Just got back from vacation, and fired up the sim. Tried to do some flights in both the stock 182, and the Carenado Dakota, and both exhibited anemic performance.Tried some tests, and these were the results:Cleared all weather in FSUIPCTook off, and climbed to 500 feet.Full throttle, (25 in man. press)Prop control pulled back to 2100 rpmMixture set to peak egt, or just rich of peaklevel flight.THe Dakota would not get above 135 kts, and the 182 was pegged at about 126kts.Suggestions?? I want to try some realistic flights, and I need to have the planes performing to spec (143/145 kts cruise respectively)

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Are you sure that cruise performance is measured at 500 feet?5000 feet or 10,000 feet sounds more likely and then you have to start looking at indicated vs ground airspeed.. maybe you are getting the performance, but it could be a measurement issue...

>Are you sure that cruise performance is measured at 500>feet?>well, performance tables for any aircraft usually start at sea level so there is nothing wrong with him testing it at 500 ft. Many normally aspirated high performance piston engines/airplanes should actually deliver highest TAS at sea level (it is true for example for Mooney Ovation). And at 500 ft TAS and IAS are practically identical.Michael J.http://www.reality-xp.com/community/nr/rsc/rxp-higher.jpg

Well, for what it is worth, in the 182S, I measure a top cruise speed of 126 kts as well, and that is with the cowl flaps closed... maybe try again in colder air and see if that helps... One more test, reduce the payload and fuel... and try flying in several directions to make sure you are not the victim of "winds aloft"... Two people on board, and 50% fuel load, no wind, winter,...this way, I get a cruising speed of 136 knots.. (using the GPS to get a ground speed reading). Given that this airplane is old and tired and has not had any recent maintenance.. I figure I'm close to the rated max speed of 140 knots..

Thanks for the reply folks. Yes I did mean 5000 feet. Have tried it at 500 feet as well - same thing.Not a measurement issue. At 5000 feet, and a summer day temperature, I would expect an indicated of about 138kts to translate into 145 true. I also checked the GS on the GPS going North, and then South. Same thing. Pretty much renders the plane useless for me - I need realistic cruise performance in order to judge flights I want to take in a real one.

Actually-it looks to me like Ms has it close. The cruise speed of a 182 is about 135 kts.http://www.risingup.com/planespecs/info/airplane263.shtmlAt 5000 ft. on a standard day a CAS airspeed of 126 knts give a TAS of 137.4 kts.The dakota has a cruise speed of 143 knts.http://www.risingup.com/planespecs/info/airplane417.shtmlAt 5000 ft. on a standard day a CAS airpspeed of 135 gives a TAS of 147 knts-again pretty close.http://mywebpages.comcast.net/geofa/pages/rxp-pilot.jpg

Are they with throttle floored ?When someone gives one number for cruise it is often some mid number.Michael J.http://www.reality-xp.com/community/nr/rsc/rxp-higher.jpg

Try one more time with reduced load... my guess is that maximum load and maximum cruise do not go together.. :-)Just the pilot and 50% fuel would be a good test.

I assume cruise listed would be 65-75% power. I flew a brand new 182 (6 months old) a few months ago at 5000 and if I recall I saw about 125- 128 kts. indicated with full throttle and 2400 rpm. The checklist states to never run it above 80%. I don't have any performance tables but ms numbers sound pretty reasonable to me.A few months ago I saw a post complaining that the Baron didn't climb very well above 10,000 ft. As a new baron driver at the time I didn't comment as I didn't know-but after taking a 4000 mile trip out west a few weeks ago-I can confirm that above 10,000 ft it climbs like a dog. I was lucky to get 100-200 fpm-with a density altitude about +2000 ft-near 12-14,000 50 fpm. This was lightly loaded with only 2 on board. The MS baron is not a b55 like mine so it should get a little more than that-but again this seems reasonable.http://mywebpages.comcast.net/geofa/pages/rxp-pilot.jpg

Remember to set your sea-level temperature up a little. Say, 78-82 degrees or so...and your 5,000 ft temp difference will net you an increase in speed.Dan

Folks - one last note. I tried it again last night. Took off from Sea-Tac. Climbed to 2500', and then cruised in all four cardinal directions. Results were the same on the gps - 126kt in every direction. This is not a matter of instrumentation. This is a plane not cruising at 140kt as advertised! :-(

Yes, it is. First, at 2,500 feet, with wind settings at default, there is no wind.Second, what manifold pressure were you running and what fuel/passenger load did you have?Do not rely on GPS for TAS (True Air Speed).Set your outside temp at sea level to 75-80 degrees. Climb to 6,500 feet. Try two 190 pound people in the front seats, 75% fuel. At altitude, you should be cruising at wide open throttle and at the top of the green arc on your manifold pressure. Adjust your airspeed indicator for the outside temp (you will need to convert fahrenheit to celcius!), and read your KTAS. I bet it's hovering around 135 knots, which is just about what the real 182 is going to fly.Remember, factory numbers are rarely attained.Try the same settings at 3,000 feet, but reduce throttle to the top of the green arc on your manifold pressure guage. You might get 140 indicated.Dan

Yeah, folks should realize that you can actually pick up quite a few knots by flying in warmer air so testing in "standard" atmosphere (and this is what FS defaults too) is not really practical, at least not in an average location in the US in summer months.Michael J.http://www.reality-xp.com/community/nr/rsc/rxp-higher.jpg