Given the slide in the value of used aircraft, there are some real deals on the market these days, But there are also some huge pitfalls and one of the most potentially expensive is underestimating the replacement cost of an autopilot system. Aviation Consumer avionics editor Larry Anglisano wrote about this in the March 2008 issue and I now wish Id read his advice earlier. In this article, Ill show an actual example of how an autopilot upgrade project can neutralize a good deal on a used airplane. My adventure began in early 2003 after the birth of our third child. We had outgrown our Bonanza and it was time to search for an airplane with more room and greater payload. Living northwest of Chicago, I wanted an airplane that I could comfortably fly across Lake Michigan and that meant a light twin. As I was about to learn the hard way, step number 1 in searching for an airplane should always consider the autopilot first, if your operations will require one.
Low-Time 310
After a lengthy search, I found a low-time Cessna 310 G-model (1962) owned by a former radio celebrity in Denver. I flew out to Denver and spent the next week with the local Cessna dealer as they performed a thorough pre-buy inspection. I was focused on the airframe and engines and naively gave little consideration to the autopilot. I was aware that the panel was dated and ripe for an upgrade, but I believed I could readily bring the avionics-including the autopilot-into the 21st century.
My first experience with the existing Century II autopilot came on the flight home from Denver. Without a pitch mode, the Century did a fine job tracking the airways and I was able to trim the airplane to hold altitude with minimum manual effort.
While I expended a great deal of resources upgrading mechanical systems after I brought the airplane home, it wasnt long before avionics upgrades reached the top of my to-