A 1990's M7-235/260A or B at 2500lb gwt with close to 1000/950lb useful loads compared to an M9-235/260 2800lb gwt and 1100lb useful , can be bought for $70k and up, dependent on hrs, DH, equipment, and condition. 11% gwt difference correlates with much different ground roll and climb when operating at gross.

Maule M9-260 hp IO540 Lyc is $269,000
Cessna 182 230 hp SMA is $515,000
Cessna 182 235 hp Lyc is $493,000
Cessna 172 160 hp Lyc is $274,900
Cessna 172 180 hp Lyc is $307,500
Aviat Husky A1C Lyc is $315,000

Holy Shit...

For that kind of $$$ I could have a super nice older C180 or Super Cub.

AND... A nice E model or 201 Mooney, or Comanche 260, or Bonanza for an IFR family truckster.

AND... Have a few hundred thousand dollars left over for a lifetime worth of avgas, parts and annuals, and insurance coverage.

No way.

Gump

Are super cubs really worth that much?

nefj40 wrote:Are super cubs really worth that much?

Not to me.

But they are worth whatever people will pay.

I think they are like Harley were for awhile, way over priced.

Some guys are going to get caught with their pants down when the price corrects. Just saying.

G'Day

My brother bought a new M7 back in 2004. He thought about a 180 but in the end it came down to - he wanted a brand new airplane and, for the price, you just couldn't beat the Maule. It did have a useful load issue though and even back then Maule was working on the 2800# GW because they knew it did. It took them a long time to get to the M9 and I'm a bit taken aback because it's over $100k more than what my bro paid for the M7 nine years ago, which was fully loaded with just about every option you could get and a panel that was to die for.

The Maule was a good airplane but it's not a Cessna, it just isn't. They have some quirky qualities and features but you learn to live with them. It's a niche aircraft with enthusiastic owners that pride themselves in having something different. As far as performance, well we went a lot of places in that thing but we never came close to pushing the envelope - most people don't. We'd go to meets at back country strips up in Idaho and Montana and camp with all the folks with their decked out Maules, Huskys, Supercubs and Skywagons but then inevitably some punk kid would drop down in a clapped out 150 or a friggin' Ercoupe and let the air out of everyone's bushwheels a bit.

Regardless, it was an awful lot of fun - good times.

silvaire wrote:We'd go to meets at back country strips up in Idaho and Montana and camp with all the folks with their decked out Maules, Huskys, Supercubs and Skywagons but then inevitably some punk kid would drop down in a clapped out 150 or a friggin' Ercoupe and let the air out of everyone's bushwheels a bit.

Haha, great call.

silvaire wrote: We'd go to meets at back country strips up in Idaho and Montana and camp with all the folks with their decked out Maules, Huskys, Supercubs and Skywagons but then inevitably some punk kid would drop down in a clapped out 150 or a friggin' Ercoupe and let the air out of everyone's bushwheels a bit.

ROFL

I really appreciate all the advice, thank you!

Bookmarking this thread! Great Conversation! I am writing about this on my Blog.

Curious about the M9 with the larger 260 HP engine.

I was wondering why Maule is so reluctant about supplying turbo pressurized options. I am not referring to the Allison monster which they have, but simply say a TIO-540 instead of an IO-540, much like Cessna offers their Stationaires in regular aspirated and turbo flavors. I think the had an M5 years ago with a 220 HP turbo.

An M9 with a TIO-540 would be quite the machine for folks with altitude and temperature, DA concerns. If weight is an issue then maybe in a Nose Dragger versions say an MT9-260 with TIO-540.