> Following up on the thread of a few days ago, I offered up the Stratus Subaru
> and Able VW as options. Doing a little more research along the VW lines I
> spoke
> with Great Planes, who have 17 years of VW conversion experience - and
> everything
> to gain from recommending a conversion.
>
> In addition to wondering why Europas use 3 blade less efficient (than two
> blade
> wood) carbon fibre props, he offered the best advice yet (which has been
> rattling
> in the back of my mind) on engine selection: The Europa is an expensive
> aircraft
> (from his VW aircraft perspective) and installing anything other than the
> factory
> recommended engine will severely deteriorate the resale value of the aircraft.
>
> Cleve
> A198 Mono XS
> Detroit, MI
He wasn't saying that wood is more efficient than carbon fiber, was
he? Whatever.
"Worth a bit less" is a safe statement, but I don't see how he can
predict "severely." In the homebuilt market, there's a few
less-than-eager buyers chasing a wide, incomparable assortment, or
very few planes, if he/she has an eye toward, say, either a Europa or
a Pulsar. Prospective buyers largely know homebuilts and thus know
that a VW is rugged, cheaper to maintain engine. If it were to
perform equivalent to a Rotax, and the plane had enough time on it to
imply dependability, it should make little difference to a buyer.
Where he says "expensive" aircraft, the phenomenon is that resale is
thus in competition with used production aircraft. That even argues
that his VW is a better choice, to keep the cost down and reduce
inevitable loss on resale. The Sport Airplane proposal here (with the
Europa only a notch or two above its preformance/utility specs, but
with the amatuer-built negatives) could also impact the resale market
in a major way, making such distinctions minor.
I think the more important consideration is the builder's confidence
and expertise and/or access thereto, to effect a safe installation.
NTSB accident reports strongly suggest that failures of auto engines
are due to installation issues.
Regards,
Fred F., A063 (914 - not enough expertise)
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