Light-Sport Aircraft Yahoo group Re: 912 pre-flight video from Avweb archives

I have heard that Katana brought the Rotax problems on themselves to due to their removing an air flow vent (thinking they did not need it since it was water cooled). This caused engine overheating and problems. It was not 100% the engine's fault.

--- In Sport_Aircraft@yahoogroups.com, Helen Woods <Helen_Woods@...> wrote:
>
> Coming from the certified world, I believe he was fully right on number
> 1 (although you are right that "afraid" would have been better
> wording). Untrained people on the certified side lump all Rotax
> together. Look at the Diamond Katana. Totally flopped when it first
> came over here because it had a 912S on the front. No one would fly
> it. Even today you can pick hose up in trade a plane for virtually
> nothing. Instead diamond had to rush a Lycombing into production (a
> model still plagued with issues because it was rushed into production
> for this), and then increase the fuel capacity for the new gas guzzler,
> then increase the useful load to haul the gas, just because Americans
> wouldn't fly behind a Rotax. Even years later I caught a story in a
> major aviation magazine about the Katana that explained that the
> original flopped in the US because it has a 2 stroke snow mobile engine
> on it!
>
> Helen
>
> On 2/2/2010 9:55 PM, Bob Comperini wrote:
> > On 06:34 PM 2/2/2010, apollonorthamerica wrote:
> >
> >> I think Bob C. can comment well on that.
> >>
> > Ok, lets pool our observations. Mine:
> >
> > (1) He indicates that the 912 had a "bad reputation". I don't believe that's true at all. Yes, its true non Rotax people were probably "afraid" of the engine. Maybe that's what he means
> >
> > (2) When he gets in to the discussion of the carbs, he also mentions the "independent ignition systems control the left and right bank" of the engine (as opposed to top/bottom)
> >
> > (3) I'm not comfortable with the "two carbs in one" statement, where he talks about the "staring carb" (choke).
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > --
> > Bob Comperini
> > e-mail: bob@...
> > WWW: http://www.fly-ul.com
> >
> >
> >
> > ------------------------------------
> >
> > Yahoo! Groups Links
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
>

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