![]() ![]() The key in this segment has been development of a reliable propeller speed reduction unit (PSRU) as, without it, the engine rpm necessary for suitable power output results in an unacceptable propeller tip speed. ![]() At this price point, only one offers four-cylinder models with 100 hp or more. Both offer an Asian-based inline three-cylinder four stroke. Twenty years ago it sure looked like a trend, but today, the Guide lists only two vendors for a sub-$10K water-cooled four-stroke with electronic fuel injection and ignition. One would think the enormous automotive production numbers could provide a vast variety of inexpensive engines for aviation. For others, the learning curve might be a little too steep, and a ready-to-run package is the better choice. Quite a few builders will consider kit availability to be a plus, as they prefer to know exactly what is inside their new powerplant. Many (but not all) of the budget VW choices are kits, so the builder will be expected to bring engine assembly skills to the party. Support for the hub may be nonexistent, or a robust bearing. There are several different variations on prop hub attachment. We’ve seen poorly sized cam gears from the bargain basement shelf. For example, some choices are delivered with used, reconditioned stock rods, while others get new, fully machined forgings. Despite overall similarity, the offerings vary widely in component quality and design, so buyers are cautioned to do their homework. Half are VW based, not a surprise given the mechanical layout and the worldwide availability of aftermarket parts. The Guide lists 34 choices offering 50 hp or more at less than $10K. They also get the majority of the ink, in both magazines and forums, so let’s spend a few moments on the really affordable end of the market, engines priced at less than half the average…$10,000 or less. Throw in the ubiquitous 540 six-cylinder, and you’re looking at the majority of the E/A-B fleet. A price premium is to be expected, and those with the means pay it because they work. All of these engines are top shelf boutique products for a very specific application, made in infinitesimal numbers when compared to the 97 million cars and trucks produced worldwide in 2017. The highest volume units are the 100-hp 912 from Rotax at around $18,000, and the 160- to 210-hp flat fours from Lycoming, Continental, and Superior, which average about $28,000…not outrageous, but not inexpensive either. If we remove a few rare diesels and turbines from the calculation, the average price for all entries listed in the Kitplanes Engine Buyer’s Guide is a little over $20,000. However, there are some affordable engines, and no cetaceans need be harmed to run them. That’s right…they feared a run on the world’s supply of whales if the AAE came to market, so now it sits, rusting quietly in the dark. And we would be building them too, if all those rich liberal whale lovers hadn’t bought the patent. After all, since WW-II the experts have been telling us everyone will want an airplane in their garage, if they can be built for the price of a good family car. Best of all, its Brake Specific Cash Consumption (BSCC) is claimed to be less than $33 per horsepower per purchase…assuming production reaches 100,000 units per year. All instrument senders are pre-installed just plug the supplied cord into the EIS of your choice. Being multi-fueled, it will happily consume no-lead gas, Jet-A, or whale oil. The AAE is modular, thus horsepower ratings from 50 to 1500 are possible by merely adding sections. And just down the hall, you’ll find the prototype AAE…the Affordable Airplane Engine. The self-cooling beer bottle is in Area C (for “Curiosities”), along with the invisible duct tape. Nobody cares about it anymore, because just a few cabinets to the right you’ll find the 20-pound battery capable of powering a car for a week. In that room you’ll find the 100-mpg carburetor. Here, hidden in the darkness, is where they keep the good stuff. A freight elevator hidden in a lonesome tarpaper shack descends into a cavern so secret only a few know of its existence. There are no guards, only a single autonomous drone with a monocle eye. The dirt road leads across the Western desert to a gate in a chain link fence.
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