Ovation 280 to 310 hp

[Alan Maurer]

Hello Mooney People, Thinking about possibility of the upgrade? Does anyone know who or where this can be done? I understand it is not too difficult.

Take off roll shorter and improved ROC a good idea!

Thanks

Alan

[ilovecornfields]

Any MSC can get you the STC. If you go to the Mooney factory web page they should have a list of Mooney Service Centers. Make sure your propeller qualifies before you shell out the $5000 for the STC

[mike_elliott]

Oasis Aero (a Mooney Summit Sponsor this year with a donation of an Annual inspection) can get this done in short order. Thanks Eric!

Some lucky bidder will have a first rate maintainer work on his plane while supporting the Mooney Community !

[StevenL757]

1 hour ago, Alan Maurer said:

Hello Mooney People, Thinking about possibility of the upgrade? Does anyone know who or where this can be done? I understand it is not too difficult.

Take off roll shorter and improved ROC a good idea!

Thanks

Alan

Agree with @ilovecornfields in that a new prop would be a necessary but unfortunate new cost for your to lay out.  The STC is indeed around $5k, and you need to also ensure you have the proper instrumentation to display 2700RPM per the STC.  Expect to shave off around 500-700 feet of takeoff distance under nearly all conditions.  It truly is noticeable versus the 2500RPM option.

1 hour ago, ilovecornfields said:

Any MSC can get you the STC. If you go to the Mooney factory web page they should have a list of Mooney Service Centers. Make sure your propeller qualifies before you shell out the $5000 for the STC

Good call.

[LANCECASPER]

On 8/3/2023 at 6:33 PM, Alan Maurer said:

Hello Mooney People, Thinking about possibility of the upgrade? Does anyone know who or where this can be done? I understand it is not too difficult.

Take off roll shorter and improved ROC a good idea!

Thanks

Alan

If N913ND is your Ovation you're good on the prop - you have the 3 blade Hartzell Top Prop.

You need the STC ($5000 negotiable) , the G1000 profile changed over to the Ovation 3 so it shows 2700 rpm ($ minimal) and you need the spring changed in your prop governor (roughly $1000-$1200).

[Jeff Uphoff]

I have a 310HP STC'd Ovation (by serial number the first Ovation2 off Kerrville's line, now effectively an Ovation3), and the runway and climb performance are truly something. Absolutely love this airplane!  

[William Munney]

Keeping mine at 280 HP.  It would require a $5000-6000 STC, engine instruments, and a new prop in my case……..for 500-700 ft of runway performance and some climb?  Isn’t the TBO lower as well with the higher RPM limit?

I suppose if temps or density altitudes or field lengths for the airports you visit are requiring this it’s a nice option.  Otherwise, in my mind, the dollar for benefit scale doesn’t tip in the right direction.  Nice to have the option though.

[LANCECASPER]

17 minutes ago, William Munney said:

Isn’t the TBO lower as well with the higher RPM limit?

No

[Cruiser]

in fact, the only thing you gain is actual operation between 2500 RPM and 2700 RPM. The rest is just numbers on a piece of paper. 
If you don't need the change in prop and takeoff performance the rest of the operation should be the same. 

[PMcClure]

I am still in the process of getting all the pieces together to upgrade our ovation with the 310hp. I checked with 2 different well known service centers and have been quoted  more for the STC. For you guys mentioning $5,000, can you list the best source? Hate to pay more for "paperwork". Thanks. @William Munney @LANCECASPER @StevenL757 @ilovecornfields

[LANCECASPER]

2 hours ago, PMcClure said:

I am still in the process of getting all the pieces together to upgrade our ovation with the 310hp. I checked with 2 different well known service centers and have been quoted  more for the STC. For you guys mentioning $5,000, can you list the best source? Hate to pay more for "paperwork". Thanks. @William Munney @LANCECASPER @StevenL757 @ilovecornfields

I would call around to Mooney Service Centers to see who offers the best price. The first callI would make would be JD at SW Texas Aviation in Smithville TX  (https://www.swta.net/)

 

I will say this though, having done the conversion on an Ovation back in 2014, if you are operating out of a runway of 3000 ft or more, and you already have the Top Prop, although the 2700 rpm is nice to have, for me I found out that it really wasn't necessary. The extra climb is nice, but the 280 hp is still impressive. However if I had a 244hp Eagle for sure I would do it.

[StevenL757]

14 hours ago, William Munney said:

Isn’t the TBO lower as well with the higher RPM limit?

No.  It remains the same at 2000TBO.  Engines above a certain serial number (generally those made after ~2012'ish) actually have 2200-hour TBO limits...whether they're rated for 2500 or 2700RPM.

[William Munney]

22 minutes ago, StevenL757 said:

No.  It remains the same at 2000TBO.  Engines above a certain serial number (generally those made after ~2012'ish) actually have 2200-hour TBO limits...whether they're rated for 2500 or 2700RPM.

Thanks.  That is good to know.  So, a factory new 280hp will have 2200 TBO?

[StevenL757]

Yessir.

[LANCECASPER]

7 hours ago, William Munney said:

Thanks.  That is good to know.  So, a factory new 280hp will have 2200 TBO?

Sort of.

Continental says 2200 Hr TBO or 12 years, whichever comes first so if you are flying 183 hours per year you get a 2200 hour TBO

https://continental.aero/uploadedFiles/Content/Engines/Gasoline_engines/550AvGas-SpecSheet.pdf

[William Munney]

OK.  Still.  The old TBO was 2000 i believe so I’m really happy with 2200.

[LANCECASPER]

On 10/10/2023 at 4:28 PM, William Munney said:

OK.  Still.  The old TBO was 2000 i believe so I’m really happy with 2200.

It was a marketing ploy really. The old TBO was 2000 hours or 12 years, whichever comes first (167 hours/yr). The new TBO is 2200 hours or 12 years, whichever comes first (183 hours/yr). 

Based on the hours that owner-flown GA piston airplanes fly, the TBO is 12 years either way for 95% of us.

[William Munney]

166 vs 183.  Still, I’m going to go with…..WOW….200 extra hours!  Ha ha. 

[AIREMATT]

Does the TBO even matter if the engine is still running well at 2000 or 2200 hours?

[LANCECASPER]

1 hour ago, AIREMATT said:

Does the TBO even matter if the engine is still running well at 2000 or 2200 hours?

No, the extra 200 had nothing to do with anything except marketing - trying to get people to go with a factory engine rather than having another shop do the overhaul.

[Cruiser]

the extra 200 hours says a lot about the ability of the engine to perform that many hours. Continental did not change anything to the engine or components when they changed the TBO. It was a decision based on years of performance data. No new materials, no tighter tolerances, no design changes.
What that means is your current 2000 TBO is just as good as the new 2200 TBO (or 2400 TBO) engines currently being built by Continental.

 

[Fly Boomer]

On 10/11/2023 at 8:44 PM, AIREMATT said:

Does the TBO even matter if the engine is still running well at 2000 or 2200 hours?

Mike Busch doesn't think so.  He flew one of the engines (turbo 520) on his 310 to 5,000.  That said, he also doesn't push his engines, watches temperatures closely, does oil analysis at every oil change, etc.  He has said he is much more interested in longevity than speed.