rear cowl flap motor

[Richard]

Any ideas why these things cost so much? Cessna (if they have any in stock) are asking over 3k for these. I've owned 4 Skymasters and all of them have had one or both fail. Only when I started researching, carefully, what partnumbers they were using did I discover why the rear is failing more frequently than the front.

The motor in the rear is a different motor than the front. Early Skymasters had the same motor, but I'm sure they quickly figured out the rear needed a higher gear ratio and brake. It's all too common though that I check out other peoples craft and see they are using the smaller motor in the rear. Could this be a reason for common failures?

Anyone found tips for extending the life of these units?