I wasn't sure where to post this request. Depending on feedback, I may put it on the FOR SALE forum.

Unfortunatley, this is one of those all to common stories where the pilot has a major medical event and the plane is left idle for too many years.

My good friend from college asked me to assist his sister in selling her husband's 1974 Mooney M20F. The aircraft is hangared in Romeo, MI and has sat idle for nearly 20 years. It was painted, had the latest window mods, and a new interior installed in the late 90s. Subsequently, it won the Mooney "Best of Series" award in 1997. The engine was also overhauled just prior to it sitting idle. They have owned the plane since new as it was originally her husband's father's plane. They have all of the log books. I am witholding the tail number for now to protect her privacy.

I've seen pictures of the plane and you would never know it has sat idle; looks clean and ready to fly.

Please PM me if you know if a reputible person who can help her get the maximum value from this aircraft. It is a perfect project plane.

I have no financial or other interest in this plane, just trying to do right by my friend.

I hope it sat idle with full fuel tanks. I don't follow the Mooney market closely anymore, but it sounds like a candidate for reviving.

Hi Phillip
Do you have pictures and further information on the plane sun as the log books and equipment list? Are the present owners willing to do a pre-buy before you list it to find out what kind of condition it's in? Even though the engine hasn't many hours it would depend how and where it was stored on its condition.
You might want to try putting it on Mooneyspace.com as well. Someone there maybe able to lead you to a reputable dealer in Michigan

Jed Aire is a shop I suggest you contact

Jason is spot on with mooneys

Concur with Guy. I believe he is in MN, but close-enough if expert Mooney input is needed.

I recently met a younger USAF pilot couple that are actively hunting for a vintage Mooney right now. If you would like to contact them, don't hesitate to PM me.

I think there's a lot of appetite for Mooneys. A smart buyer will probably price it as having a run out engine and will check for wing spar corrosion, and give real thought to the rest of minimum necessary restoration. But there are a lot of not-smart buyers out there these days reviving Mooneys in all sorts of strange conditions. You don't say what the radio situation is, that will effect value. I'd guess $40-50k on the generous side, but more details would be useful. Get it in annual and put it on internet as a flying airplane, that will make it much more sales-worthy, probably would increase the value by $10-20k over a "barn find" style sale. You will get probably get the best value selling it yourself, not using a broker or an agent.

FWIW, my husband (Byron Rodgers, you can PM him through BT) is an experienced Mooney mechanic, send him a PM and he might be able to give you more thoughts on what it would take to get it flying.

I also concur with Becca. Good advice in the first paragraph, and I'll endorse Byron as an excellent resource as well. Their Mooney is a '77 J model (just like mine) and these originally had a more in common with the mid-70's F models than a mid-80's J model. Byron has been through their plane front-to-back and would be quite familiar with the guts of the candidate F.

Despite the idle time, if it is not corroded there is still some decent value, and much more if it can be made airworthy before changing hands as Becca suggested.

The engine will be a wild card, the sitting-itis point of failure on Lycomings is the valve tappits that ride on the cam lobes. Think of a hefty plate of hardened steel. When Lycomings sit, the oil eventually runs off the face of the tappits and eventually they will suffer from pitting corrosion. A pitted tappit is no different than running sandpaper on your cam lobes; eventually you’ll wear the cam flat and stop making power. A savvy buyer can pull a cylinder partway and borescope those. If they’re in OK shape the bottom end will generally be ok.

If it was restored in the late 90s then it would have just missed the rise of the en route moving map GPS’s like the GNS430 and 480. The radios will be vintage useful but probably nothing to write home about for hard IFR, like KX-155s. If it has those that’s sort of expected for a cross country IFR machine. This will likely come down to the specific buyer and how much they want this specific airplane

Zach hit the two big items that are going to lower the price, the engine and the avionics. If the engine is OK on a thorough borescope inspection, then you will probably be able to find a buyer at the “right price”, but that price will be discounted by the fact that the plane is going to need a substantial panel update, plus repairs to anything not in working order.

I didn't post pictures and such as I'm not trying to sell it, rather I'm trying to find the person who can help sell it and maximize the gain. Totally agree that the condition of the engine is the big question. The panel is classic 6-pack so no real value but it is in nice condition. The paint and interior are also really nice.

If the plane was in Charleston I'd probably take it on as a project myself.

Today I hooked up with a Mooney guy who is going to look at the plane on Saturday and provide his thoughts/estimated value. I'd like to have at least one more opinion.

The Mooney guy told me it most likely has wet wings, no bladder. Not sure if that is better or worse. Fuel bladders would definitly need to be replaced; wet wings...?

The F model had wet wing standard. Bladders are a aftermarket fox for leaks and reduce capacity. The wet wings do tend to leak over time and a reseal is a big pain. And $s. I would be very concerned with the CAM. The IO360 is known to have issues when sitting. Also the shock doughnuts are likely shot. That said, they are great planes and if there is not corrosion, likely can be brought back. If the engine is good except the CAM, an IRAN may be all it needs.

You do need a Mooney expert, after 20 years there will be catch-up but it may end up being a nice plane.

I had a Mooney for many years so I saw a lot of them go through Joe Cole’s shop in Dalton Ga ( Mooney shop) for prebuy. What kills a lot of them that sit is corrosion of the tubular structure that forms the basis of the fuselage. Even flown planes can get corroded beyond repair as a result of long term window leaks. For planes that have sat in hangars for many years it is often caused by rodent urine. For Mooneys it is always essential that an experienced Mooney mechanic thoroughly examine the tubular structure as part of a prebuy evaluation. And the tanks on this plane will almost certainly need to be completed stripped and resealed which done correctly at a shop like Wet Wingologist or Weep no More is probably 12-14 AMU now.

You can open the battery panel and look back in the tail and check for rodent nests.
Look in the wheel wells and see if the rat socks are still intact.
Pull the dipstick, is the oil clean?
Is the fuel in the tanks? Fill the tanks and check for leaks? Check the inboard senders for leaks as well.
It’s generally considered that heat destroys the fuel sealant so if hangared it might be ok.

These are just some simple noninvasive things you can do to get an idea of what shape it’s in.

I hope this post does not come across as negative or mean spirited. I certainly don't intend it that way.

Similar situations of airplanes that have been sitting for a long time come across the pages of BT regularly. The poster is never the owner. Usually, a "friend" or "relative" and almost always someone of limited knowledge of airplanes in general. The question is always "how to get what it is worth?". Many times, I'm not suggesting this is one, the poster is trying to get enough input to buy it for less than it is worth.

But the questions are placed and the answers forthcoming with little variety be that the airplane in question is a Cessna, Mooney, or Piper. Outside the airframe, the systems (engines, props, avionics, etc.) are pretty much the same. Maintenance on an airplane is like a thorn bush. You can trim it a little every month or you can wait and trim it a lot every year. The deterioration never stops and on many systems is exacerbated by the lack of use.

If this airplane had been in service and was now in annual, it might be worth $90,000. No one but a complete neophyte would consider the engine and prop anything but cores.

The only way to find out its true worth and get a legitimate price for it is to put it up for sale and allow buyers to perform appropriate inspections. It may need nothing but the obvious and, if so, the price will be half the number I just posted. It may have tubing corrosion as others have said, in which case, it isn't worth anything but salvage.

If I were the friend, I would not help the owner "beat around the bush". Hire a competent mechanic to do a full annual with a full squawk list and make that inspection available with the "For Sale" offer.

I'm not knocking the post, the questions, or the answers. I'm just going around all the hand wringing and getting to the truth.

Same song, next verse.

Jg