Yes here is a rather poor photo of the panel but you can see it is due an upgrade but to what? Financial sense says decent VFR but really I want a decent IFR panel. Without the redundancy of the Meridian I was used to but still adequate and safe for reasonable IFR. By reasonable I mean say 3k visibility and 1000’ en-route cloudbase.
I am moving towards a Garmin Landscape G3X Touch for the PFD with G5 backup and likely another Portrait G3X Touch for the EIS. Radio/GPS/Nav maybe a GTN750Xi and a backup radio. Golze ADL200 for weather avoidance.
But then choices continue to GFC500 autopilot and perhaps surprisingly a GTS800 TAS……….. I am seriously thinking of the TAS system for the VFR panel as well.
But then I am way over what the aircraft will be worth. Is there a market for a IFR Cessna 185 in Europe? Probably not although there are lots of well equipped examples in the US and Canada.
What about a G5 as HSI beneath the AI and then a GTN650? Then if desired for IFR the lowest cost solution for a second radio and mode S?
Only you will have an idea if you may want to change relatively quickly or you may have it for a while. For me it would be the sort of machine I’d intend to have for a long time, so making the panel how you want it may give you the nicest ownership experience.
Saying that. I’d go for the 2 g5, GTN and decent digital engine monitor route. Gives you plenty of time to decide what you want to do, would be perfectly reasonable in IMC and could power a GFC500 if you wanted to add one at any point. They’re also easier to replace if you have any issues, rather than one mega glass screen which I would expect to be pretty expensive.
I’d be excited just to get flying and enjoying it, especially as summer is coming up.
Congrats for this beauty, I would imagine the priority this summer is to fly VFR to places that PA46T can’t go to?
For IFR panel,
- On MFD screen, GTN+GFC500 looks like a must for VFR/IFR mixes
- On PFD screen, if you go G3X with SV that should work for STOL IFR flying with FPV pointing to runway threshold while aircraft is flying on the back side of the drag curve, just kidding 
One Archer I used to fly had 2*G5+GTN750 and recently got GFC500, that 25k combo seems to deliver a good value for VFR/IFR in and out of grass strips…
Not a 185 but this beauty was parked at Blackpool a couple of weeks ago, what great looking aircraft this series are
Very helpful and good sense comments.
@Graham – yes thought of dual G5 but they cost around the same as the G3X and I do like the touch interface
@Off-Field – so true. Only I can decide but it really does help having considered input from a rational group of like minded pilots. I would never consider asking such open questions on other forums
@ibra – Exactly right on the contrast with typical Meridian trip using it for shorter field VFR trips this summer. But I can’t shake off the ease of flying IFR when it suits so there lies my dilemma
@Quatrelle – Yes they are good looking aircraft in an odd retro fashion plus don’t have to worry about the Meggitt failure scenario like our other EuroGA exchanges!
I think a better question to ask would be what equipment level the group would be comfortable with for a typical IFR trip? I will have a think about a reasonable trip profile and post tomorrow.
Thanks all.
PhilG wrote:
Exactly right on the contrast with typical Meridian trip using it for shorter field VFR trips this summer. But I can’t shake off the ease of flying IFR when it suits so there lies my dilemma
As is it’s good for VFR, when upgraded for IFR as long as you are not planning IFR above weather at FL250, she will do a good job having something that lands safely in 300m should cope well with weather from under with plenty of en-route diversions, the only practical limits are crosswind limits, especially on tarmac, VFR/IFR down to Class G VMC minima and UK SE dis-joint airspace !
One thing for sure it looks & sits nice 
