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Value of avionics upgrade at resale

If you were to do an avionics upgrade from a 530W to a GTN 750 ads in/out txp etc maybe £30-40k what percentage of this would you expect to recover at sale of the aircraft say 12 months later.

Impossible to answer. Depends on type, hull value etc. It will make sale much easier is certain. People also tend to overestimate what their plane is worth now and then, when selling, say the new avionics added no value when they did.

EGTK Oxford

Vref would say 50% of the cost of the units.

Buying, Selling, Flying
EISG, Ireland

We’ve had this debate in our club wrt the panel upgrade of a C182. One of our board members is in aircraft finance (admittedly much heavier stuff), but his opinion was – not much. What it does, is make the airplane more saleable. In your case @Rob, I’d say it depends on the buyer’s preference. Personally, I’d take a 530W any day over a GTN750. Ever tried to change frequencies even in moderate turbulence on a touchscreen? Good luck. That said, the younger members in our club seem to love the one airplane we have (a C172S) that’s equipped with a 750, but they also don’t fly hard IFR or long x-countries. ADS-B is a different matter, at least here in the US. Unless you only fly somewhere in the boonies, it’s a must have.

The venerable GNS 530W (introduced in 1998) is now two generations out of date. Who would use a 24 year old computer for a moderately important task like air navigation?

Invest in a GTN 750Xi and enjoy it for a year. You can’t get that time back no matter how much you are willing to pay.

P.S. I guess I should flog my old GTN 650 while it is still worth something…

Glenswinton, SW Scotland, United Kingdom

172driver wrote:

Ever tried to change frequencies even in moderate turbulence on a touchscreen? Good luck.

Isn’t that why the GTN750 has knobs as well? A 750 is such a major upgrade over a 530 it isn’t funny.

Last Edited by JasonC at 16 Jan 21:21
EGTK Oxford

I’ve never had a problem using the GTN touch screen in alpine turbulence, but maybe that’s due to the Maule’s relatively high wing loading.

Anyway, many GTN commands can be issued verbally – no need to mess with the screen or the frequency knob – which I’m ashamed to say I’ve never used, even to see what it does. Just say, for example, “tune destination tower” – and it does.

Glenswinton, SW Scotland, United Kingdom

Jacko wrote:

Just say, for example, “tune destination tower” – and it does.

Surprised it can understand your accent! :)

Last Edited by JasonC at 16 Jan 21:35
EGTK Oxford
Yes, “toon destination tower” also works.

It’s actually pretty good at understanding the Queens English. Better than I expected for a colonial gizmo. Not as good as my iPad which took this text dictation word perfectly, but then it only has a fraction of the iPad’s processing power.

Last Edited by Jacko at 16 Jan 21:47
Glenswinton, SW Scotland, United Kingdom

If you know you are going to sell the aircraft in a year yet want to upgrade, why not upgrade GNS 530W to IFD 540 instead? Unlike the GTN 750, it is plug-compatible with the 530, so you have no labour charge, and you can also put the GNS 530W back in when selling, keeping the IFD for your next aircraft.

LKBU (near Prague), Czech Republic
18 Posts
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