Jim Ferris wrote: > Designed for 180 HP and runing at 100 Hp is why it will run longer than a > VW, rotax, cont. or Jab in the final analynis.
And contrast that with the VW, which was designed for 46 hp (the most recent fuel injected engines were 60 SAE HP, but they used the "same" case), and we are asking it to put out 70-80 hp continuously, and then taking that power out of the engine through the "pulley" end of the engine, which was designed to power only the fan and generator. As Bill mentioned, VW crankshafts have evolved to a point that greatly improves their reliability, but they still break cranks, and the engine cases still have longevity problems. Standard VW rebuild practice is to inspect the crank bore in the case for fretting, and often they are "line bored" and oversize crank bearings are used to bring them back to a useable condition. Corvair cases are so strong that there is no such procedure, because that problem is virtually non-existent. Mark Langford, Harvest, AL see homebuilt airplane at http://www.N56ML.com email to N56ML "at" hiwaay.net