Step-up buyers searching the used big-cabin retrac single market rightfully consider the Piper Saratoga and Lance. These PA-32R models get thumbs up from passengers for easy ingress and egress thanks to a rear cabin door. Newer pilots like them because they’re an easy transition from plain-vanilla Cherokees. In the shop, the PA-32R is a familiar airframe with decent support, though these are complex high-performance airplanes and turbocharging on some models adds to complexity and upkeep.
Still, a well-cared-for Saratoga or Lance (especially one with speed mods, new avionics and spiffy paint and interior upgrades) makes for a good ownership experience with high dispatch reliability. As we’d expect, prices have risen sharply since we looked at the market a few years ago. Here’s an update.