GI-275 ADI Install Cost

[McMooney]

hey anyone have a quote for the  GI275 install cost and time,  can't get a straight answer from anyone.

Can't imagine it taking more than a couple of days.

 

 

Baker?

Jesse?

 

[jetdriven]

Lancaster avionics wants  $4000 labor to install a G.I. 275, primary attitude indicator

[StevenL757]

9 minutes ago, jetdriven said:

Lancaster avionics wants  $4000 labor to install a G.I. 275, primary attitude indicator

Not surprising.  They quoted me an insane amount to do my full panel back in 2016.  The hardware costs were all marked up at least 10-20% over list cost, and the labor charges were inflated.  Not saying they may not do good work, but there are better choices.

[jetdriven]

Ridiculous. Adsb and full panel installs got avionics shops quoting FUPM pricing. 

[PTK]

20 hours ago, jetdriven said:

Lancaster avionics wants  $4000 labor to install a G.I. 275, primary attitude indicator

Wow! I got an estimate from him when I did my GTX345R several months ago. He wanted just shy of 10k$. I asked about adding an antenna jack to plug in a handheld radio and what that would involve. He insisted that he had to “correct” my existing installation by adding a separate comm antenna on the belly! That of course would be an additional cost! He insisted my installation done by another shop was illegal! I was shocked. I called Garmin and spoke with field engineers who reassured me it was erroneous info and offered to speak with him if he had any questions. 
He is a legend in his own mind!

[PTK]

16 hours ago, rogerl said:

$13,500 for equipment/install for dual 275's replacing kcs55a system, kfc 150 autopilot interface.  Quoted in that range by two different shops.  Not including vac system delete.

That’s on the high side considering the equipment cost is south of 9k$ and no panel work.

[Austintatious]

4k to install !  you have got to be kidding me! 

I personally feel like the 275 is going to bomb and that was before hearing this.  No way this is a 40 hour install.  That just cant be right.

[Steve W]

2 hours ago, PTK said:

That’s on the high side considering the equipment cost is south of 9k$ and no panel work.

I'm considering similar, and am hoping to find a shop that will let me pre-stage everything while the plane is still in pieces(and I work for cheap)... Sigh.

[jamesm]

does gamin allow an A&P /IA to install GI-275?

[Steve W]

2 minutes ago, jamesm said:

does gamin allow an A&P /IA to install GI-275?

Only the MFD version. Not any of the useful ones. Thus needing to find a friendly shop.

 

[PTK]

2 minutes ago, jamesm said:

does gamin allow an A&P /IA to install GI-275?

Only the non-ADHRS variants.

[jamesm]

I  wonder why?  Garmin seems to have  almost goof proof the G5 installations with Calibration procedure other than you would need a pitot static  check ($$$$) since you are opening up the  pitot and static systems.

[Andy95W]

3 minutes ago, PTK said:

Only the non-ADHRS variants.

Yet another reason I'm going with the G5s.

[jetdriven]

16 hours ago, PTK said:

Wow! I got an estimate from him when I did my GTX345R several months ago. He wanted just shy of 10k$. I asked about adding an antenna jack to plug in a handheld radio and what that would involve. He insisted that he had to “correct” my existing installation by adding a separate comm antenna on the belly! That of course would be an additional cost! He insisted my installation done by another shop was illegal! I was shocked. I called Garmin and spoke with field engineers who reassured me it was erroneous info and offered to speak with him if he had any questions. 
He is a legend in his own mind!

That seems to be their MO, declaring previous installations un airworthy and illegal, and then shaming the owners in the paying them several thousand dollars to “re-install” it. I heard like five stories of that flavor, the latest was a G500 that has Messy  wiring behind the panel, he paid them $20,000, the wiring looks much prettier, but I’m not sure how much better is functioning. They also want $3000 labor to install a straight Attitude G5, and he warned me that he’ll sell me one personally, but unless I did the three pages of post installation check out, and have it signed and notarized by an IA or an avionics shop, that the installation was illegal, and Thus unairworthy, thus insurance will not pay. A death trap. Like the flight school 172 G5 HSI install, they did not have a Pitot static to it. And by the time he got done with them it was $7000 to reinstall the G5 HSI. 

Luckily I got out of there only had to pay $545 for The IFR certification, They passed the GTX345R transponder, but they failed the altimeter because the friction  test was 15 feet more than the 100 feet allowable. ;(

[CDO]

On 2/10/2020 at 10:26 PM, jetdriven said:

Lancaster avionics wants  $4000 labor to install a G.I. 275, primary attitude indicator

I would never go back to Lancaster Avionics  and I’m from Lancaster. They did a sloppy job on fixing my intermittent transponder when I just got the Mooney. And quoted me about 7500 for an attitude G5. I texted my IA right after I got the quote and bill from fixing the transponder, he told me to just get out of there ASAP.

Edited February 12, 2020 by CDO

[PTK]

17 hours ago, jetdriven said:

That seems to be their MO, declaring previous installations un airworthy and illegal, and then shaming the owners in the paying them several thousand dollars to “re-install” it.

That’s incredible Byron! I thought maybe it was I overreacting but sadly it has happened to others. What's worse is that some people fall for his bs. 
That's one way to increase business... declare other shops’ installations “illegal” and pretend to reinstall the existing equipment! 

[jamesm]

does anyone know by chance if the GI-275 is able to accept two input sources ? (GNC-255 Nav/Com) and (GNC-355 GPS./Com) without necessity for a separate relay switch box and/or annunicator s/w assemblies?

Also wonder what type of input it accepts Syncro/Resolver or CAN or RS232 or ARINC429 or  ????

 

Thanks,

James '67C

[jetdriven]

56 minutes ago, jamesm said:

does anyone know by chance if the GI-275 is able to accept two input sources ? (GNC-255 Nav/Com) and (GNC-355 GPS./Com) without necessity for a separate relay switch box and/or annunicator s/w assemblies?

Also wonder what type of input it accepts Syncro/Resolver or CAN or RS232 or ARINC429 or  ????

 

Thanks,

James '67C

HDSB, ARINC 429 and RS232.  
I think you need a switch to display NAV 1 or 2. A relay for the autopilot inputs. 

[jamesm]

3 hours ago, jetdriven said:

HDSB, ARINC 429 and RS232.  
I think you need a switch to display NAV 1 or 2. A relay for the autopilot inputs. 

Assuming that GI-275 probably only plays with other Garmin products i.e. GFC500  I would think that
GI-275 be using CAN to talk to autopilot. So whatever nav source is selected would be the one driving the autopilot.

But I could be way out in left field.

[tmo]

The GI-275 interfaces with a number of legacy autopilots.  A full AP compatibility list is available.

[Baker Avionics]

On 2/10/2020 at 6:49 PM, McMooney said:

hey anyone have a quote for the  GI275 install cost and time,  can't get a straight answer from anyone.

Can't imagine it taking more than a couple of days.

 

 

Baker?

Jesse?

 

To be honest, I haven't installed one yet and currently, after discussing these with my customers, they are like us, amazed at the cost and they are way too busy.  Here we educate our customers as to what may be their best options, give them panel renditions along with "Pro's and Con's" of what they are getting for their money to the tune of functionality bells and whistles and future proofing.  I see that most of the quotes they get from other shops are strictly folks that are Garmin Minions that really do not know the other options out there and that is how we get a lot of our customers and they stick with us for a long time and are very grateful for the process we go through.  

If we were to estimate the costs for installing it in a garden variety installation, I would venture to go with a range of 20-25 hours per unit and if you are doing more then one, 30-35 hours depending on what is being interfaced.  As far as the cost of the units, we would charge 20% above our cost....MAX!  Generally we do not charge that as it gets quite expensive for the end user and we concentrate more on the long term relationship versus the one time sell.  I think Garmin missed the mark on these, personally.  They tend to try and keep up with EVERYONE out there and their best inexpensive solution lately is the G5 units but they have limited it so badly that they have in essence cut their own throat on them.  Think about it, once you install them, that's it!  nothing more!  They do not have plans to make it much better for some reason.  

The installation isn't rocket science on these 275's.  It is a simple case of Avionics Shops making people believe that there is some type of "Magic behind the black curtain" when really, it is pretty basic stuff.  

To all of my "Mooniacs" out there, beware of those shops and try to forgive them, because as ignorance is truly rampant in this world of Avionics shops because most of them, "Know not what they do!" Gouging folks like you all is not smart and it gives the rest of us a bad name!  Here we have a motto that we live by and have created the culture of "Bring back that Mayberry Fell to the world of Aviation".

"Because Experience Matters"

 

[Baker Avionics]

On 2/11/2020 at 11:18 PM, CDO said:

I would never go back to Lancaster Avionics  and I’m from Lancaster. They did a sloppy job on fixing my intermittent transponder when I just got the Mooney. And quoted me about 7500 for an attitude G5. I texted my IA right after I got the quote and bill from fixing the transponder, he told me to just get out of there ASAP.

We would not be happy with that.  It should cost not more than 4k for that installation with a magnetometer.

[bradp]

@Baker Avionics can you just open a shop on the E coast already. 
 

My plane is currently in getting work done (not a 275, I’ve already gone with G5’s) at sparkchasers in Smithfield NC.  So far quote was right in line, they are keeping to a schedule, and know what they’re doing.  They are also good commutators and responsive - that goes a long way. 

[tigers2007]

The GI-275 interfaces with a number of legacy autopilots.  A full AP compatibility list is available.

I’m curious why they didn’t make it work with the Century I or II for attitude. That means that if any of us CB’s want to keep our working AP, we need to keep the old AI too. This is odd. Why is Garmin so apprehensive about sending attitude data to the Century ? Aspen does it.

[tmo]

With the cost of an GI-275 + install you're not that far off from an E5, are you now?

Maybe G is giving us all a hint </s>

To give G some credit, where it is perhaps due, they did start supporting the King stuff, which is an improvement over the G5, which very likely could also drive all the APs had G wanted it to.

IOW, no real point in wondering, we'll never know anyway.