Viking engine in Kitfox?

[BajaCat]

Does anyone have any news about the Viking HF-110 engine in a Kitfox? The Viking forum claims that Kitfox has one mounted in an aircraft, but I haven't heard anything here in a while.

Thank!

[kebopa3]

John McBean has told me they have one at the factory and plan to mount it at some point in the future. They also have UL Power engine waiting in the wings. I suspect the 912is has pushed them both back of the line. I'm a ways out from having to make an engine decision but I like the idea of having John and his team do the development. It will be interesting to see how they perform.

kebo

[chefwarthog]

I had love to see the yellow Mule whit a Viking Engine next to the Rotax 912 IS form Idaho to Sebring Fl... compaire on a long flight.... that be the best test that can be...... Dont you think!

[rogerh12]

I saw one mounted on a "Just" aircraft at Oshkosh, which is very similar to the Kitfox. The owner said he loved it, but I would never buy anything from the Viking company, once you see who owns it. Remember the Subaru conversion by Eggenfellner that disappeared overnight? I hear it’s the same guy running Viking.

[chefwarthog]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dGomECs-9jA

http://www.vikingaircraftengines.com/news/News.html

Like Yan said... he has a colorfull past.... but he is has like every body... he will work with you if you want to make the engine fit on your plane... but if you start make *%@#..... like most shopkeeper he will try to help but patience is not there virtue!! I dont know him but I think he is juste a enthusiast guy that like invent.... now Viking is a small shop compare to Rotax.... you can pay +12 000 more for a 912is... and maybe have probleme to, Rotax is more reputed for good engine..... so has Honda!

Eric

[AtlasEast]

I suppose if you were to go with any small company doing auto conversions, you're taking a risk. l know there has been some problems with the Subaru conversion, but there have been a lot of successes too. I guess it all boils down to what you are comfortable putting on the front of your plane and how much you want to pay. Personally I think the Viking engine looks promising. Fuel injection, Honda core, and they have 3 years of selling and flying them. It's no where near the flight hours that Rotax has achieved with their engines, but I still think Viking is an attractive alternative especially given it's price point. My only concern is the PSRU, but again time will tell.

[AeroBuilders]

I like what I see so far from the Viking engine and I would not have a problem running a Viking engine in a new build. I have a lot of experience with tuning Honda 4 cyl engines in the motorsport world and that is one reason I have some faith in this new direction from Jan.

I give Jan some credit too, he knows he had failures in the past with his Subaru conversions but he did not give up. I like that he regrouped, did some research, and set out on a new endeavor, with fresh memories of what not to do from his past Subaru failures. This guy had some guts to get right back in the ring with a new product for the sport aviation marketplace.

Between UL Power and Viking Aircraft Engines, it is great to see some recent competition challenging the Rotax dominance in sport aviation. We all know what the trend is when one company gets too much of the market share....not good.

[rogerh12]

AEROBUILDER. You said that "I give Jan some credit too, he knows he had failures in the past with his Subaru conversions but he did not give up" But he did give up!!! But not just gave up, he ran out and left all his former Subaru customers hanging.

Why would he NOT do this again with the Honda engine customers?
Roger

[AeroBuilders]

The way I see it.....this is no different than most of the small businesses throughout our country. How many of those owners had "perfect" success in their first ventures? Most all my really good friends are all small/medium business owners, and ALL of them had many failures on their way to real success....this is just a natural part of business building imo. How many small/medium/large corporations that you deal with on a daily basis had store closings, product failures, or bad customer service, before they finally achieved a level of business competence (that was finally to your satisfaction)?

If I buy an engine from Jan, it is very very obvious to me I am not buying an engine from Rotax.....I should know that at the start and accept that reality. I am not saying that I should expect to be ripped off (buying an engine from Jan) but I should realize he is not capitalized or as well established (in many levels....engineering, support, experience, etc) like Rotax is. These facts though do not automatically mean Jan will fail again with the Viking engine line....he may actually have a very strong and sound engine offering in his new line.

For a good point of reference....go see what Soichiro Honda had to go through as he built and failed, and built and failed, many times before he grew a large company with great success. Buying products from a new company has inherent risks that people must accept imo, or they are just not being realistic in their overall due diligence.

[AtlasEast]

Well said Aerobuilders.