I am getting old enough to consider a light sport license and switching from a RV9A to a RV12, but I don't know if I could adjust after 50 years behind a Lycoming.
Nah, it's a cinch. The main operating differences to get used to is warming up properly and running it correctly. Most lyc/cont. drivers are used to just taxiing out to the runup area, doing a runup and blasting off, if they even wait till the oil temp is off the needle.... that's a no-no on the Rotax, where you need 120F minimun on the oil temp before you put the coals to it (I usually go to 130F especially in cold weather).
The other big difference is the high rpm operation. Lugging or babying the engine will cause problems. You want about 5000 to 5100 rpm minimum for continuous operation (otherwise piston speeds are too slow at higher power operation which increases wear) and 5200 rpm bare minimum at full power climbout (5400 is a sweet spot on mine and of course Rotax says 5500 to 5800).
The original Diamonds that used the 912S came down with lots of problems because of this type of operator error (i.e. needing tops at 800 hours and so on) where they were trying to lug the motor. Once folks started letting them spin up all those problems went away.
I personally would also avoid running 100LL _all_ the time. Run autogas whenever possible (E10 92 octane is ok for the engine, don't know about the RV12 fuel system) and 100LL only when necessary such as on cross-countries. Rotax ultimately really wants only unleaded in these things, tho they also know the reality of autogas availability too, so..
Finally, be very attentive to leaks of any kind on the engine during preflight. The 912 series is designed to not leak any fluids _at all_. There should be no coolant/oil/goo spots anywhere on the engine. You're used to oil all over the place on the lyc./connies so you quit paying attention to leaks and even oil on the plane on preflight there. But with the Rotax, if you find any wetness of oil or coolant anywhere, you've got a problem that shouldn't be ignored. One trouble spot a couple of folks have identified is occasional leaks at the valve covers - one of the dealers is collecting info on this and is working on a field fix for it. The other place to look is right under the water pump - there's a hole there designed to drain any fluid that may be leaking out of the pump and its seals. So remember to get under there on preflight (mine's hard to spot and sometimes I use an inspection mirror to get at it).
Anyway, just a couple items I've discovered operating my 912....
PS: the comment in the video about shock-cooling is a little misleading. A real hazard on any engine, but especially on the Rotax is shock _heating_ (i've never observed shock cooling to be a problem on any Rotax, 2 or 4 stroke). Now, the 912 is a really good design where the cylinders are air-cooled and only the heads are water cooled, so it's not nearly as susceptible to "cold siezures" as water-cooled engines with a full cooling jacket around them (i.e. some of the 2-strokes).
But cold siezures are a possible hazard with the 912 with some typical big-iron operating practices. I.e. the lyc/cont's being air-cooled are generally pretty durable as far as shock-heating, i.e. in the pattern you may idle all the way down to the runway and then push the throttle all the way in immediately when you go again. This normally doesn't hurt these motors since they don't heat up all that fast when you do this and they usually go out to TBO no problem.
Avoid this type of operation in the Rotax. Long periods of idling should be followed by smooth/slow applications of power, don't ram the throttle open immediately unless you really need to. The piston/cyl. clearances in the Rotax are _extremely_ tight especially when hot. In more extreme shock-heating situations, you can get pretty close to the edge.
Just another thing to pay attention to operation-wise.
LS
