With about 10 hr on his, he's a very happy owner so far.I recently flew a RANS S-19 with an older 3300 in it. With mags, at least you know that once you get the engine started, it's going to keep running as long as there is fuel in the tanks!Thanks for the information, Larry! Photos below of cylinder heads and barrels being machined on our vertical machining centre and Gen 4 3300 engine components ready for assembly along with pictures of the first shiny new Generation 4 2200 and 3300 engines. Deletion of the external oil lines allowed for further increasing the cylinder head fin area which enhances cooling.With all the changes within Gen 2, looks like it should be sub-divided into Gen 2-A and Gen 2-B (or at least "early" and "late" Gen 2) so when discussing these engines, one is not comparing apples-and-oranges!Developed specifically for Zenith builders (by a builder) these videos on DVD are a great help in building your own kit plane by providing practical hands-on construction information. LolNo it’s not.
It hasn’t blown up yet but I’d be quite surprised if we aren’t hanging the spare engine we have before it reaches 400 hours.I have heard similar things to this about the older Jabs. It only has 200 hours on it yet has problems. My first aircraft was a Jabiru 450UL with the 2200 engine with the 3rd Generation Heads and Hydraulic Lifters. Does he have a special FAA waiver?Disregard. Not nearly loud enough. I guess mine is "3rd Generation" because it is a "late hydraulic lifter" engine with external oil lines deleted that allowed for more cylinder fin area for better cooling. It sounds like an RC engine? Still no cam rollers or larger case bolts. JEM3304-4 This Manual has been prepared as a guide to correctly operate, maintain and service the Jabiru 3300 engine. I thought he was talking about the plane not the engine.Yeah, but as he mentions Jabiru, that's only for E-LSA use.I'm not a huge fan of the Rotax engine because of the way it sounds.Why ear plugs!? He prefers the Sonex carb and replaced the Bing with one at installation. The engine itself has been very reliable for 550 hrs, but I've had to replace a couple of VDO oil pressure sensors (I'm going to try one of the solid-state sensors next time - supposedly they never wear out!) I had two oil leaks on a brand new engine which took a few hours to resolve. I like a loud, obnoxious engine. LolWhy ear plugs!? .If you're anywhere around North Texas there's a guy at my airport who has won and rents it out. Wondering if anyone who owns a Jabiru Gen 4 would share their opinion/performance on the newest engine.As I recall, not too long ago I read somewhere that Jabiru NA (now Arion Aircraft) was just starting to get deliveries of 4th Generation engines. Jabiru engines are designed to be manufactured in small batch quantities using the very latest Computer Numerically Controlled (CNC) machine tools. A friend here has just repowered his Sonex with the latest 3300. Some can be upgraded. I maintain and fly behind an older Jabiru 3300 from time to time.
Ha!Therefore, I suspect there are few, if any, actually flying in Zenith aircraft at the moment. I didn't feel it was any smoother than a 912S in an S-20 I flew months before, but they are much different airframes.I put a Sonex/AeroConversion "AeroInjector" carb on my 3rd Generation/"late hydraulic lifter" 3300 and had the same experience: my CHT/EGT's are much better balanced than with the Bing (saves a lot of weight, too!). I'd be happy to ask him any questions you have about it or put you in contact with him as wellI maintain and fly behind an older Jabiru 3300 from time to time.