Jay Maynard wrote:
On 2008-01-21, Jim Stewart wrote:
On the plus side, plugs cost $3/each and it only takes an hour to do plugs
and oil.

Yeah, but will I have to take it to my nearest Rotax service center to get
that done?

Nope, a one hour job to do it yourself.
I did mine a couple weeks ago. All you
need is a flat-blade screwdriver to get
the cowls off, a wrench for the plugs,
oil drain and magnetic plug and a pair
of safety wire pliers. Feeler gauges to
check the plug gaps and some anti-seize
compound doesn't hurt either.

2000 RPM idle is fine. 2500 is good for warmup.

The comment I got a few times was that idling below 2500 will eventually
result in a broken crank.

My tach is red-banded below 1800 rpm, and yellow
between 1800 and 2000. Running below 1800
for extended time will shorten the life of the
reduction gears. Never heard anything about
broken cranks.

Pluses for the Rotax are no thermal shock issues,

Why not?

Liquid coolant in the heads.

will allegedly run for 30 minutes at 50% power with either oil or coolant
gone, and 5 gallon/hr cruise.

As opposed to 5.5 in the O-200. That's a negligible difference.

Cruise might be, but how long can the O-200
run without oil pressure? This, btw was a
major selling point for me. The common wisdom
with a 912 is that a coolant or lube failure
will still let you fly to a developed airport
and land. The engine might need a rebuild,
but it will keep running and develop at least
partial power.

No mixture control.

What leans the mixture at altitude?

The carbs.

As for support, I've had no problems with my 912 so I don't have any
direct experience. I know that the west coast FlightDesign distributer
has worked closely with Rotax on some safety directive issues and has
gotten parts and support quickly.

If I break a crank, or blow a jug, how long will it take to get parts? I was
told that people are waitiing 6 months for jugs because Rotax is putting all
it can make on new engines.

Can't answer to that. Everyone I know that
has a 912 has had no problems with it.

Call up Lockwood or Airwolf and ask them how
often they sell a crank or a cylinder. Then
ask how long it takes to get one.