I am an A&P and there are many SAFETY reasons why a TBI Ellison or Rotec is a bad idea.
Care to back up your SAFETY claim with some statistics? Or is this just one mans opinion? I am certainly no expert, but I cannot recall even one accident where a Rotec TBI was shown to have been a causal factor.
Bentley said:
Support, especially from Rotec is HORRIBLE! They will talk a good story till you buy it then good luck exchanging e-mails on technical issues over days trying to resolve an item 2 minutes over the phone would resolve.
So they have lousy customer service? Is this your personal experience, or information you got from your wife's brothers second cousin? FWIW, I got a fast reply to the one and only email I have sent them, and any other "support" questions I have needed have already been answered on their website, ie height, diaphragm hole diameter & screw type and idle mixture adjustment.
Bentley said:
From a safety stand point there is no source for known problems and you ain't gunna get an AD--ever if there is one. They will not tell you or play down known problems nor will they notify you regarding them since it could hurt sales.
So no auto makers in the U.S. have ever done the same thing? And you may well find that there WILL be AD's issued against experimental aircraft, or their components if you bother to look, by the same token that a certified component installed in an experimental must comply with any AD's issued against it. Reference the recent Jabiru debacle in Australia if you want confirmation - even experimental aircraft with Jab 2200/3300's were barred from overflight of populated areas due to engine reliability concerns. If CASA convinces themselves something has a problem, they will take action.
Now, on a positive note: I installed a Rotec on my -9 and I love it. The -9 is ready for its final inspection, but even in testing, the Rotec starts instantly, every time. I
did install a diaphragm-override lever though , and I use it, even though it may not be necessary long-term. It (the TBI unit itself) is beautiful to look at and apparently dead-simple in operation.
The Rotec is shorter than a typical MA4-SPA carb, so you will need to alter your airbox and probably carb heat attachments, but that is nothing major. The mixture control arm operates left-right, so you will need to fabricate a bracket to terminate the mixture cable as well as a bellcrank to translate the fore-aft motion left-right.
One thing I have seen reported is the need to keep the pressure regulator cool. Mine is a little closer to the exhaust than I would like and I will probably end up installing a blast-cooled enclosure around it following flight testing results, but it is one thing to be aware of.
Other than that, I am glad I bought it, and hope it'll prove itself long-term.