New Engine vs Overhaul

[LANCECASPER]

On 6/24/2024 at 9:33 AM, jlunseth said:

If I had it to do over again I would have done a field overhaul with a reputable overhauler.

You have Bolduc near you. Everything I've heard about the engines they have done have been excellent. Probably not any less money that factory though.

https://www.bolducaviation.com/

[T. Peterson]

On 6/24/2024 at 9:33 AM, jlunseth said:

I went through this last year, or should I say the last two years. Bought a new engine from TCM. The price difference between Reman and new was small, as I recall the 7500 someone mentioned is about right. Not stated so far is that you get all new peripherals with a new engine. So, for example, are you going to simply take the old alternator off and put it back on the reman or rebuild? The alternator, and especially the coupler, are a weak point in the engine and you really need to replace those. One of the things I have liked about the new engine is that the alternator is much better than what we used to have on these engines. The old alternators would not charge at an idle speed of below about 1100 rpms, so taxi was always at that speed or higher. The new alternator charges down to 900 something. On the other hand, the 12 weeks someone mentioned does not fit my experience. We ordered the engine from TCM in early 2022 and it was supposed to be delivered in about 8 months. Planned ahead so the new engine would be there when the next annual was due. TCM then went through the crankshaft weight AD in 2023 which did not affect the 360LB except that TCM was tearing down Cirrus engines for months. So actual delivery was a year after the order. The aircraft went out of annual in April so I flew it to the shop and it sat until the very late new engine showed up. Then of course the engine needs to get installed and there will be gremlins in any project of that magnitude. If I had it to do over again I would have done a field overhaul with a reputable overhauler. Also, the new engine price is net of your core trade-in, in other words you don’t pay 81k and get a 20k core value. You pay 81k. 

I do like the new engine. CHTs are cooler, the new alternator is nice, etc. But the aircraft was out of service for nearly all of 2023. Here in MN, it is not easy to fly a 231 from November to April because of icing conditions, so of course, the aircraft went into the shop late March-early April and then sat all summer waiting for the engine and then the install, and then came out in December when it was difficult to fly again.

Maybe it was just my experience, but service has been awful especially on large projects needing skilled labor, since the pandemic. Expect a painful experience.

Thank you for contributing your comments. I am sure it will be a painful experience as almost every interaction with maintenance folks is a long drawn out expensive evolution. Oftentimes the results are less than optimal, but I just come to expect some degree of disappointment. There are exceptions for which I am grateful.

I have decided to go with a Western Skyways engine and I am having it done by a shop that has so far done excellent work.

 I appreciate your comments and all the feedback I have received on this forum.

[jlunseth]

@LANCECASPER +1 on Bolduc. They are at KANE. I had to do an IRAN on the old engine several years ago. They did a super job. Bruce Jaeger was my instructor for my commercial after that, rode in the plane several times, and said it was the smoothest running 231 engine he had ever experienced. I should have just done an overhaul there, I liked that old engine.

To the OP, on the cost of an overhaul v. new, you really need to go over carefully with the overhauler what is in the price. For example, what about the “spider” - the fuel distribution system. Is that in the overhaul, or are you going to have to send it to a shop and pay them. Overhaul shops don’t usually do fuel system work. Then what is schedule for completion and the reputation of the second shop. Same for the turbo, alternator, exhaust, injectors. I think you will find you get a lot less in a field overhaul than you expect. When I did the IRAN with Bolduc (see above) we sent the spider and the turbo out to other shops. The turbo shop was fast. The spider was slow and was not right the first two times it came back. And of course you don’t find that one of the peripherals was done wrong until the overhauled engine comes back and goes in the aircraft. It’s a piecemeal approach and you, or your mechanic, are in charge of piecing it all together.

[William Munney]

I just went through this with the purchase of a 1996 Ovation last fall.  I ended up buying a factory NEW IO550 from Continental.

Field overhaul times were unknown and widely ranging….  and still very expensive.  Factory remanufactured engines were not much less than factory new engines when I bought mine.  And, I got a longer warranty, a 2200 hour TBO and all new accessories with the factory NEW motor.  Finally, there is something just great about sitting behind a new motor.  I’m pretty sure it doesn’t hurt resale either.

It’s a large amount up front.  No doubt.  I don’t regret it at all.  About 25 hours on it so far.  Smooth.