I've read a lot about and have a pretty good understand of the differences in '56-'59 Cessna 182's. Does any particular year have an advantage over another?

The '56 has 4" taller gear for more prop clearance. but the '57-'59' gear is 5" wider. Does the wider gear help in a crosswind?

Do the '56-'58 models without cowl flaps have engine cooling issues if the engine is upgraded (P.Ponk or 520/550)?

'58 & '59 has a rudder trim system. I have flown planes with rudder trim (including newer 182's) and have never touched it. Does it help in the older 182's?

Are there any other differences that are worth considering?

I understand that when looking for a 60 year old airplane there are only so many left and only a few on the market at any one time.
Is one year significantly better than another? Is it worth waiting for one specific model or if a good deal on any '56-'59 shows up don't let it slip away?

'57 has bigger instrument panel and larger fuel tanks. '58 is nearly identical. I installed the rudder trim system in my '57 180 and like and use it. Lots of other little changes over the years like air vents for the rear passengers. The main problem with these airplanes is the predatory pricing Textron started doing a few years ago.

We had a ‘57 182A in our family for 26 years. Flew great! Lots to like, but I always wished for rudder trim, more useable fuel and cowl flaps. Finally got all that in my current straight tail Cessna.

Flown lots of hours in a ‘59 C182B . Not mine, but in the family.
Great airplane that I prefer to the slant tail, wide body C182’s (but I am a C180 guy).
Seems to handle better than the C182K, and C182L’s I fly fairly regularly.
I love the elevator trim system in the straight tails.
I use the rudder trim in the C182B all the time and wish I had it in my ‘56 C180.
As stated in previous posts, I wish it had more fuel capacity. But here again my C180 has monarch main and aux tanks, so I’m spoiled.
Great airplanes

lcdrles wrote:I use the rudder trim in the C182B all the time and wish I had it in my ‘56 C180.

You can install it in the early 180s. I did. I have a set of parts to do another plane.

what pricing are you referring to?

By predatory pricing, I believe it's in reference to prices like this:

Two items I've needed recently, 1962 C180E

Door latch assembly $9100
Cabin entry step $2400

Those are not typos, needless to say we went in a different direction.

I am on my third Straight Tail 182. The first two were 182B's The one I have now is a 1956. The 56 has a 100 pound less empty weight but with the same useful load. So with the same engine HP the 56 model performs just a bit better. My 56 has 58 gear on it so it has the lower and wider stance. I do miss the rudder trim.

Any strait tail 182 is an awesome plane

59 has a different cowling than early ones, they had big doors on both sides and the cowling was a little bigger, the 59 also has a semi center stack panel - my 57 didn't and had stuff mounted on the lower panel to the left of the yoke - was hard to see it and made it almost unusable (old gps). 59 also had the better window latches, not the fold over arm things that pokes you. 59 also has two fresh air vents on each wing, ealry models (pre 57, not sure about 58) only had one per wing - so 59 you get an extra pair of cabin fresh air vents.

I have had a 56 for about four years....Great airplane...light and powerful with the stock O-470...Plus its stance...you can walk under it without banging your head...and lots of prop clearance especially with 7.00 mains...negative...small fuel tanks, no rudder trim, fuel floats vs gauges so you time the tanks very closely on a long trip.

Never had an issue with temps...oil or cylinders...I like no cowl flaps. Pulled the rear seats and treat it like a Jeep..with extended baggage you have lots of room for bulky and useful load for heavy

corefile wrote:59 has a different cowling than early ones, they had big doors on both sides and the cowling was a little bigger, the 59 also has a semi center stack panel - my 57 didn't and had stuff mounted on the lower panel to the left of the yoke - was hard to see it and made it almost unusable (old gps). 59 also had the better window latches, not the fold over arm things that pokes you. 59 also has two fresh air vents on each wing, ealry models (pre 57, not sure about 58) only had one per wing - so 59 you get an extra pair of cabin fresh air vents.

The pre 1959 180's had the big cowl flaps. The pre 1959 182's had no cowl flaps. The 59 did not have a center stack, it had two short stacks. If I had to go look for another one I would prefer a 182B

Airdave100 wrote:... fuel floats vs gauges so you time the tanks very closely on a long trip.
Never had an issue with temps...oil or cylinders...I like no cowl flaps. ....

Timing tanks: every time I fuel up,
I write the tach time & fuel-on-board on a piece of tape & stick it on the panel.
Don't have to worry about forgetting to click the timer, etc-- just look at the tach time.

Cowl flaps: I've wondered just how much better they are.
Maybe less drag at cruise, but then again one more thing to have to mess with.
And one more (expensive) part to break, wear out, and keep in adjustment.
Big engine Maules don't have cowl flaps, & they seem to do just fine.

Hi. We have a 1957A, so I can provide a few comments on it, although I can't make any comparisons to other model years.

Our plane has a lot of modifications, including the P-Ponk engine, and the lack of cowl flaps has not been an issue in the summer. Granted, we are in Alaska, but we have lots of days in the 80s in the summer. I think it may be more of an issue in the winter as our oil temp is toward the lower end of the green arc. I think next winter I'll tape off some of the oil cooler.

I would like to have a rudder trim system. Last summer the water rudders on the floats were rigged a bit off center and I needed some right rudder in cruise. C180 guy - did you just get the rudder trim parts for a later model straight tail from a salvage yard? That sounds like something worth pursuing.

Re: predatory pricing, I sure miss Russ Meyer as CEO of Textron. The new guy couldn’t care less about supporting the piston fleet. All he cares about are the Citations.

Ross

I had a '58 182 straight tail and really liked that airplane. I added a STOL kit, Gar Aero wheels, extended baggage, and removed the rears seats. It was a nice handling airplane and I never had any cooling issues with it (of course we rarely do with any airplane here in Alaska). I didn't miss the cowl flaps, rarely used the rudder trim, and liked the elevator trim. Of the eight airplanes that I have owned over the years, I still think lovingly of that 182.

pipeliner wrote:C180 guy - did you just get the rudder trim parts for a later model straight tail from a salvage yard? That sounds like something worth pursuing.
Ross

I like the rudder trim. Early on in my ownership, I added a lot of the later factory features - extended baggage, rear passenger seat vents, rudder trim, etc. I was always on the lookout for parts I could use or trade.

I had a 56 182 for several years - great airplane. I liked the tall gear, never had any issues with the gear being narrower, flew it off grass the whole time. Also no problems with the float style fuel gauges, put a EDM-700 in and watch your time - no problem. The no cowl flaps aren't a problem concerning engine temps or operationally but the large cowl opening is a drag source, so stock it was a 120 MPH airplane if I recall.

Mine had been a jump airplane and had the swing up RH door which I kept as it was a nice loading feature and you could open and close it in flight just for fun.

Nice looking place-- Flying H?

Thanks. Vaughan’s Ranch near Port Orchard. WN13

Thanks. Vaughan’s Ranch near Port Orchard. WN13