Cessna 150 - Deal or No Deal?

hockeyrcks9901

hockeyrcks9901

Pre-takeoff checklist
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Tampa, FL
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hockeyrcks9901
My flight school is helping to sell a 150 and I'm just curious if it's listed at an appropriate price. I'm not looking to buy at this point in my training or flying career so this is just for edification regarding the going rate for 150s. From what I can tell it looks like a pretty good plane for the price but I really have no idea. Listed at $15,000

Here's the listing text:
A beautiful C-150 that flies as great as it looks. Clean, low-time, never a trainer and some nice upgrades. Cheap to purchase, cheap to fly. Complete logbooks, fresh Annual (2/16) by us, and all AD’s up to date. Recent transponder and altimeter check. Has been mostly hangared since full restoration in October of 2003.

Year: 1971
Type:Cessna 150L
Airframe Total Time: 4877
Engine/HP: Continental O-200-A / 100 HP
Engine Times: 1281 SMOH / 1800 TBO
Prop Times: 4877
Last Annual: February 2016

AVIONICS:
MX170-B Nav-com
KI201C Indicator
RT359A transponder
ACK A-30 encoder 2010
Garmin 496 mounted to glareshield
PS Engineering panel mount intercom 2015

OTHER EQUIPMENT
Auto gas STC
Spin-on oil filter
Oil quickdrain
Oil pan heater
Instruments overhauled 2003
Carb overhauled 2003
New magnetos & harness 2003
Whelen LED Marker Light 2006
Whelen Landing Light 2012
ARP Carb Ice Detection System 2006
Rosen Sun visors 2007
New glass all around 2003
New door & window seals 2003
New engine baffles 2012
New prop bolts 2003
New vacuum pump 2003
New plastic wing tips 2003
New Strut fairings 2003
New gear leg fairings 2003
Wheel pants
New dorsal fin cap 2003
New horizontal stabilizer tips 2003
New mufflers 2003
New mixture control cable 2003
New fuel quick drains 2003/2011
New decals and placards 2003
New battery 2016

EXTERIOR
White Imron with Forest Green accent stripe Painted 2003
INTERIOR 2003

All new interior plastic 2003
Upholstery & Carpet Forest Green

REMARKS
COMPLETE LOGS
Mid-West Plane most of its life (last 10 years Florida)
No Damage History… except bird strike 2006 dent to vertical fin skin; replaced. Light hail damage on top surfaces.
 

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Last edited:
I probably missed it, but what is the price point?
 
looks like a steal even with those green seats............
 
I think it's a good price. I'm looking on my phone, and it looks nice overall. If the engine is in good shape, I'd say there are worse deals out there.
 
hockeyrcks9901 said:
Those are pretty awful but unless there is a regulation against it, pretty easy to get a seamstress to make some decent covers.
Click to expand...

Doing upholstery is actually one of the things approved as owner maintenance.

(11) Repairing upholstery and decorative furnishings of the cabin, cockpit, or balloon basket interior when the repairing does not require disassembly of any primary structure or operating system or interfere with an operating system or affect the primary structure of the aircraft.

You can take the seats to any auto upholstery place have them re-do everything. Good idea to use burn certified fabric.
 
That's not a bad price at all, assuming the engine checks out OK. But, they might be lying a little bit in the ad. A C-150 with approximately 5000 hrs and it was "never a trainer"? :)
 
Interesting to hear everyone saying it seems to be a good deal.

I've not seen this plane in person nor do I know anything about it other than the flight school sent an email saying they were helping the owner sell it.

My next lesson is tomorrow, I may ask to take a look at it just for kicks. All of the flight school planes appear to be really well maintained and this one was maintained by them so I see no reason for it to have any problems.
 
edo2000 said:
That's not a bad price at all, assuming the engine checks out OK. But, they might be lying a little bit in the ad. A C-150 with approximately 5000 hrs and it was "never a trainer"? :)
Click to expand...

They don't have any 150s in the rental fleet so I could believe it.
 
edo2000 said:
That's not a bad price at all, assuming the engine checks out OK. But, they might be lying a little bit in the ad. A C-150 with approximately 5000 hrs and it was "never a trainer"? :)
Click to expand...
Being sold by a flight school?
 
Lindberg said:
Being sold by a flight school?
Click to expand...

He said the flight school was "helping" to sell it. Seems logical. A Cessna 150 would be an economical choice for a low time pilot looking for a first airplane to build experience.
 
Not bad for 15k at all.
 
Looks good ,price seems to be in the right area.
 
I agree that $15,000 sounds like a good price for that airplane. Take a look and see what you think about it tomorrow.
 
Fair price. I would check year of engine overhaul. Hopefully you get another 6-800 hours out of the engine, but when you do need an overhaul you're looking at almost the purchase price.
 
somorris said:
I agree that $15,000 sounds like a good price for that airplane. Take a look and see what you think about it tomorrow.
Click to expand...

As a guy with only 1.5 hours in my logbook, I'd likely just be saying "ooohhhh ahhhh......airplane......pretty....." Like a caveman.

But I'll try and see it if for nothing other than seeing a plane. :)
 
Mike5250 said:
Fair price. I would check year of engine overhaul. Hopefully you get another 6-800 hours out of the engine, but when you do need an overhaul you're looking at almost the purchase price.
Click to expand...

Which is the rub with all the 15k two-seaters.
 
Mike5250 said:
Fair price. I would check year of engine overhaul. Hopefully you get another 6-800 hours out of the engine, but when you do need an overhaul you're looking at almost the purchase price.
Click to expand...

Why?

You arnt thinking of trying to use that little C150 for a part 135 charter ship are you??

Most all the GA fleet are beyond the part 135 overhaul calendar, not many folks care.

Frankly for the condition she's in, I'd fly it till 20% past TBO, if I still liked the plane, have heart of Texas overhaul it for 10k or so and keep on going if it still met my mission, which a 150 does in the REAL WORLD for most GA folks.
 
James331 said:
Why?

You arnt thinking of trying to use that little C150 for a part 135 charter ship are you??

Most all the GA fleet are beyond the part 135 overhaul calendar, not many folks care.

Frankly for the condition she's in, I'd fly it till 20% past TBO, if I still liked the plane, have heart of Texas overhaul it for 10k or so and keep on going if it still met my mission, which a 150 does in the REAL WORLD for most GA folks.
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Where can you overhaul a 0-200 for ten grand?
 
hockeyrcks9901 said:
As a guy with only 1.5 hours in my logbook, I'd likely just be saying "ooohhhh ahhhh......airplane......pretty....." Like a caveman.

But I'll try and see it if for nothing other than seeing a plane. :)
Click to expand...

From a guy that's currently selling his 150. I will tell you that it is a very good deal you are getting. I would strongly recommend a pre-buy from someone who has not worked on it before or someone with an A&P you know and trust. Also, if you are a low time guy you are going to save a lot of money in training in it. Your dry per hour rate should be between 35-40 dollars a hr. Insurance for that low of time is what's going to kill you , probably in the 1K range maybe a little lower depending who you go with. But i will also remind you if something breaks on it you got to fix it. Flight school aircraft they have to fix it unless of course you broke it on purpose.
 
hockeyrcks9901 said:
My flight school is helping to sell a 150 and I'm just curious if it's listed at an appropriate price. I'm not looking to buy at this point in my training or flying career so this is just for edification regarding the going rate for 150s. From what I can tell it looks like a pretty good plane for the price but I really have no idea. Listed at $15,000

Here's the listing text:
A beautiful C-150 that flies as great as it looks. Clean, low-time, never a trainer and some nice upgrades. Cheap to purchase, cheap to fly. Complete logbooks, fresh Annual (2/16) by us, and all AD’s up to date. Recent transponder and altimeter check. Has been mostly hangared since full restoration in October of 2003.

Year: 1971
Type:Cessna 150L
Airframe Total Time: 4877
Engine/HP: Continental O-200-A / 100 HP
Engine Times: 1281 SMOH / 1800 TBO
Prop Times: 4877
Last Annual: February 2016

AVIONICS:
MX170-B Nav-com
KI201C Indicator
RT359A transponder
ACK A-30 encoder 2010
Garmin 496 mounted to glareshield
PS Engineering panel mount intercom 2015

OTHER EQUIPMENT
Auto gas STC
Spin-on oil filter
Oil quickdrain
Oil pan heater
Instruments overhauled 2003
Carb overhauled 2003
New magnetos & harness 2003
Whelen LED Marker Light 2006
Whelen Landing Light 2012
ARP Carb Ice Detection System 2006
Rosen Sun visors 2007
New glass all around 2003
New door & window seals 2003
New engine baffles 2012
New prop bolts 2003
New vacuum pump 2003
New plastic wing tips 2003
New Strut fairings 2003
New gear leg fairings 2003
Wheel pants
New dorsal fin cap 2003
New horizontal stabilizer tips 2003
New mufflers 2003
New mixture control cable 2003
New fuel quick drains 2003/2011
New decals and placards 2003
New battery 2016

EXTERIOR
White Imron with Forest Green accent stripe Painted 2003
INTERIOR 2003

All new interior plastic 2003
Upholstery & Carpet Forest Green

REMARKS
COMPLETE LOGS
Mid-West Plane most of its life (last 10 years Florida)
No Damage History… except bird strike 2006 dent to vertical fin skin; replaced. Light hail damage on top surfaces.
Click to expand...


That 150 is practically New!
You should expect 600 to 800 hrs from that engine with minimal trouble.
after that, barring a bottom end problem, the most you might likely need
is one, more or all jugs reconditioned,,, not a whole overhaul!
Those bottoms will go 4000 hrs easily,,, usually...
 
Purchase same type for 15yr old daughter. 840$ annually on insurance. Company did say age played a part in quote so could be a little cheaper.

Looks like a good deal if prebuy checks out. If hadn't already purchased one I'd be a serious looker also.
 
Everyone,

Just to be clear, I'm not in the market for a plane currently. My wife would kill me. Seriously. She knows where I keep the guns.

I was just posting this because I was curious about the pricing as it did seem like a deal. Looks like everyone thinks it is.
 
Greenhead said:
Purchase same type for 15yr old daughter. 840$ annually on insurance. Company did say age played a part in quote so could be a little cheaper.

Looks like a good deal if prebuy checks out. If hadn't already purchased one I'd be a serious looker also.
Click to expand...


That's just it, a $30k - $40k Cessna 172 or Cherokee fixed costs such as insurance, transponder checks, tie downs/hangar rent are virtually the same as a Cessna 150. They both share a lot of the wear parts like tires, brakes, etc so really no savings there either.

Cessna 150s aren't much cheaper to own than a simple 4 place airplane.

(I miss my Cessna 150B tho)
 
bnt83 said:
That's just it, a $30k - $40k Cessna 172 or Cherokee fixed costs such as insurance, transponder checks, tie downs/hangar rent are virtually the same as a Cessna 150. They both share a lot of the wear parts like tires, brakes, etc so really no savings there either.

Cessna 150s aren't much cheaper to own than a simple 4 place airplane.

(I miss my Cessna 150B tho)
Click to expand...

Don't completely agree. Some of the fixed costs such as tie-down/hangar, xponder will be essentially the same as you noted. But insurance on a 2-seater is usually cheaper than a 4 seater just because of the single event passenger liability risk, the tires/brakes will last longer because the airplane is so much lighter than a 4 seater, and the gas will be a LOT less than a typical O-320 putting out 50% more hp than that little Continental O-200. Spreadsheet the full cycle costs (including the opportunity cost of the additional capex for purchase) of flying ~200 hours building time & experience in a C150 vs a Cherokee and it will be a material difference for a pilot on a budget.

Plus its more fun to spin a Cessna 150 than practically any other common spin-approved training airplane, which in itself is reason enough to own one imo :D
 
bnt83 said:
That's just it, a $30k - $40k Cessna 172 or Cherokee fixed costs such as insurance, transponder checks, tie downs/hangar rent are virtually the same as a Cessna 150. They both share a lot of the wear parts like tires, brakes, etc so really no savings there either.

Cessna 150s aren't much cheaper to own than a simple 4 place airplane.

(I miss my Cessna 150B tho)
Click to expand...
Understand. But 15k difference is a good bit of $ for some. That 15k pays for her ppl and operating costs. Plan is to get her ticket, pay off 150L, sell 150 then put money down on larger aircraft. <br /><br />I do wish I could purchase her the best but aviation on a budget can be tough. Proud of our 150L because it is the start of her being able to live out her dream.
 
hockeyrcks9901 said:
Everyone,

Just to be clear, I'm not in the market for a plane currently. My wife would kill me. Seriously. She knows where I keep the guns.

I was just posting this because I was curious about the pricing as it did seem like a deal. Looks like everyone thinks it is.
Click to expand...

It's ok. You can buy it. Just tell her that you 'saved money'. Just don't mention her shoes.
 
bnt83 said:
That's just it, a $30k - $40k Cessna 172 or Cherokee fixed costs such as insurance, transponder checks, tie downs/hangar rent are virtually the same as a Cessna 150. They both share a lot of the wear parts like tires, brakes, etc so really no savings there either.

Cessna 150s aren't much cheaper to own than a simple 4 place airplane.

(I miss my Cessna 150B tho)
Click to expand...

I don't believe that is correct. There is a reason flight schools are able to rent out the 15x planes at a lower rate than the 4-seaters. Less capital, lower insurance, lower fuel burn.
 
bnt83 said:
That's just it, a $30k - $40k Cessna 172 or Cherokee fixed costs such as insurance, transponder checks, tie downs/hangar rent are virtually the same as a Cessna 150. They both share a lot of the wear parts like tires, brakes, etc so really no savings there either.

Cessna 150s aren't much cheaper to own than a simple 4 place airplane.

(I miss my Cessna 150B tho)
Click to expand...

The more hours you put on the more the fuel burn and whatnot adds up.

Also a 172 is not nearly as good of a trainer as a 150/2
 
weilke said:
It's ok. You can buy it. Just tell her that you 'saved money'. Just don't mention her shoes.
Click to expand...

Luckily my wife is a very practical person and does not have a shoe thing, or a purse thing, etc

I think she has 5 pairs of shoes and one purse.

If I didn't just buy a "fun" car and have to replace the AC at the house she'd probably be okay with it.
 
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