Rotax Price Increase

[jdmcbean]

FYI.. Just notified that Rotax is increasing 4.25% effective October 1st.

Nice for them to let us know with plenty advanced 3 business day notice...

[Dick B in KY]

Pricing themselves right out of the game. Think I'll be talking to Rotec again about a round one.

Dick B

[Av8r3400]

As much as everyone seems to love to hate Rotax, it is still the best match for this design plane. Light weight and high HP. It is still better than anything else on the market.

At 250+ pounds installed, the Rotec, as beautiful as they are, is just too heavy. Same for the Continentals and Lycomings.

Maybe the Jabaru, but like the VWs high RPMs mean small prop diameters and loss of the STOL performance these planes are all about. This motor looks the same at 3300 rpm...

[IVPleasure]

Thanks John for the heads up. Nice to know of the price increase so we can purchase at the old prices if we desire.

Have a Great Day.
dave

[jrthomas]

The Rotax 912 is a great engine. As far as quality and reliability it is second to none. But compared to other 4 cylinder/4 cycle engines, the price is outrageous. The 912 is nowhere close to being as sophistocated as some of those high performance sport bikes with overhead cams and multiple valves. There're just pricing at the maximum of what they feel the market will bear but in doing so are pricing a lot of potential buyers out of the market. That may be good business but seems unethical to me. Their high prices are the reason so many are looking at alternative engines. Rotax may be shooting themselves in the foot.

[jrthomas]

By alternative,I don't just mean auto conversions though some go this route. I'm with you. There's just to many problems to sort out. But there are some very good alternatives. I've flown a friends Model IV with a 2200 Jabiru. It didn't have quite the kick of a 912UL but it still had good power. I have a 912 but if I didn't have an engine I would buy the Jabiru. This may sound like blasphemy since I'm a 912 guy myself but the Jabiru seems like it's just as reliable at a much more reasonable price.Jabiru Pacific sells the 2200 for $12,500. The firewall forward package is also a couple of thousand cheaper. Installed weight is 132lbs, almost exactly the same as the 582. It's a fine engine for a Model 3 or 4. They sell the 3300 for $16,500 which would be a good engine for the larger Kitfoxes. Most of us who build our own planes or fly homebuilts are not wealthy. If we were we would just buy a new factory built plane of our choice. But I, for one, have to weigh the price with the benifits. Is the 912S worth $8,000 more than a Jabiru 2200. Not to me. James Thomas