Most owners seem to like this arrangement, but for those accustomed to three levers, it takes some getting used to. The RPM is handled by a cable-and-cam arrangement that sets the RPM at either 2700 RPM for takeoff or 2500 RPM for cruise. It’s a bit more economical and doesn’t have the altitude-compensating fuel pump that can be a maintenance nuisance in the SR20s.Ĭirrus pioneered the two-lever control, so the SR22 has a throttle and mixture lever, but no prop control. The IO-550-N brought some improvement to the front end. It had a 310-HP Continental IO-500-N, one of Continental’s best-ever powerplants, a three-blade prop and more payload, although the basic airframe is largely the same as the SR20. Although the SR20 was no slouch, its 150-ish cruise and limited payload left some buyers wanting. Two years later, for the 2001 model year, Cirrus announced the SR22 step-up model and immediately hit pay dirt. Going in, Cirrus knew what Cessna, Piper, Beech and others have always known: If you don’t have a follow-on model, your success will be short-lived. By modern standards, this would barely rise to the level of rudimentary, but a decade ago, it was pretty slick, even if the display wasn’t as impressive as the Garmin GNS430s that drove it. It also gave buyers their first look at large-screen panel displays, ARNAV’s ICDS 2000. At about $197,000 equipped, the airplane was a good buy and proved a strong seller. The company’s first product was the SR20, which appeared in 1999, powered by a 200-HP Continental IO-360ES. And if you got in over your head, you wouldn’t have to die for your mistake the BRS parachute would pull your fat out of the fire. Anyone could do it with the right airplane. On a variation of Cessna’s famed “drive it up and drive it down” campaign of the 1970s, the Klapmeiers launched the company on the premise that it didn’t take special DNA to be a pilot. By the mid-1990s, Cirrus principals Alan and Dale Klapmeier developed a new vision, reasoning that the time was right for a high-performance, composite fixed-gear single that anyone could fly. “The parachute is what sells my spouse on the airplane,” one commenter said.Īmong homebuilders, Cirrus was well-known during the 1990s for its VK30 pusher kit, an innovative composite design that gained some traction, but wasn’t a major player in the field. We suspect the parachute has always been a pot sweetener that pushes buyers considering something else into the Cirrus camp. Only a third of respondents said it was, but we think that understates the case-perhaps even more so in the current market.
#Cirrus sr 22 driver
In a poll we conducted shortly after the SR22 appeared, we asked if the parachute was a driver in the purchase decision. The CAPS (Cirrus Airframe Parachute System), which Cirrus pioneered as a signature marketing feature, is a continuing selling factor. Moreover, they offer the right combination of cutting-edge equipment and construction methods without becoming so radical or quirky that buyers are put off. The airplanes perform well and generally deliver on the claim of being easy to fly for people new to flying. What explains the brand loyalty? We think there are several reasons. This seems the perfect setup as the company moves closer to delivering its seven-seat, single-engine Vision SF50 personal jet-a logical step up from an SR22. The entry-level SR20 and flagship SR22 in their various iterations have proven hot sellers and good performers, with unusually loyal customers. Since Cirrus Design first morphed from a quirky kit supplier to a full-blown aircraft manufacturer in 1998, it has consistently proven that it got the vision thing right. But for an owner stepping up from a Cherokee or Skyhawk, for example, an SR22 will be a major leap ahead in speed, technology and mission capability. That’s no chump change, and to be sure, an early SR22 might seem stark compared to the current G5 series. For as little as $100,000, you might score a first-generation G1 SR22. The good news for buyers who can’t afford the eye-popping price of a brand-new Cirrus is the healthy supply of used ones for sale.
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