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Post by ChiMike on Dec 1, 2021 12:55:33 GMT
Cheap? There aren’t any legit certified LSA models out there that cost more than the P2008–and while it isn’t a $600,000 C172, I’ll take the better cruise speed, roomier cabin, and cost of ownership any day.
First, it’s an airplane: no aircraft out there is fault or issue free. The most sophisticated aircraft in the world are in the U.S. military and maintaining an operational readiness of better than 60% across the board has never been easily obtained.
As to being a ‘certificated’ aircraft, the P2008 is—both ESA and FAA as a Light Sport classification. Pretty much all the rules apply.
As to the Tecnam—they aren’t perfect. They sometimes do funny things with wear and tear because mechanics aren’t always diligent and pilots sometimes do funny things when they fly them.
The gripe list of issues—I have a few as well—are how all of us on this forum help each other doing preventative things. It keeps us flying and flying safely.
If you do come across the perfect airplane with no issues now or ever, please let us know. I’m going to make a bet that if forums like this existed back in the early 50’s, when Cessnas were few in number, there would be all sorts of things to talk about.
If you do buy a Tecnam you’ll get what all of us that have commented on this thread have found: nothing in its class can do more or flies better at a more affordable price. The operative words are ‘in its class’.
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Post by grantopperman on Dec 1, 2021 13:58:15 GMT
Good comments on this thread from all, and I agree mostly right on. Aircraft are amazing and maddening machines. I went through that combination of joy and heartache with my four Cirruses, with a 182 and now with my P2008.
I think we’re chasing the wrong concern, though. The biggest difference I have found in three years of Tecnam ownership is that when something DOES go wrong, I’m much more on my own to resolve it. In my SR22, I knew that Woodland Aviation had a ridiculous number of similar planes under their care. Whatever I had going wrong, they had seen it before—probably numerous times and recently. For the most part, maintenance was a case of take it in and get it fixed.
In the LSA world, there just isn’t as much expertise and experience. I’ve found that I have to make lots of calls and emails over a wider area in order to diagnose the problem. A few times, I’ve had issues that took multiple efforts to fix.
This isn’t Tecnam’s fault. For 2008 owners, there are only 70 of our birds on the registry. Even mechanics who do a lot of work similar planes and know the Rotax 9 series may not have seen our exact implementation before. The 914t is also sort of rare even beyond Tecnam. I have built up some decent resources for maintenance, but it has been a lot harder and I have flown further to chase down problems.
I do think Tecnam struggles with customer service and, sometimes, parts support. The US people are generally helpful, but there’s a cost to being in a lower-volume, lower-margin segment of the market. There just aren’t a lot of resources to build up a big service infrastructure.
With all of that, I understand the trade offs and am generally happy. My P2008 is one of the most stable and Part 23-like LSAs available. It’s also capable enough to be a good regional cross country solution. When I’m flying along at 120kts on 5gph behind my G3X panel, the day-to-day challenges of ownership seem far off, below and behind me.
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Post by cole505 on Dec 1, 2021 16:47:15 GMT
Good comments on this thread from all, and I agree mostly right on. Aircraft are amazing and maddening machines. I went through that combination of joy and heartache with my four Cirruses, with a 182 and now with my P2008. I think we’re chasing the wrong concern, though. The biggest difference I have found in three years of Tecnam ownership is that when something DOES go wrong, I’m much more on my own to resolve it. In my SR22, I knew that Woodland Aviation had a ridiculous number of similar planes under their care. Whatever I had going wrong, they had seen it before—probably numerous times and recently. For the most part, maintenance was a case of take it in and get it fixed. In the LSA world, there just isn’t as much expertise and experience. I’ve found that I have to make lots of calls and emails over a wider area in order to diagnose the problem. A few times, I’ve had issues that took multiple efforts to fix. This isn’t Tecnam’s fault. For 2008 owners, there are only 70 of our birds on the registry. Even mechanics who do a lot of work similar planes and know the Rotax 9 series may not have seen our exact implementation before. The 914t is also sort of rare even beyond Tecnam. I have built up some decent resources for maintenance, but it has been a lot harder and I have flown further to chase down problems. I do think Tecnam struggles with customer service and, sometimes, parts support. The US people are generally helpful, but there’s a cost to being in a lower-volume, lower-margin segment of the market. There just aren’t a lot of resources to build up a big service infrastructure. With all of that, I understand the trade offs and am generally happy. My P2008 is one of the most stable and Part 23-like LSAs available. It’s also capable enough to be a good regional cross country solution. When I’m flying along at 120kts on 5gph behind my G3X panel, the day-to-day challenges of ownership seem far off, below and behind me. Hi Grant, Very well stated! A very optimistic view on owning and maintaining the P-2008. I spent 20 years maintaining The F-16 Falcon C/D models a day and night difference on available support……….. As you stated if Tecnam would step up they’re customer service and support it would be extremely helpful to all of us that own and maintain our P-2008’s I am taking the 15 day SLSA maintenance course in Feb. regular A&P’s have very little to no experience with the Rotax engine and the light sport Air frame……. It will be such a pleasure to sign off my own condition inspection. Very frustrating to have to fix what the A&P’s break after you pay them good money to do a good job…….. Ray & Lucy ✅✈️😊🇺🇸👍🏻 |
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Post by Flocker on Dec 1, 2021 20:55:40 GMT
I purchased my P2008 (912iS) new in 2016. Yes, there were a few squawks here and there, but overall I am very pleased with the aircraft. PS - I was the guy with the cracked engine mount. I've never heard of anyone else having this, so I consider it a one-off. Tecnam did meet me halfway on the repair/replacement expense. (I was out of warranty). PS - I have nearly 1,100 hours on my bird and she still runs great. No regrets. Feel free to PM or call me with any questions.
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pv9
New Member
Posts: 41
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Post by pv9 on Dec 2, 2021 1:39:01 GMT
I purchased my P2008 (912iS) new in 2016. Yes, there were a few squawks here and there, but overall I am very pleased with the aircraft. PS - I was the guy with the cracked engine mount. I've never heard of anyone else having this, so I consider it a one-off. Tecnam did meet me halfway on the repair/replacement expense. (I was out of warranty). PS - I have nearly 1,100 hours on my bird and she still runs great. No regrets. Feel free to PM or call me with any questions. This is very generous and I may take you up on the offer. I did find one A&P in my area who has worked on the Rotax 912 but not the 914. He was willing to learn it but I’d be paying for his training. I am leaning towards the 2008 over the Sling LSA because of the 914. The Sling may be underpowered with the 912, especially on a 100 degree day which we get a lot of in CA. |
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Post by Flocker on Dec 2, 2021 1:53:29 GMT
pv9 - I'm also an iRMT so feel free to hit me up with any Rotax questions. I have experience with the 912/912iS/914 and 915iS engines.
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Post by grantopperman on Dec 2, 2021 13:40:32 GMT
pv9 - I'm also an iRMT so feel free to hit me up with any Rotax questions. I have experience with the 912/912iS/914 and 915iS engines. Flocker: You might not have wanted to disclose that publicly on this forum. Your life will never be the same again. I know I'll have questions.... |
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Post by ChiMike on Dec 2, 2021 14:54:43 GMT
I’m making a list
I’m checking it twice
I know Flocker is the answer
To whatever I ask!
Santa DID come to town!
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Post by FormerCirrus on Dec 2, 2021 17:05:48 GMT
Where in California, pv9? I fly out of Watsonville. Happy to take you flying. |
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Post by FormerCirrus on Dec 2, 2021 17:17:17 GMT
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Post by grantopperman on Dec 2, 2021 18:07:26 GMT
That’s right. I was commenting only on the availability of mechanics. But I am told that it’s the power for Predator drones. If it survives the rigors of military operations, that speaks volumes for its ruggedness and reliability. |
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ergo1
Junior Member
Posts: 51
Home Airport: KDXR
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Post by ergo1 on Dec 2, 2021 21:42:43 GMT
I purchased my P2008 (912iS) new in 2016. Yes, there were a few squawks here and there, but overall I am very pleased with the aircraft. PS - I was the guy with the cracked engine mount. I've never heard of anyone else having this, so I consider it a one-off. Tecnam did meet me halfway on the repair/replacement expense. (I was out of warranty). PS - I have nearly 1,100 hours on my bird and she still runs great. No regrets. Feel free to PM or call me with any questions. This is very generous and I may take you up on the offer. I did find one A&P in my area who has worked on the Rotax 912 but not the 914. He was willing to learn it but I’d be paying for his training. I am leaning towards the 2008 over the Sling LSA because of the 914. The Sling may be underpowered with the 912, especially on a 100 degree day which we get a lot of in CA. I am an ex-Cirrus owner - three aircraft over a 14 year period but became bored with the plane. After a lot of research and test flying, I settled on the Tecnam P2008T. I only fly in hot weather and find the turbo to give me more boost than expected on takeoff - it does provide me with additional safety and comfort. The turbo also helps with climbing if in a pinch. I also find that this user group is a great resource for any problems that arise post closing. So far, I’m really enjoying my plane. My biggest complaint, as echoed by others, the lack of involvement with Tecnam USA with answering questions and feedback about the aircraft. They have a good product, it should be promoted more. Whatever plane you choose, enjoy the journey - it can be a-lot of fun. |
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pv9
New Member
Posts: 41
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Post by pv9 on Dec 3, 2021 1:53:38 GMT
This is very generous and I may take you up on the offer. I did find one A&P in my area who has worked on the Rotax 912 but not the 914. He was willing to learn it but I’d be paying for his training. I am leaning towards the 2008 over the Sling LSA because of the 914. The Sling may be underpowered with the 912, especially on a 100 degree day which we get a lot of in CA. I am an ex-Cirrus owner - three aircraft over a 14 year period but became bored with the plane. After a lot of research and test flying, I settled on the Tecnam P2008T. I only fly in hot weather and find the turbo to give me more boost than expected on takeoff - it does provide me with additional safety and comfort. The turbo also helps with climbing if in a pinch. I also find that this user group is a great resource for any problems that arise post closing. So far, I’m really enjoying my plane. My biggest complaint, as echoed by others, the lack of involvement with Tecnam USA with answering questions and feedback about the aircraft. They have a good product, it should be promoted more. Whatever plane you choose, enjoy the journey - it can be a-lot of fun. Do you mean that Tecnam has been less responsive? I found it extremely hard to actually find someone to sell me the aircraft. Am leaning towards buying it with a 914 turbo. However, none of the dealers actually want to sell you one. I have calls into two dealers who have not responded. Either they are making money hand over fist so they don’t need me, or there’s a different issue  At this point I am dealing directly with the folks at their US headquarters who are very helpful. |
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pv9
New Member
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Post by pv9 on Dec 3, 2021 1:56:27 GMT
Where in California, pv9? I fly out of Watsonville. Happy to take you flying. KPAO. Watsonville is the Wild West! I landed there a couple of times during my PPL training. Would love to see the P2008. |
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Post by FormerCirrus on Dec 3, 2021 17:21:01 GMT
Wow .. I live in Los Altos. Call or text at 650-808-0206. Sunday looks like a great day to fly.
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