FWIW.

New kit 'plane "the Sling" made in South Africa has a 4 seat version using 100 Rotax horses they also do a two seater. One has gone round the globe. In the U.K. both (I think) are approved by our LAA as Permit operated a/c.
Likely with 100 h.p. you will get the rough shut down, but I understand the "soft start" ignition module retards the firing till the engine is running properly so should be smooth. Even so 100 divided by four occupants has to mean two adults, two kids only and watch the fuel load then.

I run behind the much gentler 80 hp Rotax, smooth start & stop, enough power to propel a self maintained LAA supervised Rans S6-116. Cruise might be too slow for you at a modest 98 mph at sensible rpm. Consumption 14 l/hour. Range if you have the bladder is 4 hours plus an hour reserve.

Flying BTW, in the UK even in the 'crowded' south is pretty relaxed & can be mostly non radio and simply go overhead or route round most controlled air-space. No flight plans necessary, no permissions & one can still take off from one's private strip and e.g. go direct to France where they want you to clear at one of their 'Customs' aerodromes. Then coming back is the same, no need to land till overhead one's base strip.

Insurance (third party) is compulsory, costs about half of that for my motorbike. LAA and inspection some £300 per annum, all other work is dead easy to DIY. MoGas from a supermarket is today £1.2 per litre X14 = <£17 per hour.
All depends if your proposed flights are too long for that type of plane but for fun, security and hours in the air it's hard to beat.

mike hallam

[QUOTE=navygm;9927990]
I dont really like Rotax mainly for how they work... when its started its like a farm trucktor working a field :) Even when you shut down, that stiff movement it does to stop, comparing to a sort of smooth stop of Cessna or other US made aircraft, makes me worry what stress is being created on the gearbox and clutch. But that could be my perseption, so I might be wrong, Im not an engine expert.
QUOTE]



As someone has already mentioned, the harsh start of the 912ULS 100hp can be overcome by having "soft start" ignition modules, the bigger starter motor, good battery and keeping the carburettors well balanced with each other.


A soft shutdown is achieved by ensuring that the hot engine idle is set at 1400 rpm, turning off one ignition circuit and waiting several seconds until the engine either dies of its own accord, or switching off the other ignition.


Unlike the totally air cooled Lycosaurus engines, the Rotax 900 series have water cooled heads which make them "bomb-proof" against shock cooling, a common reason for cracked heads.


I've flown over a thousand hours with Rotax 912UL 80hp and the 912ULS, finding them both reliable, economical and offering a great power to weight advantage. They use about a thimbleful of oil per hour and are simple enough to work on. It's not for nothing that the majority of new light aircraft designs use these engines, which easily make their 2000hr TBO if well-maintained.

What would your typical mission profile be? People, range, etc? I presume mostly going to Sicily and then up north?
As someone wrote before the Rotax 912 burns about 14 lt/hr for the 80 hp version, IIRC the 100 hp version burns about 18-19 lt/hr. An O-235 burns around 22-25 lt/hr.

PS: I would not get a 4 seater with a 100 hp engine, Rotax Lyco or else. Not enough power for my taste.

I believe the Sling 4 uses the turbocharged Rotax 914UL with 115HP.

TP

Mainly it will be for hour building and navigation, but occasionally it will be used for 4 people for leaving the island..Sicily and more North, so when travelling you need some power, thus a small Rotax wont be suitable.
Apart from that, like Tecnam they dont have a reasonable priced 4 seater, so those will be out of question.

Would some one reccomend buying an "old" C172 with all AD's embodied and maybe not so well kept (except no corrosion), then I will do all work myself?

What are the toughts of buying a used one from the US to import it to Europe? will that be a hassle? I dont know how the system works like this, but surely aircraft from the US are cheaper!

The rule of thumb I heard was it will generally cost you a third of what you paid for it every year.

For what type of aircraft?

Certainly not for a permit aircraft in the UK!

These may be two very different mission profiles. If you would like to fly four people and their bags several hundred miles, you'll need a 200+HP larger four place (a C172 really won't do this well). If you're content to bear the operating cost of that aircraft (40+ LPH of Avgas) for your hour building and navigation flights, no problem. However, these flights can be nicely flown with a 100HP+- power aircraft, which will operate for less than half the cost.

Consider buying low power, low cost, and renting when you occasionally need a hauler for four people.

Containering an aircraft across the Atlantic will cost at least $10,000, I've done it. It's doubtful that this added cost will make importing from North America attractive.

My 1966 Cherokee 140 has cost me £15k/year for the last 3 years, flying 100 hours/year (flight time, so a bit more logged time), hangared in an airfield on the South coast of the UK, where hangarage and landing fees are relatively expensive.

This includes all costs, but makes no allowance for money (that I should have, but haven't) put aside for respray, engine overhaul, or avionics upgrade.
Breakdown is..
35% engineering
13% landing fees
23% hangar fees
26% fuel and oil
4% insurance

and yes, I have noticed that adds up to 101%

I fly a 1992 build two seat RANS S6 that I have owned for the last 10 years. It is operated on a LAA Permit. During that time it has had the usual routine maintenance, been recovered once and had one new engine. It us used for about 50 hours per year. The total cost during that time has been £42k.

This includes hangarage at £125pcm and insurance that this year was excessive at £680 (but then I had a claim as I did bust a prop whilst taxiing and had to pay for a new one plus an expensive engineer to shock test the engine! )

Andy

For a more meaningful comparison for any readers from the USA, found this estimate of running costs with a Rotax 912 engined aircraft just posted by Southwest on the TeamKitfox forums:

"This is a close estimate of my operating costs. Mx items include replacing the Rotax rubber parts after 5 years, a new ELT as old one was AD'd illegal, etc. Hope this helps.

Fuel $ / gal 3.00
Hrs flown / yr 55

Fuel $/ hr 15.0
-- oil & fltr 1.22
-- plugs 0.32
Mx items 24.59 ( 2013 - 2017 avg)
Eng reserve 11.11
Prop reserve 1.50
Ins 9.09

$ / HR 62.83

$ / YR 3,456 "