Jeev

Haha yep, they said any day on that approval! Mooney’s are next!!!

Thank you NAVI for posting. We have done multiple PA28 installs and I have been on a couple test flights with simular experiences, the Vision performs very well. I had my weekly follow up call with Trutrak today and was hoping for some good Sun & Fun news however we are still in a holding pattern. TruTrak has all of the certification paperwork in order and ready for the FAA however they have to wait for the PA32 and C182 approvals to come through before they submit the Mooneys to the FAA. So unless something changes we are months out for certification. I know this frustrates many of you and I am frustrated as well. From my frequent communications with TruTrak I truly believe that they are working the system the best they can and the hold ups are with the FAA. As soon as I hear anything new on the Mooneys I will communicate it ASAP. Sanjeev

Yep that’s about right what we end up coming in at around 37hrs at our shop rate. We have installed cies probes in multiple Mooney’s with no major issues. We recommend them with every install.

Steve beat me to it and is exactly correct. As for the transducers it is easy but we usually have custom hoses made / cut for the installs we do as most of the time the existing hoses are not in great shape. It’s a good time to replace or rework old hoses that are critical to engine operations. Please let me know if you have any other questions. sanjeev@wolfaviationsales.com

I spoke with JPI today and yes they did change the screen and the old style is no longer available.

I will take some pics of the next one we do and follow up and ask my JPI rep if there was a change recently.

Between 35-45hrs at whatever the shop rate is is fair / market price.

Yea we have done three in the last month.... hmm I haven't noticed a difference in the last 6 months !!!how old was your original unit?

That is a lot to deal with!!! No worries my low pricing is constant and JPI offers rebates at least twice a year, just shoot me a line when you are ready. This round is of rebates is real good with $500 off the 900.

I am a little late to this thread but for a EDM900 we charge 35-45hrs plus a few hundred for sending off the fuel and oil hoses to get the transducers fitted. The variance depends on if we are doing CIES senders and how much we have to move or block in the panel. Both I and JPI recommend CIES senders they make a huge difference in accuracy especially when your are seeing the exact fuel level on the EDM 900.

Here is a link to the install manual on my site. It should be very similar to this. https://img1.wsimg.com/blobby/go/67ffe437-954b-48ce-b81a-78c599cefe78/downloads/1cnsgjvr6_746127.pdf I also have all the install manuals posted here for the currently approved airframes: https://wolfaviationsales.com/trutrak-autopilots#97de52d9-c555-4987-bafd-881053549dc9

I hear ya. I’ve had people lined up for installs since before my first post. I really get the sense it’s the FAA not TruTrak. The guys over there are working hard.

I am in contact with TruTrak at least weekly and they are definitely NOT MIA. The certification was pushed back a few months due to the gov shutdown but they are still expecting mid this year or late spring to be optimistic. As always approvals through the FAA are never as expected when it comes to the timeline. I did get confirmation that the retail price for all the M20 kits will be $5,000. As soon as I hear more I will definitely update this post and wreath out to all of you on my preorder list. thank you, sanjeev

Yes, they have ranged from 30-40hrs total time. The first one was 40 hrs (billed for 25) we have now got the actual time down to 30-35 hrs. That includes everything, removal of old autopilot, fabrication of mounting brackets / holes for the panel, gps interface and a flight test with the owner. Those times assume a “normal” 30-50 year old airframe but don’t account for anything major found. The 1st Mooney install will be telling, I will keep accurate records of time and post the details here as well as the install manual.

Well said you have a great way of smoothing things out. Yes I take responsibility for being too optimistic in the initial estimates. What I should have done is wait until after the first install to start talking numbers, lesson learned. Let’s all have a great weekend and I am still very excited about this autopilot. I just did another test flight last week and it was rock solid. If you know of anyone with a piper or Cessna with one installed try to bum a ride!

I understand where you are coming from and thank you for asking these questions and for the humorous quotes. To be clear we have only had one install approach 40 hrs and that aircraft truly had a rats nest of wiring. All of the other installs have been close to 30-35 hrs ($95/hr) and that includes removal of the old autopilot and fabrication of mounting plates for the controller if needed so Jessie and I are within a few hours of each other. My main point is that I can not promise a 25 hour install.

Thank you Jesse you are spot on. Gentlemen, you have two shops us on the west coast and Jesse on the east coast who are being transparent with pricing, have experience installing these systems and are excited about TruTrak. Thank all for your interest I will definitely be intouch with any updates and I am still working on a Fly-In to the factory when the weather is warmer there. As always please reach out to me with any questions. Sanjeev

This is exactly correct. TruTrak has done an amazing job designing the existing approved systems to fit in open spots on legacy airframes. We have had no problems related to the TruTrak system on our Piper and Cessna installs. All of the issues we have come across have been related to the specific airframes we are working on. My last Mooney was in great condition but it was a 1978 that has had many hands in her over the years, my current aircraft is a 1976. Just as an aircraft owner for 15 years I know that once you start poking around in these airframes you are going to always find something.

Hello Guys - First off I am sorry as I was under the incorrect impression that I updated this thread so my last post was a little bit of a bomb drop. After doing multiple installs we have found that while we have done a few in 25 hours the majority of them are taking 30-35 hrs to do a quality job. The basic install of the Trutrak servos, wiring and control head are straightforward and that is a large credit to Trutrak for designing a great system, so the base install is taking around 25 hrs. Where we have consistently run into issues and extra time is the existing airframes and avionics. When it is time to wire in the AP DISCO, GPS interface and mount the servos we have run into the following issues repeatedly: old wiring, the need to rewire the entire control horn (trim, PTT) to fit the DISCO switch, move airframe antennas that are mounted where the servos need to be, re working the GPS harness due to no available pins. These are common things we have encountered and are definitely aircraft specific. When we find one of these things we stop and call the owner to discuss the options and costs then move forward in agreement, we have not billed over 40 hours even on the worst "rats nest" wiring so we are comfortable capping that as a worst case estimate, most jobs fall between 30-35 hrs. We obviously have not done a Mooney yet but have my previously owned J set up for the first instal and will have a good idea of actual costs for the base install a few weeks after the kit is available. As Toto mentioned TruTrak was originally estimating 18 hours but have now backed off that. When I typed the first post I was going off that but after the first couple installs I quickly realized that time was not realistic. My goal is to be upfront with pricing and I was overzealous just going off of the TT time. I definitely do not want to mislead anyone and before we start work on your aircraft I want to have a hard upper limit to the job so you know what to expect, my apologies for any miscommunication I may have caused. Sanjeev

HAHA!! Now days since I sold my J for a C310R the most liquid I'm consuming is blue and about $4.70 / gallon, no money left over for drink . I have given my list to TT, they are expecting the orders so I'm hoping it won't be too bad on the wait for the ones I am sending out. For the installs we will take about two weeks on the first one, nice and slow and taking notes. After that we should be able to turn an install in 7-10 working days and under 40hrs in our Vegas shop.

The guys at TruTrak are really pushing hard for spring. They have done everything right and yes its up to the FAA now, I am really hoping for spring!

Hello Nik - There is no way to have Vac displayed on the EDM 900. You can keep your left Moritz gauge but what I would do since you are planning on pull the whole vac system is instal one of the gauges you linked from spruce in a place where the hole can be plugged in a cosmetically pleasing way. I was thinking on the plate where your factory gauges are then just make a new plate when you get rid of the vac system. Even if it is not required in your type certificate data sheet I would still want to have a vac indication. I am looking forward to meeting you in Vegas once the weather clears up! Fly safe! Sanjeev

Thanks Anthony Id love to take your money but no need as the pricing will be the same for everyone on Mooneyspace. I just got word from TT that the retail price for the Mooney kit will be $5,000. My price for Mooneyspacers will be $4,850 with free shipping in the CONUS and an additional $50 off if you pay by EFT instead of credit card. I will definitely let you know when we are ready to bill. I have a list of 16 Mooneyspacers who want the Vizion and will go down the list in order when TruTrak is ready to ship. Hopefully getting close!!!!!

Hello - I just spoke to TruTrak and was told that the government shutdown may have delayed the approval however the guys at Trutrak are pushing as hard as they can to get everything finalized. As soon as I hear something I will post. Thank you, Sanjeev

I had my J painted at Artcraft about 7 years ago and I am still VERY happy. Jolie is a great person and the painters there are artists! An added plus is my paint still looks new after 7 years . Definitely give them a chance to quote your job.