wrote:
: slightly higher service ceiling (I live in Colorado-important!)

Even *I* don't know if I buy that. The Hershey-bar wing is pretty
slug-like compared to the 172. It helps in turbulence, stall
characteristics, and crosswind, but not in climb-related things. In the
early-mid 70's are you talking about taper-wing? Then that might
be the case (dunno... I'm only calibrated to Hershey-wing PA28's).

Cory:

I, too, have the cherokee 180D (hershey bar). The published ceiling
is 16K (ok, on a 1969 document) but I've had it up to 15K. I've
noticed that the newer the cherokee, the lower the ceiling due to
more weight of the aircraft. Overall max weight of 2400 has
remained the same.

Example, according to the 180G docs, absolute is 15K and service is 13K.
Yet in the similar docs for my 180D, the numbers are 16K/14K. I've been
up above 14.5K many times (Leadville, for example).

I dunno...