for 30 years. We have many strips nearby which are around 500m both grass and asphalt and most normal Singles are perfectly ok on those.

Plus, you seem to think that a huge engine with turbocharger is the answer to short strips... well, it may be if you are talking high density altitudes, but I'd be much more concerned with landing distance than take off. Looking at the tanke off distance tables, I consult them if a TODA is less than 500m because at high temps it may approach 400 m... LDA is another story. I personally am much more concerned about stopping on short fields than getting airborne in a Mooney.

Equally, I operated out of Samedan which is a 5600 ft elevation airport with the said airplane, normally aspirated and 180 hp... no problem whatsoever even in high summer with density altitudes of 8000 ft +. Again, as long as you know what you are doing.

And mine is the 180hp version, so a 201 or let alone 231 is a lot more performing.

Before you shell out a lot of money both in terms of maintenance and fuel for a B35TC by all means try a Mooney. It is very hard to beat in terms of economy and performance, also up high.

Check the Mooneyspace forum for information or the Mooney Ambassadors, which are actually based at Oceano airport in California. They may well be able to help.