Yes, weight and fuel load are concerns. To make this a more meaningful discussion, I suggest we standardize terminology. The difference between maximum gross weight and empty weight is useful load -- typically 500 to 550 pounds in most S-LSAs. The remaining weight with full fuel tanks is called payload -- and that 350# figure is pretty typical. So, we're talking two FAA-standard 170 pound adults, plus ten pounds of baggage. If the people or baggage weigh more, the only answer is to reduce the fuel carried.eidolon45 wrote:With full tanks, it only has about 350 # or less useful load.
In my SportStar (1268 pounds max gross; I haven't done the vortex generator mod yet), empty weight is 745 pounds. That leaves a useful load of 523 pounds. Full fuel (31.5 gallons) weighs 189 pounds, which leaves a 334 pound payload. For dual instruction, I only carry 16 to 20 gallons of fuel (still good for 3 to 4 hours, or 2-3 hour lessons with plenty of reserve).
When I do the mod to raise the max gross weight to the LSA limit, the resulting numbers become: useful load=575 pounds; payload=386 pounds. So, the 162 is certainly comparable to the other S-LSAs out there.