Diesel powered 337

[Morne]

Originally Posted by ngb1066

My main reservation about this is that the four cylinder Deltahawk engine will when certified, probably later this year, have a maximum power output of 200HP. I wonder if this is really sufficient to power a 337, particularly the heavier pressurised models. I would be interested to hear views on that.

Horsepower is not everything.

Check out the diesels on the Diamond Twin Star DA42 (yes, they are Thielerts, but follow along for a moment). They are 135HP each, not even the original Piper Apache had engines that wimpy!

But talk about fuel economy - that puppy cruises on roughly 10gph (5 per side) of Jet A and does it quickly. While the 337 retrofits will never be as aerodynamic or as light as the DA42s they still could be reasonably fast and fairly fuel efficient.