AOPA Pilot Magazine - December 2014 - 34

PILOT BRIEFING

BUDGET BUY
VREF VALUE

Vref, the AOPA partner offering aircraft
value estimates, suggests
a base price of $91,000,
increasing to $98,000
with a GPS receiver and
upgraded radios.

RECENT ADVERTISED
PRICES

Listed in Trade-A-Plane
at the time this was written were three 1998 172R
aircraft, two of them
priced at $89,500. They
had 1,200 to 1,400 total
hours on the airframe.

HOW MANY IN THE FLEET?

Old reliable

AIRPAC PlaneBase lists a
1998 Cessna 172R registered fleet of 193 aircraft.

AIRWORTHINESS
DIRECTIVES

1998 Cessna 172R
B Y A LTO N K . M A R S H
THE CESSNA 172 IS CONSIDERED the ideal starter airplane while you are still deciding what you need.
The 1998 model skips the fit-and-finish problems of the 1997 models but keeps the benefits of the
restarted production line that opened that year. The biggest benefit in the new models turned out to
be the biggest advantage-the Lycoming IO-360-L2A engine rated at 180 horsepower but relaxing at
a derated 160 horsepower, resulting in low maintenance costs. Sure, you can get a 180-horsepower
Cessna 172S using the same engine, but owners say that only gets a slightly higher rate of climb.
THE REAL WORLD

Moore Aviation of Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania, operates five 1998 Cessna 172R aircraft and has a
training contract with a local college. Office manager Linda Barthon calls the aircraft "very reliable." The fifth was bought in 2013 for $80,000 and came equipped with a GPS receiver. When flown
to Pennsylvania from the previous owner in Tucson, Arizona the engine had 3,200 hours on it but
still had great cylinder compression readings. Under terms of the college contract the engine was
required to be replaced as a precaution.
Moore Aviation Maintenance Supervisor David Duffy prefers working on the aircraft compared
to a Piper Warrior because he can work on it standing up, rather than crawling on a concrete floor
to remove inspection panels. He estimates the private owner flyWHO TO CONTACT
ing only 50 hours a year will pay an operating cost of $85 an hour,
Interested in learning everyto include fuel, maintenance, tiedown, and a $10-per-hour engine
thing there is to know about
reserve fund. He suggests owners replace lights with LED bulbs. He
Cessnas and getting advice on
buying? Join the Cessna Pilots
finds it easier to work on than the school's Piper Warrior III because
Association, 3409 Corsair
he must crawl around on the concrete to look at the Warrior's
Circle, Santa Maria, California
under-wing inspection panels. Duffy praises the aircraft for having
93455; 805-934-0493. The
group, with more than 9,000
less stability than a Piper Warrior, and while that might seem curimembers, does not give out
ous, he has his reasons. The school's goal is to create better pilots.
email information, but there is
The Piper Warrior wing has more dihedral (V shape) in its wings
a contact form on the Cessna
Pilots Association website.
than a Cessna 172R, so students work harder to keep it on course.
EMAIL alton.marsh@aopa.org

34 | AOPA PILOT December 2014

WEB

www.cessna.org

There are few airworthiness directives that apply
to the Cessna 172R alone.
Most directives include it
with other single-engine
Cessna models, such as
an inspection requirement for chaffing of the
fuel lines. A directive calling for inspection of the
landing gear for cracks
in 2001 resulted mostly
from student pilot training, but applied to the
fleet of 172R and S aircraft.
There was a requirement
for a one-time inspection
of flight-control rigging,
including aircraft then
on the production line at
Cessna. In 2005 there was
a requirement for inspection of the cabin heater to
detect carbon monoxide
leaks.
BIGGEST PLUS

Engine has proven
reliable, with low
maintenance costs
BIGGEST MINUS

Slow

WHAT ELSE TO CONSIDER

Pilots considering the
Cessna 172R might also
consider the Piper
Warrior.

http://www.cessna.org

AOPA Pilot Magazine - December 2014

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of AOPA Pilot Magazine - December 2014