Diesel (again)
 

Hi All

Anyone out there actually had the oppertunity
to fly a 172 with the Centurian engine as a
retro fit -if so how was it ??

Ian Seager has and the results were written in an ed. of FLYER last year. Back issues are available from the lovely Maria by phoning +44 (0)1225 481440

Diesel 172
 

Likewise, I would like to make contact with someone who has converted their 172 to the Diesel engine. I know that Meridian in Bournemouth have converted at least three. Their aircraft G-ECON has also done alot of demonstration flights so far. Has anyone seen it flying or taken it for a spin???;)

hours?
 

How many hours can you get in on a diesel engine? What's the TBO?

'whats the TBO'
 

Hi Airchart

As far as the Centurion engine is concerned ,
I found out today from the the authorised
distributor that there is no TBO allowed .
TBR at the mo is 1000 hours ,but this is
fully expected to be increased to 2400
with a 'possible' further extension to 3000.
Retro fit to a 172 is in the region of €45k .
According to the chap I spoke to there are 70
'engines' flying up till now !

The question you've got to ask is whether you want to be a guinea-pig for any product in the GA market.

I could tell you some right horror stories, from my own experience, about how warranty issues have been handled on a brand new plane, 6-figure price tag. How certain manufacturers (none mentioned in this thread) try to weasel out of responsibility, etc.

No matter how wonderful some new engine was, I wouldn't go for it unless it came with a pretty amazing warranty. I would want 10 years or 2k hours, completely comprehensive.

Plus of course a sufficiently local service organisation. In GA, very few firms trust others to pay bills (and correctly so) so getting warranty work done locally and then recovering the cost from the dealer can be a right job.

Unfortunately this is nothing to do with diesels...

I think a lot of the manufacturers are supplying warranties which guarantee the engine for 2000 hrs, so you won't end up out of pocket.

EA

If I'm not mistaken, Thilert offer a "Power by the hour" system of warrenty - Try beating that with the bangers Lycoming and Continental build:-)

Wf.