GFC 500 Fails

[donkaye]

I had one of the first installations of the GFC 500 in the Bravo in June of 2019.  After some initial issues, it has been rock solid and I thought I would get away with waiting the 5 years Garmin gave us before replacing the servos, some of which were defective in their early models.

So it was very disappointing to turn on the avionics a couple of days ago and be alerted to a "Roll servo hardware fault".  

Out of curiosity has anyone had a hardware fault and been able to fix it without servo replacement?

[BlueSky247]

That's a bummer. Hopefully you can get that resolved without a lot of downtime or expense. Looking forward to hearing the solution.

[dzeleski]

37 minutes ago, donkaye said:

I had one of the first installations of the GFC 500 in the Bravo in June of 2019.  After some initial issues, it has been rock solid and I thought I would get away with waiting the 5 years Garmin gave us before replacing the servos, some of which were defective in their early models.

So it was very disappointing to turn on the avionics a couple of days ago and be alerted to a "Roll servo hardware fault".  

Out of curiosity has anyone had a hardware fault and been able to fix it without servo replacement?

Sorry

Have you recently upgraded your software? The latest versions better detect failing hardware. A power cycle might get it back but it will probably fail again.

If it makes you feel any better the servo swaps are really quick, I had my airplane back within 24 hours of dropping it off. Call your dealer and have them order all the servos, they might even have some on the shelf. My bill was a total of $0.

Edited October 17, 2024 by dzeleski

[donkaye]

7 minutes ago, dzeleski said:

Sorry

Have you recently upgraded your software? The latest versions better detect failing hardware. A power cycle might get it back but it will probably fail again.

If it makes you feel any better the servo swaps are really quick, I had my airplane back within 24 hours of dropping it off. Call your dealer and have them order all the servos, they might even have some on the shelf. My bill was a total of $0.

Thanks.

[PT20J]

Greg Baker told me that the problem with the servos was a bad mechanical part - a bearing if I recall correctly. So, it’s probably dead.

[Z W]

Had a similar fault last month, but it was the pitch trim servo.  Also a 2019 GFC500 install.

Emailed the dealer/installer a picture of the fault, he ordered three new servos, replaced under warranty.  Plane was in and out in a day.  He didn't send me a bill.

[Marc_B]

@donkaye I've had the same curiosity as to when I'll be up for replacing them...at failure or prophylactically?  I guess you know it's time when it's time!  I had to do a double take as 5 years from 2019 was this year.  But the SB was 5 years from the date of the bulletin (5/4/2023).  Five years in service on a set of servos in the affected range sounds like a good run.  I think that a lot of pilots may be playing the same game of waiting until failure to replace vs just getting them replaced as there is a significant difference in the warranty time pre and post replacement (warranty good thru 5/4/2028 vs good for 6 more months).

But it's good to hear feedback on what failed, when and if it was a significant issues with flight!

https://support.garmin.com/en-US/aviation/faq/yG9YhFImtt8XiNr8uLLUA6/

[donkaye]

6 hours ago, Marc_B said:

@donkaye I've had the same curiosity as to when I'll be up for replacing them...at failure or prophylactically?  I guess you know it's time when it's time!  I had to do a double take as 5 years from 2019 was this year.  But the SB was 5 years from the date of the bulletin (5/4/2023).  Five years in service on a set of servos in the affected range sounds like a good run.  I think that a lot of pilots may be playing the same game of waiting until failure to replace vs just getting them replaced as there is a significant difference in the warranty time pre and post replacement (warranty good thru 5/4/2028 vs good for 6 more months).

But it's good to hear feedback on what failed, when and if it was a significant issues with flight!

https://support.garmin.com/en-US/aviation/faq/yG9YhFImtt8XiNr8uLLUA6/

Actually, in thinking about the warranty, maybe I should just replace the one that failed.  OTOH, having a failure when on a long trip would not be pleasant.  I think I'll continue to have them all replaced.