Anyone care to wiegh in on the plus/ minus of the many options of the g2? How often does anyone use the O2? Why would I want a “platinum engine”? Is the A/C worth the 60lbs and $23,000? Why is there no weather link available?
Thanks
<<Anyone care to wiegh in on the plus/ minus of the many options of the g2?>>
TKS is a must have in my opinion. Stormscope is nice.
I didn’t get the skywatch, you can get an after market garmin 330 that does just about the same thing for almost $20k less.
<< How often does anyone use the O2?>>
I have O2 and use it a bunch.
<< Why would I want a “platinum engine”?>>
Good question, I have one, but I’m not sure if it’s ‘worth it’ or not, hopefully someone more knowledgable will chime in.
<< Is the A/C worth the 60lbs and $23,000?>>
Depends. There is no ‘blower’ on the plane, so if you live/fly somewhere hot it would be nice to have, especially if you have to hold for release for 5 minutes when its over 100.
I had A/C in my 2002 Archer and it was GREAT.
<< Why is there no weather link available?>>
Cirrus can’t find one that they are happy with to work as well as they want it. (so far)
Jerry Avillion
Fort Smith, Arkansas
A lot of this depends on where you live and your type of flying. If you live east of the Rockies, some type of in-cockpit weather information (stormscope, NexRad or both) is essential. West of the Rockies you can usually (but not always) see and avoid the bad weather, excepting perhaps the Pacific Northwest.
If you’ll be doing lots of long-distance flying (why else get a '22?) then some sort of O2 helps a lot.
I personally (living in the west) would not get TKS unless it were certified for known icing, but lots of people differ on this.
I would get the aftermarket 330 instead of Skywatch unless most of your flying is in areas without TIS coverage.
If I were getting a '22, I would get the dual 430s/STEC55X (better resale, not because I really need it), Emax, and an aftermarket 330, and that’s about it.
I agree, itdepends where you live. In Europe AC is not worth it unless (perhaps) you’re based around the Med. Incidentally I’m told that it is going to be considerably cheaper to order a factory installation rather than get an aftermarket fitting. As for O2, well some of the European airways are well into the Flight Levels and O2 would be useful. Its not that expensive (around $2,000) and is semi-poratable so presumably can be removed if you know you won’ need it. Skywatch is the only option in Europe beacause there is no TIS service - but you will need Mode S anyway as it is shortly to be mandated for IFR flight in Europe. Options you can’t get (and probably would’nt want in the US) are DME and ADF, both of which are mandatory in some European Class A airspace, although I gather the former may soon become available.
Thanks, I really appreciate the input. I thought I knew exactly what I wanted until I had the order sheet on my desk. Now things don’t seem as simple. (Have to order before June as per my accountant)
Does the garmin 330 work through the planes display?
Well here is my take on the options. It depends where you live and how you will use the airplane. Since I live in Texas and plan to fly for fun to the beach (and other places with good weather), I have no need for the TKS. You want to avoid icing anyway in a small plane. The TKS may save you, but it is not certified to fly into known icing. The fluid is not cheap and TKS needs to be run at least once a month. I would rather have A/C.
Since I fly out of a very busy uncontrolled airport (under B space) to small fields near a beach or lake, the skywatch is a better choice. There are no gaps in coverage and altitude. The 330 depends on ATC radars. One time I was flying IFR (C182) into Branson, Mo. I was descending to the airport from about 5000’. ATC lost radar coverage at 3500’ and there was lots of traffic in the pattern that I could not see. This is when you really need the skywatch - some of them were not talking.
The stormscope is nice (I may buy one someday), but wxworx has nexrad and lightning info. I have the portable weather solution with a Fujitsu tablet & it works really well.
So you can see it all depends on your mission. My choices were exactly opposite of Jerry’s [:)]
Paul
SR 22 G2
In reply to:
Thanks, I really appreciate the input. I thought I knew exactly what I wanted until I had the order sheet on my desk. Now things don’t seem as simple. (Have to order before June as per my accountant)
Does the garmin 330 work through the planes display?
what garmin 330? Surely that’s not on the options list.
If you get a 330 installed aftermarket then it can be made to show on the MFD if you
have a friendly avionics shop who are willing to ignore the fact that it’s not approved
for that operation.
No the 330 isn’t on the options list
You can get one installed after purchase. I just did it and will sell the used 327. I was convinced I would add skywatch but when the 330 came out it became the clear choice with a $20k savings.
The 330 displays VERY nicely on the Garmin screens. To get the same degree of detail on the Avidyne means you have to dial down your Avidyne scale to 10 miles. I like to run my Avidyne at the 50 mile scale enroute so I prefer to view the 330 data on the Garmins. Avidyne WILL offer an approved version of the display for the 330 this summer.
So for those that want the 330, there are no roadblocks.
My option list living in the east.
Must haves: Emax, Stormscope and TKS although my plane was delivered before TKS was an option. It is true it is not approved for know ice. But this plane is a travelling machine and ice is such a difficult entity to forecast that you are guarenteed to hit ice unexpectently at some point. This will get you out of trouble.
What I would not get: AC, Skywatch, and installed O2 as I think the “bang for the buck” is just not there for my needs. Portable O2, open door on the ground and the Garmin 330 serve my needs well at a much better price.
In reply to:
A lot of this depends on where you live and your type of flying. If you live east of the Rockies, some type of in-cockpit weather information (stormscope, NexRad or both) is essential. West of the Rockies you can usually (but not always) see and avoid the bad weather, excepting perhaps the Pacific Northwest.
If you’ll be doing lots of long-distance flying (why else get a '22?) then some sort of O2 helps a lot.
I personally (living in the west) would not get TKS unless it were certified for known icing, but lots of people differ on this.
I would get the aftermarket 330 instead of Skywatch unless most of your flying is in areas without TIS coverage.
If I were getting a '22, I would get the dual 430s/STEC55X (better resale, not because I really need it), Emax, and an aftermarket 330, and that’s about it.
For the western US I agree with Kevin except:
I would go with Skywatch. There are just too many remote airports where you won’t get the primary radar coverage you need for the 330, and I have had enough bad traffic experiences at remote airports that Skywatch is go/no go for me.
And I personally like to have a stormscope, it has helped me out now and then, but it isn’t nearly as important in the west as it is east of the rockies, and would be the lowest on my need to have list.
Chuck Hull
The big problem with Skywatch or TIS is that it’s only good if the other plane has a transpoder that works and it’s turned on.
The 2 ‘close’ encounters I’ve had were with planes without transponders. (neither one had radios, either)
Still, it would be nice to have.
Jerry