Aircraft

Cessna 182 Skylane: cost of ownership

A four-seat high-wing single with a 230 hp six-cylinder engine and a constant-speed propeller. It costs more per hour than a 172, mostly from the bigger engine's overhaul and a higher hull value to insure. Figures use the fuel-injected 182T built from 2001 on. Most 182s for sale are older models with a Continental O-470, which have different engine figures (see the notes).

Where the money goes

Each line has a low, typical and high case. The typical column drives the figure above.

What each case assumes

Fuel burn

PlanePHD lists 12.5 gph for the 182T. Plane & Pilot says the average Skylane burns about 12 gph. Piston Aircraft Loans budgets a 182S or 182T at 13.5 gph. The 182T handbook gives cruise endurance but no fuel flow figure.^{[1, 2, 3]}

100LL price

National averages for September 2026: $6.67 self-service, $7.75 full-service. Prices run well above this in Alaska, Hawaii and some coastal airports.^[4]

Engine overhaul cost

No shop price list for an IO-540-AB1A5 field overhaul was found. GlobalAir (May 2026, citing flying411) gives $55,000 to $85,000 to overhaul the IO-540 in newer 182s; the low case is the bottom of that range and the typical case its midpoint. High: a Lycoming factory-rebuilt IO-540-AB1A5 for the 182T at $85,358 from Air Power, plus a $36,000 refundable core charge.^{[5, 6]}

Engine TBO

Lycoming SI 1009BF (July 2026): 2,000 hours for a field-overhauled IO-540-AB1A5, 2,600 hours for a factory-new or factory-rebuilt engine, and 12 calendar years either way. The low-cost case uses 2,600 hours.^[7]

Propeller reserve

No 182-specific propeller overhaul price was found. The 182T has a three-blade constant-speed prop, so the low case uses AOPA's $1/hr guidance for a constant-speed prop. Typical and high use FLYING's $3 to $7/hr budget example, written for a 172.^{[8, 9, 10]}

Insurance

BWI gives a typical range of $2,000 to $5,500+ a year for a Cessna 182, with hull values of $150,000 to $400,000. GlobalAir puts a qualified pilot at $1,900 to $3,000 for a $250,000 hull; the typical case uses the top of that range because a 182T is usually insured for more.^{[11, 5]}

Tie-down or hangar

Low: a $65/month tie-down, the middle of our airport sample. Typical: a $450/month T-hangar, within FLYING's $400 to $600 national range. High: $835/month, a T-hangar at Essex County, NJ (KCDW) quoted by FLYING. GlobalAir gives $3,600 to $12,000 a year to hangar a 182.^{[12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 9, 5]}

Annual inspection, with typical findings

GlobalAir, citing owner reports on Pilots of America, gives $2,500 to $4,000 as the typical range for a 182 annual; the typical case is the midpoint. For comparison, Blue Skies Aviation in San Marcos, TX lists $3,000 for the inspection alone on a late-model 182, with parts, AD work and repairs extra, so a 182T annual with findings is likely to land near or above the high case.^{[5, 17]}

How hours flown change the hourly cost

Fixed costs are spread across the hours you fly, so an airplane that sits gets expensive per hour. At 50 hours a year the typical case is $403 an hour; at 200 hours it drops to $202.

Run your own numbers

The calculator starts from the typical case. Change any field to match your airplane, airport and insurance quote.

What a Cessna 182 costs to buy

PlanePHD models typical values from asking prices as of March 2026: about $320,000 for a 182S (1997 to 2000) and about $353,000 for a 2001 182T. Later 182Ts with G1000 avionics cost more; BWI gives insured values of $500,000 to $700,000+ for newer 182Ts. Check Vref or Aircraft Bluebook before buying.^{[18, 1, 19]}

Renting instead

Journeys Aviation in Boulder lists a 182P at $183 and a 182A at $185 per Hobbs hour, wet, on its June 2026 price list ($20 more for non-members). Both are pre-1986 airplanes, so this compares owning a 182T with renting a much older 182.^{[20, 21]}

Using a $183 wet rate and the typical case above, owning becomes cheaper than renting at about 278 hours a year, before loan payments, resale value and the convenience of a dedicated airplane. Compare with your own numbers.

Things to know about the Cessna 182

Older 182s have a different engine and TBO

182s built from 1956 to 1986 use a Continental O-470; the 182S and 182T built from 1997 on use the Lycoming IO-540-AB1A5. Continental SIL98-9E gives the O-470-L, -R and -S 1,500 hours and 12 years (1,700 hours from serial 1006000), and the O-470-U 2,000 hours (2,200 from serial 1006000). PlanePHD lists the 1956 182 with an O-470-L and the 1970 to 1971 182N with an O-470-R. Check the engine data plate before using the reserve figure.^{[22, 23, 24, 21]}

A factory-rebuilt engine can cost less per hour

Lycoming gives a factory-rebuilt IO-540-AB1A5 a 2,600-hour first TBO, against 2,000 hours after a field overhaul. At Air Power's $85,358 rebuilt price that is about $33 an hour, versus $35 an hour for a $70,000 field overhaul at 2,000 hours. The rebuilt engine also carries a $36,000 refundable core charge. Lycoming's frequent-use note (120 hours in every rolling 90 days) adds 200 hours to the field-overhaul TBO only.^{[7, 6, 5]}

Hull value moves the insurance quote

BWI's 2026 examples of what 182s are insured for run from $125,000 to $175,000 for an older 182P, $225,000 to $325,000 for a 182Q, and $500,000 to $700,000+ for a 182T. BWI says premiums often rise with aircraft value even when the pilot stays the same, and that even experienced pilots get extra scrutiny when moving into a new type.^[19]

Recurring inspections add to the annual

PlanePHD lists items 182 owners see on annuals: a recurring seat-rail AD shared with other Cessna singles, a repetitive check of the fin's aft spar for cracks, aging-airframe inspections of the wing strut and spar fittings, and aileron cable checks. It also notes that the constant-speed prop, cowl flaps and bigger engine add lines to the annual compared with a 172.^[1]

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