NEW NEWS FROM LASAR AND MOONEY AS OF 10/2/2025

[Sabremech]

38 minutes ago, Pinecone said:

You have to be very careful with making more than a part for YOUR airplane.

They group that tried this with the J bar locks ran into issues.

Yes and no. There’s issues between FSDO’s and MIDO on this. To this day, FSDO’s are saying at IA renewal clinics that owners can get together to share in the cost of making the same unavailable part as a group. So, do we need to ask every FSDO and every MIDO if they agree on this or just the one covering the geographical area you are in?  
All communications with the FAA in regards to parts should be recorded or in e-mail format only because it’s likely you’ll need to remind them of what they said! 

[1980Mooney]

1 hour ago, Paul Thomas said:

You'd think it would be easy to sell the most in demand parts that have long lead times, like an intake boot...

I just don't think Mooney/LASAR have it as easy as people think. While it appears from the outside they could be managed better, I also believe that they have people who are doing the best they can.

Mooney doesn't make the Intake Boot.  They buy it from a third party supplier "Aeroduct"..  This has nothing to do with the Factory. It is just a matter of placing an order.

[1980Mooney]

19 hours ago, Fritz1 said:

If the installed base is 7500 airplanes and each is worth $100k that makes an installed base worth $750M. What percentage of the base does it take to fix the problem? 1%? 2%? The financials indicate that a solution will be found that keeps the fleet in the air

 

4 hours ago, Paul Thomas said:

You'd think it would be easy to sell the most in demand parts that have long lead times, like an intake boot...

I just don't think Mooney/LASAR have it as easy as people think. While it appears from the outside they could be managed better, I also believe that they have people who are doing the best they can.

Good point.  I searched the US, Canada and Australian Registries.  There are 6,823 Mooney's registered in those 3 countries.  Obviously there are a few more in Europe and with less in South America and Africa.

• 159 are not M20 - they are the Mooney version of Ercoupe, A10's, M18's and M22's
• 96 are wood wing M20 and M20A
• 2,431 are Short Body
  • 116 M20B
  • 1.351 M20C
  • 88 M20D
  • 876 M20E
• 3,212 are Mid Body
  • 770 M20F
  • 126 M20G
  • 1,492 M20J
  • 824 M20K
• Only 925 are Long Body
  • 17 M20L
  • 263 M20M
  • 427 M20R
  • 60 M20S
  • 128 M20TN
  • 12 M20U
  • 18 M20V

So it seems logical that the greatest number with the greatest need should get priority attention if funds are made available.  

Luckily there is some commonality of parts "in the fleet".  If you look at wing and tail assembly part numbers on the Long Bodies, you can see the M and early R's have many exactly the same part numbers and the later R's and TN seem to share the same part numbers.  Of course the engine mounts are unique to each model.  Maybe some things can be made in larger quantities and put on the shelf.  But with only 128 Acclaims in the world (maybe a few more in Europe, etc) for instance, why would Mooney/LASAR build Acclaim engine mounts in advance?.  They might sit forever. Seems better to build to order on demand.

I suspect that there is more commonality amongst the Mid Bodies as a group and also amongst the Short Bodies as a group.   Combined with the much greater numbers in the fleet, it would seem that these groups need immediate attention. @Fritz1 is hopeful that a $900K infusion by Owners or some other "financial solution" will put parts for his Bravo on the shelf, but the need for the rest of the fleet is as great or greater.

@Paul Thomas is likely right "I just don't think Mooney/LASAR have it as easy as people think".

 

[1980Mooney]

On 10/3/2025 at 12:31 PM, Marc_B said:

Lasar website no longer has a link for Parts.  Curious if the direct to consumer parts has changed?

The Parts page is gone.  There is no drop-down, no place holder, nothing.   It used to be a good resource even if parts were not in stock. If pricing is in flux, I could understand if the prices were blank but everything is gone.  I am surprised that the letter to owners did not address how this fits in with "modernizing the online experience for owners".

If you click on a former LASAR "Parts" link on Google, this is what you get:

Edited Thursday at 06:44 AM by 1980Mooney

[Paul Thomas]

I saw a video from Tampa's money event where Lasar mentioned subscriptions but didn't offer any details. What do we know about their subscription model?

[1980Mooney]

17 minutes ago, Paul Thomas said:

I saw a video from Tampa's money event where Lasar mentioned subscriptions but didn't offer any details. What do we know about their subscription model?

Subscription for what?….

[varlajo]

13 minutes ago, 1980Mooney said:

Subscription for what?….

$99/year for the ignition key to turn, $199/year includes twelve free mag checks!! 

[MikeOH]

6 hours ago, varlajo said:

$99/year for the ignition key to turn, $199/year includes twelve free mag checks!! 

Is that before or after their 30% price increase?

[varlajo]

1 hour ago, MikeOH said:

Is that before or after their 30% price increase?

Don't give them ideas!!

[LANCECASPER]

 

[MikeOH]

2 hours ago, varlajo said:

Don't give them ideas!!

They already announced it!

[Mark89114]

Was not impressed with LASAR part support before this co-partnership.  Hope it works.

[Marc_B]

Lasar was unique as they offered a direct to owner service with a solid online setup. That set them apart from other Mooney Service Centers.  So if they keep that as well as being the point person for all Mooney factory orders they will continue to fill a need to the Mooney community. 

[anthonydesmet]

On 10/3/2025 at 1:55 PM, Ryan ORL said:

This sure is a cynical group.  Personally, I would rather have expensive-but-available Mooney parts than cheap-but-unavailable parts.  I only rarely need actual Mooney parts but when I do need them, it's usually something standing between me and actually using my airplane.

Agree. I’m thankful that folks have the brass ones big enough to try it in this uncertainty….economy, not knowing where 100LL is headed, insurance, legality, etc. 

if someone has a better idea, the resources and the courage to take the step then please do…..at least you would create competition….if not let’s hope this works out for the sake of all our Mooneys.