Don

Don

Well Known Member
I'm planning to put an IOX-340 on my 9A and I've been trying to figure out what cowl to buy. Van's indicated they were unfamiliar with the engine.:confused: ECI said they just sell parts (very disappointing customer service interaction) and to check with my engine builder. I called America's Aircraft Engines and they said they build engines but didn't know about details like cowlings (or propellers) that would work with their engines.:mad: I'm guessing that lawyers are working behind the scenes to limit the liability of their clients but its a tad bit frustrating.:rolleyes:

Anyway, my best guess is the folks here are the real experts anyway.:D The IOX-340 has forward facing induction for a throttle body FI. I'm guessing that I need an RV7 snorkel type lower cowl but I'd like to know for sure so I don't have to do any more fiberglass work than necessary. I'd also like to get my order in before the end of the year and avoid the price rise. If anyone has done an ECI fuel injected engine I'd like to hear what cowl you used. Thanks!
 
Don,

I'm currently putting together an O360 version from ECi. They do in fact want to limit their liability and produce engines only for their authorized shops to assemble. Some of these will sell you a kit and most are not really set up to deal with individuals who want to assemble their own. I've talked with a number of them and had the best success with AERO. Jesse is the individual who seems most helpful and he was recommended to me by Radomir, who is also in the forum.

I originally looked at the 340 series but for an RV-6 application (my case) it didn't make sense. The 340 series is identical to the O320 series with bigger pistons and a slightly longer stroke. The beauty of it is that you get a larger displacement and more horsepower available in a package which would fit an 0320. For planes which already have an O320 engine or are limited in size to that type, it makes more power available. Since an RV-6A can accomodate the O360 size, there was no advantage in the O340. This is the long way of saying that the cowling and setup for the O340 should be the same as that required for a same setup O320 engine. This is my understanding from previous discussions with ECi and AERO although I have not laid eyes on the O340 engines.

Hope this at least gives you a starting point! :)
 
Don,

I have a friend in my builders group who had Americas Aircraft Engines build up an IOX320 engine. It is dimensionally the same as the IOX340.

His challenge is that the intake tubes create potential clearance problems with the sides of Vans stock cowl where it curves under. The vertical portion of the intake tubes extents down from the cylinder head further than conventional Lyc intake tubes in order to clear the oil sump. On the cool air system used in the IOX 340 the tubes do not run thru the sump but under it directly to the servo. It also requires a special exhaust system. My understanding from John (the IOX 320 guy) is that Vetterman now has both an exhaust system and intake tubes that will work. You might want to call Vetterman before you pull the trigger on the engine.

Hope this helps.

Cheers,

db
RV9A/ECI 0360/James Cowl/Catto prop-90 hrs and a permanent smile!!
 
trib said:
The 340 series is identical to the O320 series with bigger pistons and a slightly longer stroke. . .
Click to expand...
I am also looking at this engine for my 9A. I talked with ECI and America's Aircraft Engines at Oshkosh this year where they had the engine on display. It was my understanding that the pistons were the same size as the 320 but the stroke was increased. I also remember their discussion about the issue of engine mounting and that the engine itself pretty much is the same dimensions as the 320 and would use the same Dynafocal mount. The problem is/will be in the cold air induction and the FI system install. With the RV cowl it did not appear that these components were going to fit the regular cowls.

I will follow this thread closely as any information anyone can provide would be of great interest to me as well.
 
A solution for the IOX-340

After getting the replies here I wondered if America's Aircraft Engines could put another type of fuel injection on the IOX-340 rather than the ECI because the problem appeared to be with the induction pipes. I spoke to Richard at AAE and he had no problem swapping the Silver Hawk FI for the ECI FI. This makes the installation the same as for a FI O-320 in terms of size. It also eliminates the need to run a return line the fuel tanks and on top of that is saves me over $1,000 over the cost of the ECI FI system. All-in-all I'm very pleased and I'm looking forward to completing this project.

I suppose tomorrow I'll check and find out what I over-looked. :D
 
Cowl?

Don,

This sounds like a really great compromise. I assume you can then use the standard -9 cowl with the IOX-340?
 
Don said:
After getting the replies here I wondered if America's Aircraft Engines could put another type of fuel injection on the IOX-340 rather than the ECI because the problem appeared to be with the induction pipes. I spoke to Richard at AAE and he had no problem swapping the Silver Hawk FI for the ECI FI. This makes the installation the same as for a FI O-320 in terms of size. It also eliminates the need to run a return line the fuel tanks and on top of that is saves me over $1,000 over the cost of the ECI FI system. All-in-all I'm very pleased and I'm looking forward to completing this project.

I suppose tomorrow I'll check and find out what I over-looked. :D
Click to expand...
Assuming you stay with the same ECI forward facing sump, changing to Silver Hawk FI won't solve the problem, you still need a cowl without an intake scoop on the bottom. I believe you you can use an RV-7/7A cowl without the intake scoop but check with Van's for sure.
 
If using the eci sump it will locate the fuel servo, regardless of brand, in a different spot then with the other Lycoming style forward facing sumps. The eci sump also uses different intake pipes with a much different engine profile then the Lycoming style forward facing sump and intake pipes. Vans does not sell anything that will match up to it. You will need to modify the cowling, exhaust and several other things to get the engine in and matched to Vans stuff.
If anyone is interested, I have an ECI lightweight IO-360 with the lightweight ECI forward facing sump and ECI fuel injection, ready to go, in stock, at very special discounted pricing. Contact me off list, if you are interested, at [email protected]
Good Luck and Happy Holidays,
Mahlon
"The opinions and information provided in this and all of my posts are hopefully helpful to you. Please use the information provided responsibly and at your own risk."
 
ECI Forward Facing Cold Air Induction With ECI FI Sys

Don, The ECI IOX 340 with the ECI Fuel Injection System on the RV9A will work with the slick front Van's Cowl using an adapter that ECI makes and the Van's fuel injection air intake that is attached to the left engine cooling air intake. Or, if you want to fully use the ram air effect you can use the Jame cowling with the FI air inlet in the front of the cowl. You will need to contact Larry Vetterman for an exhaust (4pipe) and he will also make special air intake pipes to fit. The ECI Fuel Injection System is about 4 pounds lighter than the Silver Hawk and about 3 inches shorter so there is more room to work with. I have 1 RV6 with this set up (ECI I0X360) that will fly in a month or so and and RV8, RV7A that will fly next year. Also, my RV6 with the ECI I0X360 with the new ECI fuel injection system and Van,s cowl that I modified and have flown for 100 hours with no problems and great performance, can be seen on my web site. The I0X340 and 360 engines are new technolegy right now and may take a little extra effort but from what I have seen on my RV6 it is well worth the effort. Myself and ECI are working to make these engines easy to use on RVs and have made a lot of progress over the last 8 months. If you need more info call me at 602-538-6087.
Robbie
 
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Follow up

The information you can get here is incredible! I called Robbie and it looks like I've got several options open to me. My choice is to use the upflow sump with the Silver Hawk fuel injection and I'll be able to use the standard cowling and have an IOX-340. I will not get the HP that you gain when using the cold air induction system but with the RV 9A I didn't really need it anyway.

If you're look at the OX-340 and have questions about the engine, the folks at America's Aircraft Engines seem very knowledgeable about the engine and Robbie understands how to fit them in an RV cowling, having build two and helped on others. I would encourage anyone to use these resources and make their own decision.

Now to pound some rivets, as the saying goes. Timing is everything. My son-in-law is in town for the holidays and looking to learn how to rivet. With just a little luck we'll flip the canoe today. Completing this plane is looking more and more real everyday!
 
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