Same for me, and it was a surprise. Wendy flew one time in one of my three 182’s. She flew in my last SR (22TN), and then I sold it and ended up back in a 182T. Had if for two years, and she never flew once. Back in an SR (22 n/a this time), and she’s already planning flights to OK and New Orleans.
She doesn’t even like to fly commercial, but something about the SR that makes her comfortable. At least comfortable enough to fly.
It’s me too, though. My hours had dropped considerably from the 125-160 hours per year range it was with the Cirrus. Great plane.
Sounds like your expectations on moving up to a Cirrus are realistic with what you described you are looking for (some deice to escape unforecast icing, having the envelope to get on top instead of ploughing through the soup, and ensuring your wife is most comfortable) - I think you would be very happy transitioning to a Cirrus, and it would definitely fit your description of the flying you are now ready to do.
I have two young kids (6 & 3), so need to consider oxygen requirements vs. altitude (as well as freeing layer or headwinds). Those considerations would be the only reason I would fly less than FL120. For me the NA Cirrus is very comfortable in the low to mid teens and it’s nice to fly IFR at those levels. Anything less seems to just burn more fuel and waste the available performance of the airframe.
I have made a few trips either south or west over the rocks (Victoria, Tofino, MT, Arizona, etc…) and FL160/170 is no issue, with some climb performance to spare, whereas the 182S would start to get a anemic at those altitudes. Still, I sometimes wish it was a turbo; but if it was I’d probably then dream of a turboprop and so on…
I also flew our Cirrus back from Toronto to Calgary last July in a single day with 30 kt headwinds the whole way and having to diverting around TS’s over the prairies. No way I could have done that in a single day in a 182 (turbo or otherwise).
I am very fortunate to have access to a very experienced mechanic who supports owner-assisted inspections and maintenance so my maintenance costs are probably a little lower than average. My annual inspections typically run $1,200 with me doing most of the tedious stuff (opening/closing panels, R&R fairings, tires, brakes, oil, filter, spark plugs, etc.).
The only significant “turbo system” issue I’ve had so far is replacement of the right hand exhaust manifold (small crack along one of the welds), it was around $6,500. I also had to overhaul the mechanical fuel pump several years ago that had old style O-rings - around $3,000. I’ve replaced some pieces like cotter pins, v-clamps, etc. but these aren’t significant cost items. My oil hoses are coming up on their 10 year expiry so I’ll have to do those next summer - I haven’t costed that out yet. I have just over 1,400 hours on the system and the turbo chargers are still nice and tight so I expect I probably have a couple hundred hours left in them before I need to do anything.
I do change the oil every 25-30 hours, keep CHTs below 380, and TIT below 1550 to reduce heat stress on the turbo system. So far the system has served me quite well.
Other than that all my other big expenses have been things like reefing line cutters, replacing the strobes with LEDs, overhauling mags, etc. But these are typical of any Cirrus, not just the turbos.