>Before flying my Europa, I owned a Robin DR380. I put 800 hours on it in
>10 years
>(and I sold it for 40 % more than the purchase price). The only maintenance
>I did on the Lycoming engine was changing the oil, clean the oil screen
>and fuel
>filter, clean and replace spark plugs, check mag timing, replace the fuel
>and oil hoses twice. Thats all. Not so with the 914.
Remi
There is at least one glaring deficiency with Lycoming engines. There is no
proper lubrication for the camshaft which means it is guaranteed to wear
out. Worse, two of the cams operate two valves. The only Lycosaurus engines
that run reliably are those that get run and therefore lubricated (by
splash) very regularly. This is why it needs a wet sump.
Don't forget it is impossible to get efficient cooling with an air cooled
engine, The heat transfer rate needed around inevitable hot spots is just
too high. Before going Jabiru direction make a careful check on their
record of reliability. It might not be as good as Lycoming.
I agree with your remarks the plumbers nightmare design of Rotax engines
but nevertheless they are building a reputation for power and reliability.
Problems are usually caused by poor installation.
Graham
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