These stupid comments were exactly what the old boat guys said when
the slow turning purpose built boat engines were replaced by
automotive engines and inboard/outdrive rather than big huge prop
shafts coming out the bottom of the hull through lignum vitae blocks.
The modern pleasure boating industry would not be in existence if they
still had huge slow turning engines and vulnerable huge bronze screws.
Kiekhaefer and OMC put the 'ancien regime' out to the salvage pier in
short order.

Enough volume does not exist to build a piston engine today
specifically for general aviation use and even if there were it still
would be silly. A good "aircraft" engine would also be a good "boat"
engine...etc.

In the long run it's academic-real airplanes have turbine engines-but
"Lycoming for Life" is such a crock of s*** it makes me want to puke.
The fact is there is a Lycoming religion out there and if I built a
power package and had a hundred of 'em flying for ten years, the
Lyc-kissers would say they'd look at when I had two hundred flying for
twenty years...then, three hundred and thirty, etc. There's no winning
-it's like defending Luther to the College of Cardinals. Lycomings
have suffered inflight catastrophic failure, so have Continental, P&W,
you name it. Either you get confident you can deadstick the damn thing
or stick to transport category multi. Elsewise, you're playing
Williamsport Roulette every time the throttle comes forward on takeoff
no matter whose engine is forward of the firewall.

Just my worthless opinion...;-)