John,
There are two reasons for drip trays:
1. shielding the heat radiated by the exhaust pipes which may cause
the fuel to boil in the carb bowls.
2. allowing fuel possibly leaking form the carbs to be drained below
the engine, instead of being ignited by the red hot exhaust.
Although the normally aspirated 912 and 912S carbs usually do not leak
(unlike the 914's which are leaking almost all the time due to the
boost pressure) I think it is good practice to have drip trays
installed that insure these two functions.
However I do not recommand to install the Rotax drip trays which bolt
to the carb rubber flange as:
1. They de not fit with the hot coolant carb heat system
2. They do not allow to remove the carb bowl for inspection unless you
remove the carbs, making servicing more time consuming.
One solution is to make your own aluminum drip trays and have them
bolted to the airbox using anchor nuts for easy removal.
Hope that helps.
Remi
> Is it considered to be either a/ mandatory, b/ highly recommended,
> c/ quite nice
> to do, or d/ totally unnecessary, to fit drip trays/ heat shields to
> the Rotax
> carbs?
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