CTLSi coolant temp. Overheat.

bluesideup

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bluesideup
Hi Everyone.
While on a trip over the weekend we encountered some unusual problems with a virtually new CTLSi, and I hope that we can come up with some logical explanation for it.

This occurred while departing off runway 29, wind 300/10, temp 72F, 100Ft MSL.

On the way to the runway, long taxi, about .7SM, with about 10 kts tail wind, the Coolant temp started going up very quickly and after RunUp, while Holding short, coolant temp got in the Yellow and the AB lights came on, everything else, except the Coolant Temp was in the Green.
Returned to the starting point, turned engine Off, checked everything again, good oil, coolant, openings clear, we did run up OK, during the Take OFF roll / lift off, the A lane light came on but the RPM showed 4980, everything else in the Green.
Proceeded on course and at the next airport, about 10 min later, landed, taxied back and in the run up area we restarted the engine, all warning lights went Off, including the A lane light was OFF also.
Verified Run Up Checklist and everything was OK. Lifted off, proceeded on course, and about 20 min into the flight we got an intermittent, Header Tank Warning, there were still about 11 Gals of fuel, fuel selector on Both, and both tanks showed that they had fuel, and everything else was in the Green, Fuel Pressure, Temps etc.. We turned On the Aux Fuel Pump, but the warning continued for about the next 10 min, intermittently, we turned the Aux Pump Off, then it remained Off for the rest of the trip, next 1.3Hrs.
The bird had a fresh Annual and 100Hrs, only about 4Hrs since annual and only 100 Hrs since new.
Any help / ideas appreciated.
Thank you.
 
My CTSW and other FD seem to have gremlins concerning good ground and good sensor contacts. I've spent a lot of time cleaning and tightening connections and finally have them operating correctly.
 
Definitely check and tighten all grounds. That is the most common source of intermittent and strange instrument indications.
 
Pose the question to the folks at CTFLIER.com, an active forum with lots of CT expertise. I agree with the above, you have to always make sure your sensors and grounds have good connections, but there have been other things that have actually caused temperature problems.
 
Last edited:
Hi Everyone.
While on a trip over the weekend we encountered some unusual problems with a virtually new CTLSi, and I hope that we can come up with some logical explanation for it.

This occurred while departing off runway 29, wind 300/10, temp 72F, 100Ft MSL.

On the way to the runway, long taxi, about .7SM, with about 10 kts tail wind, the Coolant temp started going up very quickly and after RunUp, while Holding short, coolant temp got in the Yellow and the AB lights came on, everything else, except the Coolant Temp was in the Green.
Returned to the starting point, turned engine Off, checked everything again, good oil, coolant, openings clear, we did run up OK, during the Take OFF roll / lift off, the A lane light came on but the RPM showed 4980, everything else in the Green.
Proceeded on course and at the next airport, about 10 min later, landed, taxied back and in the run up area we restarted the engine, all warning lights went Off, including the A lane light was OFF also.
Verified Run Up Checklist and everything was OK. Lifted off, proceeded on course, and about 20 min into the flight we got an intermittent, Header Tank Warning, there were still about 11 Gals of fuel, fuel selector on Both, and both tanks showed that they had fuel, and everything else was in the Green, Fuel Pressure, Temps etc.. We turned On the Aux Fuel Pump, but the warning continued for about the next 10 min, intermittently, we turned the Aux Pump Off, then it remained Off for the rest of the trip, next 1.3Hrs.
The bird had a fresh Annual and 100Hrs, only about 4Hrs since annual and only 100 Hrs since new.
Any help / ideas appreciated.
Thank you.

Check with the Distributor in Miami, they have dealt with this before successfully. Ask for John Hurst.

Cheers
 
Gotta love new airplanes!
 
Good luck, now that Flight Designs has gone bankrupt.

Thanks for spouting incorrect information. Flight Design Gmbh have a court filing for insolvency, which is like a chapter 11 re-org here in the states.

Flight Design just licensed their aircraft to a company called AirJones in Taiwan, who will take over making aircraft and parts under US and German supervision. Flight Design USA has never failed to deliver here in the states, and are continuing to support all the FD products and provide parts.
 
Thanks for spouting incorrect information. Flight Design Gmbh have a court filing for insolvency, which is like a chapter 11 re-org here in the states.

Flight Design just licensed their aircraft to a company called AirJones in Taiwan, who will take over making aircraft and parts under US and German supervision. Flight Design USA has never failed to deliver here in the states, and are continuing to support all the FD products and provide parts.

Insolvency is a synonym for bankruptcy. Companies support products until they don't.
 
Insolvency is a synonym for bankruptcy. Companies support products until they don't.
Bankrupcy didn't prevent Beech from continuing support, did it now?
 
Or Piper, or Cessna, or Mooney, or...

Mooney is not an excellent example, because, unlike the Textron step-siblings, they did in fact stop making new parts, as well as ended support of ancient short-bodies. If you gear-up a Mooney, the new gear doors must come from a junkyard and the new belly has to be an after-market "one piece". Cessna and Beech continue making new parts.

Clearly, a willingness to provide support depends on factors other than bankrupcy. Which is precisely the point Steingar is trying to obfuscate.

Now, granted, if a company collapses and nobody buys out the support business (like Univair used to do), that's the end of the road for that aircraft type. It's unclear if FD is there yet. Heck even Remos is not there yet.
 
Mooney is not an excellent example, because, unlike the Textron step-siblings, they did in fact stop making new parts, as well as ended support of ancient short-bodies. If you gear-up a Mooney, the new gear doors must come from a junkyard and the new belly has to be an after-market "one piece". Cessna and Beech continue making new parts.

Clearly, a willingness to provide support depends on factors other than bankrupcy. Which is precisely the point Steingar is trying to obfuscate.

Now, granted, if a company collapses and nobody buys out the support business (like Univair used to do), that's the end of the road for that aircraft type. It's unclear if FD is there yet. Heck even Remos is not there yet.

AeroJones, an independent Taiwanese Co., has the rights to provide parts and air frames, for the foreseeable future. Engines from Rotax, Avionics from Garmin and Dynon are not going anywhere, so on and so forth. Do not foresee any of those ceasing to exist.

Cheers
 
AeroJones, an independent Taiwanese Co., has the rights to provide parts and air frames, for the foreseeable future. Engines from Rotax, Avionics from Garmin and Dynon are not going anywhere, so on and so forth. Do not foresee any of those ceasing to exist.

Cheers

Taiwan eh?

I probably wouldn't buy one of those airframes before, and sure as heck wouldn't now.

Also wouldn't compare the short lived flight designs to more legendary brands like mooney or beech.

The FD was one of the million little airplane companies who started pumping small cheap airplanes out trying to ride the LSA wave, well outside from cub crafters, that wave was more of a short lived little ripple and with the new medical requirements coming out all these little 3rd world built plastic planes are going to get very cheap and very hard to support in the not too distant future.
 
Hi everyone.
Thank you for your feedback / responses.
To let others that may encounter the same problem know, the Cooling problem is a known issue and is attributed, in part, to leaner mixture in the CTLiS / injected engine, at idle, and the fact that the 10kts tail wind would compound the problem, virtually no airflow over the radiator.
No fix known / available at this time, just taxi at a faster speed.
The Low fuel in Header Tank is still without any logical explanation, and the A Lane light may be related to some sensor wire vibration, if I find more information I will post here.
Thanks again everyone. TV
 
Hi everyone.
Thank you for your feedback / responses.
To let others that may encounter the same problem know, the Cooling problem is a known issue and is attributed, in part, to leaner mixture in the CTLiS / injected engine, at idle, and the fact that the 10kts tail wind would compound the problem, virtually no airflow over the radiator.
No fix known / available at this time, just taxi at a faster speed.
The Low fuel in Header Tank is still without any logical explanation, and the A Lane light may be related to some sensor wire vibration, if I find more information I will post here.
Thanks again everyone. TV

Fix is available, talk to John Hurst.

Cheers
 
Hi LSCT.
If you can find something, please post here and or send me a private Email. I did speak to other mechanics / techs, including the one you mentioned. TV

Fix is available, talk to John Hurst.

Cheers
 
Taiwan eh?

I probably wouldn't buy one of those airframes before, and sure as heck wouldn't now.

Also wouldn't compare the short lived flight designs to more legendary brands like mooney or beech.

The FD was one of the million little airplane companies who started pumping small cheap airplanes out trying to ride the LSA wave, well outside from cub crafters, that wave was more of a short lived little ripple and with the new medical requirements coming out all these little 3rd world built plastic planes are going to get very cheap and very hard to support in the not too distant future.

I'm sorry, but you are just wrong.

Flight Design has been in business making airplanes for decades. They entered the LSA market when it opened up in the USA and their airplanes fit the definition for LSA.

They are a German company. Flight Design USA is a US company. They source parts and airframe components from many countries, just like most other airplane makers.

If you don't want one, bully for you. I'm sure your opinion means a lot to everybody else, and will be the primary consideration in their future purchases. :rolleyes2:

The comparison was a a legal one. Does a "legendary" airplane maker get some special treatment and legal protection from creditors, as opposed to a maker of "cheap airplanes"?

You are silly.
 
The comparison was a a legal one. Does a "legendary" airplane maker get some special treatment and legal protection from creditors, as opposed to a maker of "cheap airplanes"?
As the GM bailout amply demonstrated, some companies are sufficiently legendary to get the special treatment while their creditors are shafted by the government. However, Beech wasn't legendary enough to get preferrential treatment in the LAS contract. That was their Hail Mary pass to get taxpayer on the hook for the 2.4 billion in debt. Didn't work. However, Boeing is certainly legendary. That is why they are building those tankers now.
 
As the GM bailout amply demonstrated, some companies are sufficiently legendary to get the special treatment while their creditors are shafted by the government. However, Beech wasn't legendary enough to get preferrential treatment in the LAS contract. That was their Hail Mary pass to get taxpayer on the hook for the 2.4 billion in debt. Didn't work. However, Boeing is certainly legendary. That is why they are building those tankers now.

Political protection is not the same as legal protection. The GM deal was patently illegal by any normal legal standards, and turned the whole normal debt pyramid (secured debt > bonds > stocks) upside down.
 
I'm sorry, but you are just wrong.

Flight Design has been in business making airplanes for decades. They entered the LSA market when it opened up in the USA and their airplanes fit the definition for LSA.

They are a German company. Flight Design USA is a US company. They source parts and airframe components from many countries, just like most other airplane makers.

If you don't want one, bully for you. I'm sure your opinion means a lot to everybody else, and will be the primary consideration in their future purchases. :rolleyes2:

The comparison was a a legal one. Does a "legendary" airplane maker get some special treatment and legal protection from creditors, as opposed to a maker of "cheap airplanes"?

You are silly.

Perhaps I am, however thinking FD is going to stick around like Mooney or Beech, who have been around since the Second World War and have numerous models, many of which are still flying over half a century later, well to think FD is going to fair as well, my guess is they vanish like a fart in the wind.
 
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