Cost of annual?

What does it cost for your annual?
Some shops around here now give an estimate then add for parts and extra labor.
I think some shops like to make a killing. I want all the airworthy item taken
care of and AD's complied with, but would pay by the hour.
I have a Cessna 172 in good shape.

(Hankal) writes:

What does it cost for your annual?

Two hundred bucks and a six pack of diet coke.

See http://www.rstengineering.com/annual for more details. I just
completed my second annual on my Skylane, with Jim Weir inspecting and
me trading sweat equity for dollars in my wallet. Worked out great.

-jav

Javier Henderson wrote:

(Hankal) writes:


What does it cost for your annual?


Two hundred bucks and a six pack of diet coke.

See http://www.rstengineering.com/annual for more details. I just
completed my second annual on my Skylane, with Jim Weir inspecting and
me trading sweat equity for dollars in my wallet. Worked out great.

-jav

Yes, but Jim is a cheap date! :-)

Seriously, my lowest cost Skylane annual was $600 and my highest was
nearly $3,000 which included replacing a cylinder and cracked piston
and some other significant items. Whether you technically consider that
cost part of the annual depends on your persepctive I guess. I never
assisted in any of the annuals.


Matt

Seriously, my lowest cost Skylane annual was $600 and my highest was
nearly $3,000 which included replacing a cylinder and cracked piston
and some other significant items. Whether you technically consider that

My first annual was $14850.00 by a shop that did the prebuy. The price went
from 10K at 5 pm to 14850.00 by 7 PM. When I ask "why" they said we found some
things. They did not even work after 5.
Most of the $$$ was for labor. Like 55 hours of inspection, after the prebuy.
So now I am real cautious and no one will get my logs until I get the bill.
Hank

My first annual was $14850.00 by a shop that did the prebuy. The price went
from 10K at 5 pm to 14850.00 by 7 PM. When I ask "why" they said we found
some
things. They did not even work after 5.
Most of the $$$ was for labor. Like 55 hours of inspection, after the prebuy.

Sounds like you bought a neglected twin or a really neglected complex single.
There are pre buys and there are pre buys. My company is owned by a large
corporation and they don't even want us to call it a pre buy or pre purchase
inspection. If the customer wants to call it that then I have to do a complete
annual inspection. I can do an aircraft evaluation but I can't call it a pre
buy inspection. Seems they got sued for just the sort of situation you are
describing.

As for the price jumping nearly $5,000 it is not unheard of but it is
inexcusable that they could not tell you sooner or explain it more fully.

John Dupre'

"Hankal" wrote in message
...
What does it cost for your annual?
Some shops around here now give an estimate then add for parts and extra
labor.
I think some shops like to make a killing. I want all the airworthy item
taken
care of and AD's complied with, but would pay by the hour.
I have a Cessna 172 in good shape.

My 'normal' annual costs $450 plus parts (10 hours at $45/hr). My first one
was right around $450, the next one was almost $1,800 with tires, window
replacement and some other squawks, my last one was again around $450. This
is on a 58 year old plane. I drop the plane off and come back a few days
later, pay the bill and leave. If you assist, you can save more money.

Where are you located? It might make a difference if you are in the
boondocks compared to the metro areas as to availability of inspectors and
costs. Check around and find one that works well for you.

whoa!!!! please remember that "annual" refers to the inspection only.
Any repairs, new gadgets, etc, are not officially part of
the annual.

Unfortunately all of us refer to "the annual" as the number at the
bottom of the bill that includes everything, not just the inspection.

whoa!!!! please remember that "annual" refers to the inspection only.
Any repairs, new gadgets, etc, are not officially part of
the annual.

So how many hours does it take to inspect a Cessna 172. I do not rent the
plane, but have a 100 hour inspection done every 100 hours. Change the oil and
filter every 50 hours or less, Send oil to lab every 100 hours.
I do not think 55 hours at $70.00 is resonable for an inspection

So how many hours does it take to inspect a Cessna 172. I do not rent the
plane, but have a 100 hour inspection done every 100 hours. Change the oil
and
filter every 50 hours or less, Send oil to lab every 100 hours.
I do not think 55 hours at $70.00 is resonable for an inspection

Inspection of a 172 is about 10 or 12 hours including decowling and pulling
panels and interior. That time could go up if there are lots of STCs that
require separate inspections but not to 55 hours. If they put 55 hours on the
inspection entry that was wrong.

Depending on how time is recorded it is possible that mechanics were
incorrectly recording time against the inspection squawk that should have gone
elsewhere but that should have been resolved before you saw a bill.

John Dupre'

Hankal wrote:

I do not think 55 hours at $70.00 is resonable for an inspection

55 hours is absolute piracy for an inspection. If you do none of the grunt work at
all, a 172 should take about 15 hours. Check Jim Weir's post in this thread.

George Patterson
In Idaho, tossing a rattlesnake into a crowded room is felony assault.
In Tennessee, it's evangelism.