Flight school trying to talk me out of a Mooney.

[ragedracer1977]

I'm a renter at the school where I learned how to fly.  I was in today renting a 172 and mentioned to the office lady that I was looking at Mooneys.  She spent the next 30 minutes trying to talk me out of it.  

Be honest, is any of what she said valid?

She said that Mooney parts are difficult to come by when something breaks - either you have to scour junkyards and hope to find it or go aftermarket.  If you're on a XC and have problems, you'll have trouble finding a mechanic who knows how to work on it.  Maintenance is very expensive.

I guess what I'm asking is, what are the concerns about buying and maintaining a Mooney M20 C-F models, vs. say a Cessna 210?

[gsengle]

That's nonsense. Mooney is still making parts. All new parts from beech cessna Piper Mooney Cirrus aren't cheep. There are some used parts available, but many don't come from the manufacturer anyway.

Almost any A&P can work on a Mooney they did make 12000 of em after all. Evidently the later ones are easier to work on though. My Mooney maintenance has been no different cost wise than my Arrow was. Zero concern.


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[Heloman]

The motor is the most common one there is so not much issue there, some mechanics don't like working on Mooney's, I have to admit I've heard that before. The thing is you can get a nice C-F cheaper then you can get a nice 172, value wise it's sort of unreal!


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[KSMooniac]

Nonsense

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[DonMuncy]

For whatever reason, she is full of it. Mooney parts may be a little harder to come by and a little more expensive than a 172, but not as bad as some others. Finding a really super A&P who know Mooneys is a little tough, but most any A&P can do basic stuff, like you are likely to need if AOG somewhere.

[ragedracer1977]

OK.  I just wanted to run it by you guys.  

Of course, after all that she says "well, if you buy one, we'd love to have you put it on leaseback."

 

 

HAHHAHAHHAH, NO.  I learned how to fly in their planes.  I know how students land.  LOLOLOL

[Guitarmaster]

1. Depends on the part. Some can be hard to find, others not. I have never had an issue.

2. "Mechanic won't know how to work on it.". B.S. Possibly if you are in BFE Kentucky or somewhere.

3. Mooneys can be more difficult to work on than a Cessna because of the tighter spaces to work. Think Porsche vs Chevy truck.

4. I have found maintenance to in line and even cheaper than other brands.

In short, I had all of the concerns that you are expressing here and none have come to fruition. I guess maybe if you were buying a project to restore from the ground up that would be somewhat more difficult. But if you buy a decent copy of whichever aircraft you want, it will give you a lot of joy will not break the bank.

Regarding the 210. The airplane has zero sex appeal. Just sayin!

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[Oscar Avalle]

Nonsense...only if you decide to fly outside the USA (Mexico or further south) you may have some difficulties finding parts or a mechanic that is willing and able to fix your plane. Other wise, I feel that the difference is not that big. And then, you have us! That is an additional bonus that you would not get if you were to buy a Cessna or piper!


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[gsengle]

OK.  I just wanted to run it by you guys.  
Of course, after all that she says "well, if you buy one, we'd love to have you put it on leaseback."
 
 
HAHHAHAHHAH, NO.  I learned how to fly in their planes.  I know how students land.  LOLOLOL

One thing I'll say about a Mooney, it is NOT a good leaseback plane!


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[Ron McBride]

And it will be cheaper to fly by the mile, than many Cessna, Pipers, Beechcraft's and Cirrus's.   Maintenance and fuel by the hour may be a little higher, but you get there so much quicker.   I have had my F for almost 10 years and all parts have been easily found.  We have many Mooney Service Shops that have years of experience and knowledge of what parts are needed.  Mooney is also still in production.

Ron

[Yetti]

Realistically 90% of the parts you will need are for the engine.  Aircraft spruce has them.  My professional knows lots of planes.  I don't think he likes to work on them.  It usually is slower more methodical work since things are a little tighter.   Avonics are not Mooney parts.

[Yetti]

Mooney's are way fun to fly

[ragedracer1977]

OK good.  I don't feel discouraged any more.  

 

Now to get my financing together and then find a bird.  As long as I fit in one and like it, since I've STILL never seen one up close.  

Edited April 10, 2017 by ragedracer1977

[sfmse]

I used to have a '67 F that I leased back to a flying club.  Two stories:

I got a call from the owner of the flying club asking me if I had shortened the seat belts - since I'm not a small guy I'm wondering who or what is trying to wedge himself into my poor Mooney.

Second story:

I was in Maine visiting a friend and he said there was a grass strip just down the road from his house.  We looked at it and it sloped up briskly from the water's edge, went under some power lines and did a dog leg right, in addition to not being in very good shape.  I decided that was not a runway I needed to try out.  A few weeks later I was talking to one of two brothers who often rented my plane.  It turns out they were from Maine and when I asked where they grew up it was near my friend's house.  I mentioned the grass strip and he told me they took my Mooney into that strip all the time! 

[rbridges]

4 minutes ago, Yetti said:

Realistically 90% of the parts you will need are for the engine.  Aircraft spruce has them.  My professional knows lots of planes.  I don't think he likes to work on them.  It usually is slower more methodical work since things are a little tighter.   Avonics are not Mooney parts.

I've ordered a few engine shims, a prop cable and a steering horn. I believe that is the extent of my mooney specific parts. Everything else has been from aviation retailers. 

[rbridges]

7 minutes ago, ragedracer1977 said:

OK good.  I don't feel discouraged any more.  

 

Now to get my financing together and then find a bird.  As long as I fit in one and like it, since I've STILL never seen one up close.  

Post your location. Generally it's not hard to find someone nearby. 

[StevenL757]

1 hour ago, ragedracer1977 said:

I'm a renter at the school where I learned how to fly.  I was in today renting a 172 and mentioned to the office lady that I was looking at Mooneys.  She spent the next 30 minutes trying to talk me out of it.  

Be honest, is any of what she said valid?

She said that Mooney parts are difficult to come by when something breaks - either you have to scour junkyards and hope to find it or go aftermarket.  If you're on a XC and have problems, you'll have trouble finding a mechanic who knows how to work on it.  Maintenance is very expensive.

I guess what I'm asking is, what are the concerns about buying and maintaining a Mooney M20 C-F models, vs. say a Cessna 210?

I have a bit of time (~100 hours) in a 210...both pressurized and non, and her remarks couldn't be further from the truth about a Mooney being more expensive to maintain.  These are displaced comments without the benefit of intellect.

 Is she trying to talk you into a 210?

[cbarry]

There are the glass is half full people and the glass is half empty people,  but there are also "you've got the wrong glass" people as well.  It's really amazing how rather than simply having a conversation and enjoying discussing the hopes and dreams of a fellow pilot how some people (including the lady mentioned here) find it their duty to elevate their expertise to a point they cast doubt on another's choice in fine aircraft.  I'm sure every pilot here has dealt with difficulty in either finding a part or two and/or a mechanic that really knows their make and model, but through it all the joy of flying one of the best aircraft on the planet won out!  

 

 

[LevelWing]

I've never had a problem finding parts for my plane (except for one, which is a long story and self-induced) nor have I had any real issues with it. It's a lot faster than a Cessna 172 and, at least in my opinion, a lot more fun to fly. Just make sure you do a thorough pre-purchase inspection before you actually buy one to ensure you get a good one. I put a few planes through pre-purchase before finding my Mooney and it was worth every penny. 

[zaitcev]

1 hour ago, ragedracer1977 said:

I guess what I'm asking is, what are the concerns about buying and maintaining a Mooney M20 C-F models, vs. say a Cessna 210?

The 210 is way more expensive than M20C,E,F. It's not a 172 at all in this regard. In addition, the gear system is not entirely reliable, and the plane carries disturbing ADs, such as the root cap crack. On the other hand, Richard Collins flew a P210 for decades.

If I wanted a Cessna with a big engine, I'd get a 182 with straight gear. It's not as fast as Mooney or 210, but it chases Tigers/Cheetas, and carries a ton at that.

P.S. I should note that I heard this line before, and also from a penny-pinching school. I suspect that the economics of racking hours on an airplane, as well as repairing damage caused by students, skews their perception a bit. They always took their IO-320s and 360s to the TBO and could probably go beyond 3,000 hours easily. They didn't because they also ran a Part 141 op and were legally prohibited from doing it.

Edited April 10, 2017 by zaitcev

[ragedracer1977]

24 minutes ago, rbridges said:

Post your location. Generally it's not hard to find someone nearby. 

I'm in the Phoenix area.  I've already received an offer from another member to take me up in his M20.  I'm heading to Hawaii this week, so when I get back, I'm going to hopefully meet up with him.

When the time actually comes to start the purchase, I'll be reaching out to you guys.  

[HRM]

1 hour ago, ragedracer1977 said:

Be honest, is any of what she said valid?

Think of a Cessna/Piper like a VW and a Mooney like a Porsche.

The Porsche is handmade and of über-quality parts. It turns heads when it arrives. It is so engineered that lesser mechanics don't like working on them because the skills required are greater. It's a joy to drive and fast. Not many are made, so the (unique) parts are expensive.

So, yes, some of the rumors are true. Do you want to fly a VW or a Porsche? You decide.

Edited April 10, 2017 by HRM
punctuation ;-)

[ragedracer1977]

Hah!  The woman at the flight school said it was like a Jaguar.  It's more sportscar than plane.  

[DonMuncy]

Having driven Jaguar, Porsche and Lotus, I consider Mooney to be more like Lotus (which I prefer to both the others).

[Hank]

1 hour ago, N803RM said:

And it will be cheaper to fly by the mile, than many Cessna, Pipers, Beechcraft's and Cirrus's.   Maintenance and fuel by the hour may be a little higher, but you get there so much quicker.   I have had my F for almost 10 years and all parts have been easily found.  We have many Mooney Service Shops that have years of experience and knowledge of what parts are needed.  Mooney is also still in production.

Ron

The previous owner of my C used to fly from furthest WV to Myrtle Beach (because all of WV goes there on vacation  ). His friends had a 172. They would take off, he would then visit the bathroom, pass them enroute, and be tied down with the rental car loaded when they landed. And the Mooney did it on 10% less fuel . . . .