Short list wanted - popular 4-seat single engine land

[Tuno]

New to powered flight. It's a jungle out there.

Seeking the short list of the most popular 4-seat single engine
aircraft made in the last ~20 years. What are the best options?

(Used, fixed gear.)

::tuno

[Eric Bartsch]

On Jul 20, 7:40 pm, Tuno > wrote:
> New to powered flight. It's a jungle out there.
>
> Seeking the short list of the most popular 4-seat single engine
> aircraft made in the last ~20 years. What are the best options?
>
> (Used, fixed gear.)
>
> ::tuno

Tough question, but the short list of fixed gear 4 seaters would look
something like:

Cessna 172
Cessna 182
Piper Warrior/Archer/Dakota
Beech Sundowner
Socata Tobago/Tampico
Diamond DA-40
Cirrus SR-20 & SR-22

If you really want to take 4 people and luggage somewhere, then you
wouldprobably also want to look at fixed gear 6 seaters like:

Cessna 206
Piper Cherokee Six

The best options really depend on how many people will typically be in
the plane, how much stuff you want to take along, budget, and personal
preferences on things like high vs. low wing. If your budget is lower,
then you are probably looking at older used Cessnas or Pipers.
Diamonds and Cirrus' haven't been on the market very long so the used
ones are still fairly expensive. I'd recommend finding places to rent
a Cessna 172 and a Piper Warrior or Archer (comparable 4 seaters that
are easy to rent), and taking a flight in each to try them out. These
should be easy to find for rent and they will give you an idea of what
they are like. If you decide those aren't big enough, then find a
Cessna 182 to rent (also fairly easy to find for rental). If the 182
isn't big enough, then find someone who owns a Cherokee Six or 206 and
at least sit in it to see how much bigger they are (not as easy to
find these for rent). Not sure if this helps...

Eric

[Jim Logajan]

Eric Bartsch > wrote:
> On Jul 20, 7:40 pm, Tuno > wrote:
>> Seeking the short list of the most popular 4-seat single engine
>> aircraft made in the last ~20 years. What are the best options?
>>
>> (Used, fixed gear.)
>
> Tough question,

Indeed.

> but the short list of fixed gear 4 seaters would look
> something like:
>
> Cessna 172
> Cessna 182
> Piper Warrior/Archer/Dakota
> Beech Sundowner
> Socata Tobago/Tampico
> Diamond DA-40
> Cirrus SR-20 & SR-22

Not sure if there are a lot of them in the "used" classifieds yet, but
there are also a bunch of fine homebuilt models that would fit the 4-seat
single engine aircraft requirement and made in the last 20 years: Murphy
Moose, Jabiru J-400 and J-450, Van's RV-10, Glasair Sportsman 2+2, etc.

[Tina]

They may not have been built in the last 20 years, but wouldn't the
Piper 28's in the 140 and especially the 180 horsepower versions fit
into this group?

On Jul 20, 8:49 pm, Jim Logajan > wrote:
> Eric Bartsch > wrote:
> > On Jul 20, 7:40 pm, Tuno > wrote:
> >> Seeking the short list of the most popular 4-seat single engine
> >> aircraft made in the last ~20 years. What are the best options?
>
> >> (Used, fixed gear.)
>
> > Tough question,
>
> Indeed.
>
> > but the short list of fixed gear 4 seaters would look
> > something like:
>
> > Cessna 172
> > Cessna 182
> > Piper Warrior/Archer/Dakota
> > Beech Sundowner
> > Socata Tobago/Tampico
> > Diamond DA-40
> > Cirrus SR-20 & SR-22
>
> Not sure if there are a lot of them in the "used" classifieds yet, but
> there are also a bunch of fine homebuilt models that would fit the 4-seat
> single engine aircraft requirement and made in the last 20 years: Murphy
> Moose, Jabiru J-400 and J-450, Van's RV-10, Glasair Sportsman 2+2, etc.

[Paul Tomblin]

In a previous article, Tina > said:
>They may not have been built in the last 20 years, but wouldn't the
>Piper 28's in the 140 and especially the 180 horsepower versions fit
>into this group?

Well, the already mentioned Warrior and Archer are Piper 28s in that
horsepower range. But I wouldn't try putting anything but small children
in the back of a 140.

>> > Piper Warrior/Archer/Dakota

--
Paul Tomblin > http://blog.xcski.com/
a) log a message at user.emerg of the form "DANGER! MORON ON /dev/pts/1"
b) print to stderr "NO! WRONG! TOTALLY WRONG! WHERE'D YOU LEARN THIS?
STOP DOING IT!" -- Jeremiah Weiner

[Bob Noel]

In article >,
(Paul Tomblin) wrote:

> In a previous article, Tina > said:
> >They may not have been built in the last 20 years, but wouldn't the
> >Piper 28's in the 140 and especially the 180 horsepower versions fit
> >into this group?
>
> Well, the already mentioned Warrior and Archer are Piper 28s in that
> horsepower range. But I wouldn't try putting anything but small children
> in the back of a 140.

also, the pa-28-140 has, ahem, limited useful load.

--
Bob Noel
(goodness, please trim replies!!!)

[Howard Nelson]

"Tina" > wrote in message
ups.com...
> They may not have been built in the last 20 years, but wouldn't the
> Piper 28's in the 140 and especially the 180 horsepower versions fit
> into this group?

To answer that question for this thread just run the peformance numbers for
a 180hp SEL aircraft at gross in South Lake Tahoe on an summer day with OAT
90F. The poster talked about a family of 4 on 1000NM trips in the SW USA.
Even C182's are struggling in those conditions and I depart in Mornings or
evenings from that location.