Mooney M20 - search results

Known for strength, economy, speed and a sports-car fit, the basic Mooney airframe endures.

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The Mooney M20 is a remarkable airplane, if for no other reason than its enduring popularity. Introduced in 1955, its still being manufactured, albeit in a rather different form than the original. While the newest Mooneys are a far cry from the original wood and metal hybrids, certain aspects of the design and construction have remained constant over the past 43 years. Among these are the distinctive backwards tail (no, it doesnt sweep forward: its vertical), all-moving empennage trim system, steel-tube cabin frame, rubber donut shock absorbers on the trailing-link gear, steel-tube cabin frame, slick skins with lots of flush rivets, pushrod control systems, and so on.<...

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The Mooney M20J, introduced in 1977, marked a turning point for Mooney. It was the beginning of a new era, simultaneously retaining the traditional Mooney strong points while delivering significant improvements in performance, appearance and utility over its predecessors. So good was the initial product that it has continued in production to this day largely unchanged, despite several name alterations along the way.

History
The basic airframe of nearly all Mooneys (the ill-received Porsche PFM being a notable exception) is essentially the same, and has been since the M20A of the mid-1950s. It consists of a semi-monocoque rear fuselage, metal-skinned steel tube ca...

Airplanes are compromises: Theyre never large enough, fast enough or light enough for all potential customers. And going faster is always a popular upgrade. After all, we don't fly airplanes to go slow. Of the two basic ways to increase top speed-clean up the airplanes aerodynamics or stuff in a larger engine-each has their benefits and drawbacks. But when one method has been tried, or reaches the point where further refinement isn't cost effective, designers turn to the other. Mooneys M20 series is something of Exhibit A for this practice: The basic airframe had been cleaned up over the years and powered by different engines, resulting in iconic models like the M20J Model 201 and its turbocharged sister, the 231. But after those models saturated their markets, going faster still meant bolting on a different, larger powerplant. After all, there's no replacement for displacement. In this instance, take a long-fuselage Mooney, trade its small Lycoming for a big-bore Continental, make a few other refinements, and the result is a comfortable190-knot speedster known as the M20R Ovation. Still in production today, the Ovation has seen its share of evolution.

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Mooneys have always been associated with efficient cross-country transportation. Speed is the priority, and Mooney owners tend to view utility in terms of getting from Point A to Point B ASAP rather than load lifting or roomy accommodations.

Non-turbo cross-country usefulness is hampered, however, by an inability to get up high and avoid some of the weather, and the only way to do that is with turbocharging. Get a slick airframe like the Mooney up in the flight levels, and it can really show its stuff.

It wasnt until fairly late in the game that Mooney offered a viable turbocharged airplane. That aircraft, the M20K, overcame some initial teething troubles to evolve into...

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Once prized for squeezing lots of knots out of relatively small engines, Mooneys are no longer taking a back seat in the horsepower race. The trend toward hot-rodding Mooneys is continuing, with the introduction of the Mooney Missile from Darwin Conrads Rocket Engineering, which consists of a large-block, normally aspirated engine stuffed into the Mooneys slick airframe. Rocket Engineering also does conversions to the 305 Rocket, in which a TSIO-520 is mated to an M20K airframe.

Not to be outdone by the aftermarket crowd, the Mooney factory rolled out its own high-horsepower act in 1994, in the form the M20R Ovation. Both of these aircraft represent essentially re-engini...

Owners who have the eventual need for more speed might eyeball the used Mooney market. The search might logically start with the M20J or 201, which first appeared in 1978. While lacking some creature comforts and panel space, these machines are known for having respectable cruise speed, fuel efficiency and simple systems, while delivering the flying sports-car appeal that pilots love about flying Mooneys. If you find an older pre-201 Mooney that’s been we'll maintained, has a low-time engine and the most popular mods, there’s a lot to love. But it’s not all roses. Since the biggest numbers of pre-J models were produced in the 1960s, age is a concern, as is Mooney’s serial bankruptcy and perceived economic instability, although most shops we spoke with have little trouble getting parts and support. The earliest models had wooden wings. Some of the rest had corrosion problems, fuel tanks with sealant trouble and an aftermarket bladder mod from O & M Aircraft that has an AD. Resale value is another issue.

Mooney came into the turbocharging game relatively late compared to other manufacturers. In 1966, Cessna pioneered the market with the T210 and made a strong showing in the single-engine, high-altitude market. Beech brought out the V35TC in 1966, but it was never as strong a seller as the A36. Mooney wasn't completely flat-footed during the 1960s, introducing the 310-HP M22 Mustang in 1967, a big brute of an airplane that was as ugly as it was unsuccessful.

Fast, economical and cheap to operate, the J-model remains a strong seller on the used market.

Speed and efficiency go hand in hand with the Mooney M20-series airframe. But bolt on a high-flying turbocharged engine and the performance gets kicked...

Even if the likes of a Cirrus or Lancair hadnt come along, builders of metal airplanes like the Mooney M20 series were headed for a box. As volume diminished, the airplanes remained as complex as ever to build, with thousands of hand operations and individual parts. Economy of scale had evaporated.

Speed claims of 7 to 13 MPH are in line with reality. But add up the prices for all the parts and pieces before buying.