Recently I helped a UK maintenance company by calling the Robin factory to chase some parts on back order. I think the problem there was both language and cultural barrier. Other people I know say the portal for ordering parts is ok. A lot of Robin parts are manufactured to order, so there’s a corresponding leadtime; better than them saying ‘no longer stocked.’
My club did look at the Rotax conversion for their DR400, but they stayed with the Lycoming (I don’t yet know why)
I don’t understand what “cultural barrier” there might be. This is the 21st century, not 1789 and not even 1815 
Also anybody who exports (and surely the Robin factory must have sales into 7 digits) will either have a person in Sales who speaks a foreign language OR have an online shop website which is usable from abroad. Even a non-translated shop site is generally usable with google translate translating the body text.
The Socata parts dealer I use, Troyes Aviation, offer an excellent service in excellent English. OK, they order everything back to back (nothing is stocked) so no value is being generated for the customer, but that is another debate… the role of “dealers” in aviation is a dubious thing nowadays, and discussed previously. The factory itself has no excuse.
I also don’t see private pilots ever going for a product which delivers less power. This was a killer aspect on various diesel conversion projects. Nobody will go down from say 250HP to say 220HP. Or 118HP to 100HP as in the case of the Robin Rotax conversion. A school can, because they “don’t go anywhere” and don’t care if everybody flies a bit slower.
However the speed increases in case of the Robin Rotax conversion, probably because of the slower turning VP-Prop in front of the geared Rotax in spite of less nominal power.
Silvaire wrote:
If anything like that were available why would people sell their 2000 hr engines to others for continued UL service (for relatively little) and choose to spend 2 to 5 times as much for a new certified engine?
Who does this?
You have to remember, an aircraft piston engine is sold for at least 2-3 times what the manufacturing cost is. Maybe it’s more like 4 times. This gives the manufacturer great freedom to set the price for an overhaul to pretty much exactly what he wants. For a LyConti, overhauls are 80-90% of the business perhaps, while for a Rotax it is 10 % due to all uncertified units (wild educated guesses )
I have to date never met anybody who has overhauled a Rotax 912 series engine. Only replacement at full price. Anybody on the site done it, either certified or uncertified (saying which would be helpful)? Is anybody doing certified engine overhauls, maybe the factory in Austria only or ? And is the overhaul cost advertised anywhere? Thanks
I know of people that have done and I also know of a company that offers such a service although I don’t know what they charge. I do know if you present them with a 2000 hour engine they will not strip it as in their opinion there is not point.
The uncertified operators are running their 912’s to 4000 hours plus and I think that’s its a case of we have had our moneys worth out of the engine so lets just put a new one in.
The price of a new unit is far in the favour of Rotax compared to continental
https://ecclestonaviation.co.uk/product-category/rotax-engines/
Contrast that with an O-200 and you talking about 30K for a factory rebuilt engine.
In relation to the thread, the point would be that with the Continental you never need to buy a new or factory rebuilt engine. After 1800 hrs you overhaul it, and then eventually do it again someday and so on. The overhaul cost in my area is $15-18K (the higher number with new cylinders) or lower IME if done/signed off by an A&P. (I once overhauled a certified A-65 myself for a fraction of that amount, under $5K, supervised and signed off by an A&P friend)
I strongly suspect that nobody flying certified Rotax 912s is overhauling them. They fly them 2000 hrs then toss or sell them as a flyable core and buy another for $24K or whatever plus the cost of CS prop overhaul. I would still be interested in knowing if certified Rotax 912 overhaul is commercially possible, by who, and if so in seeing an advertised price.
Airborne_Again wrote:
Isn’t it rather that if there is no max demonstrated crosswind in the POH, you should assume 0.2*Vso?
The demonstrated crosswind value is a certification requirement as a minimum. It is not a limitation, and need not make the pilot make a decision based upon that value, other than to be confident that a crosswind of a lesser component should be manageable with normal piloting skill. This value in the certification requirements prevents manufacturers making airplanes which are not capable as a pilot would expect.
The 152 also has an STC’d conversion available to a 125 HP version of the Lycoming, with a different prop, it is a super conversion.
Sparrow Hawk 125 HP conversion for C152.
Peter wrote:
I also don’t see private pilots ever going for a product which delivers less power. This was a killer aspect on various diesel conversion projects.
My understanding is that they replace a normally aspirated engine with a diesel turbonormalised one, and this the “less power” becomes “more power” as soon as you climb a bit (like 3000ft or so)?
