39 pages, I’m about worn out. I’m sure the G5 (Tony, for a while I thought you were talking about a Gulfstream) is a wonderful piece of technology and a pretty good airplane. But, I don’t give a second look at any Cirrus on the ramp and have no desire for one. What do you guys think the price of always taking a second look at your Bo on the walk to the FBO is worth along with everything that means?

Can't...........stop..............reading.............must look away.....................food.............sleep......................wait..........another page now. Hit next...............help me

In the gaggle of cars I have collected, I have a Honda Accord and a classic Porsche 911 covertible. I don't remember ever getting a comment on the Honda from bystanders or folks who walk up at the gas station, still to commute around the Beltway it is undoubtedly the better car.

Hey folks,

I didn't get to read every post on this thread but am going out on a limb and adding my two cents.

I am in the market for a plane and have flown Mooneys, and Beechcraft for most of my flight time over 30 years.

I recently had the opportunity to fly a Cirrus SR22 G1 that was for sale at my local airport... Long story short, it was a disappointment on many levels. I will be acquiring another Beech product as soon as the right one comes up for sale.

Among the issues I personally had with the plane:

1.) The plane had a very noticeable "shake" at cruise. This is due mainly to the engine mount which is 4 point vs 6 point an newer models but nevertheless....

2.) The interior panels were working loose and the fit and finish were poor. There is no excuse for this.

3.) A look at the logbooks showed that there were many instances of brake repairs and problems and cracks in things like wheel fairings etc.

3.) The engine required a teardown and repair at about 300 TT bcs the lifters caused spalling of the camshaft.

4.) The plane landed with a distinct "thud" and the gear seemed flimsy imho it was being flown by an extremely experienced pilot but it was not a Beech type landing that I am used to....

The unfortunate thing was that when I first saw the plane in the hangar and sat in it I was impressed. It has great avionics except the Arnav MFD has a poor track record from what I hear and is no longer supported.



BTW I spoke to the AP that maintains a few of the Cirri and his advice was the same... Go for the aluminum plane with the long history of quality and stay away from the plastic.

Had two commercial pilots climb out of their new company Embraer 190 the other day on the Tarmac and walk past a nice looking GTS cirrus to come and sit in our new G58 and ask all about it.

Must be something in the old girls that pilots like....

1. We're talking about what Cirrus is doing now..... You didn't read the thread.

2. You didn't fly a Generation 5.

On just looks alone, sitting on the ramp, nothing is sexier than a V tail Bonanza.
I have owned two, a M-35 and a V-35B.

OK, maybe a P51 is slightly sexier, but I dont see many sitting on any one's ramp let alone mine.

Clearly pilots who understand quality when they see it!

Truth be told, they probably by passed the Cirus because it only had one engine - but let's not start a single vs twin thing in this thread to breath any more unnecessary life into it!

1. We're talking about what Cirrus is doing now..... You didn't read the thread.

2. You didn't fly a Generation 5.

I like manual transmissions better than automatic.

I like sailboats better than power boats.

I like Bonanzas better than Cirruses.

Jason is 100% right.

The 'G1' Bonanza had a thin-skinned tail that works itself loose and a spar carrythrough that had to be replaced/upgraded early on in the life of the type.

Planes evolve.

Some take advantage of this.... Some don't

Yup. Beechcraft never went to school on THEIR customers. Wait...wasn't there something about the Vtail needing reinforcement? And wing spars? Just sayin'.

Reality is that old Bo's can be dolled up to being nice airplanes. That probably isn't the case about old Cirri. However, part of that is the learning curve. First gen Bo's are so old that it is unfair to compare them to first gen Cirri. And hell, probably the first gen bo...after some tlc can be NICER than an early Cirrus. Points to the Bo.

But, of course, the thread is about NEW airplanes. And the innovation that Cirrus does on every generation...which is occuring quite a lot faster than our friends at Beech have managed.

And THat's why the Cirri are outselling the Bo's...new Cirri vs new Bo's. No comparison, really. Jason is right.

Jim

Make a 6 person Cirrus and I might consider it. I have 2 small children who need their mother in the back to attend to them. The Cirrus doesn't fit that mission, even with the "split" seating that supposedly accommodates 3 "people" in the back seat. throw in 2 car seats for the kids and the back seat is eaten up. So for a small family, the bird doesn't fit.

I'll be the third person on this page to say "Jason is right". That being said...

Jason, have you ever thought of buying something while the Pilatus is in maintenance or for shorter hops? Or did you keep the G36?

I would love to see Cirrus come up with a either a six seat single airframe, or six seat composite twin, until then, Beechcraft will always have some interest in their new piston planes.