Based off of my club in TX? The 10 hour thing seems to be standard with zero experience in a particular airframe. Insurance companies are the driving factor on the 10 hour thing. See if you can find some Cirrus owners out there in your area, get them to take you up and split the cost/time. You can log it and this will fit down your 10 hour requirement for the clubs insurance.

Give yourself a big jump start by using a G1000 simulator before ever getting in the Cirrus. If you have the buttonology down pat that should cut your checkout time quite a bit.

How is everyone ruling out the slower plane without knowing how many miles he flies?

He listed all of his usual trips in post 12.

Cirrus. The cabin width is amazing. Those planes pretty much ruin the experience in almost any other piston single

How about telling them you’ll pay in 10 hour blocks - may get a decent discount that way. Take the Cirrus, the Arrow would be a looooong flight to Dallas.

He listed all of his usual trips in post 12.

That's a great idea except for the down time when I'm away from the plane. I usually fly there in the morning and have meetings all day and fly back late in the day or some time the next. I suppose I'd have to pay for the time the CFI was sitting around which might kill the advantage. If I had a quick in and out with limited standby time that would be a great option.

That seems like a pretty high hourly cost for the Cirrus. You appear to fly quite a bit and this is a business expense. Even if you aren't sure you want to eventually go the route of a Cirrus as your next aircraft, you might end up money ahead if you go to your local bank, get a loan and buy a lightly used FIKI Cirrus, depreciate it while you fly as a legitimate business expense, and when you are ready to make a decision, either keep the plane if you really liked it or sell it and buy your next bird. You've got up to 7 years of depreciation wherein you may be able to "charge" yourself quite a bit more than it actually costs to operate it as a pre-tax expense. Check with your accountant, but renting any such business asset is often a loosing proposition compared to owning it, depreciating it, then selling it.

I have seen a Part 135 SR-22T with a $550/hour rate but never have seen that on the line for rental. Most of the rates here in Northern VA are around $235-$265/hr Dry for a newer SR-22T with FIKI. That is around $350/hr wet. Instructors are around $60-$75.

Granted, those owners may be pricing in the dents, dings, rips, tears, and filthiness their $500k-$750k shiny new steed is going to get sitting on the line. At least they can take the depreciation dependent upon how they structure it. I have flown an Anesthesiologists 182 and it was under a business and not an individual, so he likely got to use depreciation to offset the cost. ...but his hourly rate was reasonable and didn't seem like "go away" rates.

When I rented the Cirrus they required you complete the full CSIP course just like you would if you bought one. Took met about 15 of dual to do it.

For business travel, I would go with the 22T. I don't think the 10 hrs. dual is excessive for that airframe, even for an experienced pilot. It is complex (even though it doesn't count as such), slick, and if you fly it by the numbers is a beautiful plane. There are ways that the plane will bite you if you don't know how to fly it. That is where the transition training with a CSIP is, if not mandatory, highly recommended. Yes more-so that other piston singles. I have about 550 hours in them. Great planes, but it is not a PA28 or C182, that any Tom Dick or Sally can get in and "wing" it.

When I rented the Cirrus they required you complete the full CSIP course just like you would if you bought one. Took met about 15 of dual to do it.

Spend some time in a simulator, Get the system down and be proficient with them.
Once you are ready, your checkout will be a lot less.
Make sure that they have enough planes so you do get stuck if they take one one out of the club, that you do not waste time in the checkout.
Happened to me a couple of times a while back. Really sucks when you spend whole bunch of money in the checkout and jump through all the loops...
540$ seems to be insanely expensive though... That is even higher than what I pay in France for a almost new Cirrus...