To be honest I don't know about the width part. I know that the length got
stretched around 1973 or 1974 with the Challenger, right? Even then, we want
a bit more width.
A agree that for the same money we could get a newer (or better equipped)
235 vs a 182. So, we were willing to pay the Cessna price premium.
Our price range in anywhere up to low-mid 80K. More often than not, we won't
need 6 seats. Although, I have an opportunity for a flight next weekend
where I'd need 5... :-)

"Matt Whiting" wrote in message
...
Steven Barnes wrote:
The older 235's have the same airframe as our 180. Too cramped. To get
the
larger airframe in a Dakota type plane, puts us out of our price range.

Do you mean width, length or both? I thought the Dakota was the same
width as all of the PA028 series. I know they stretched the Arrow in
1972, but I don't know much about the Dakota. Is it just longer than
the older 235s or did they increase the width as well?

I'm looking at a nice Arrow III at the moment, but the trouble is the
cabin is so narrow compared to my former 182. I thought you had to move
to the PA-32 to get a wider Piper cabin, but I'm not intimately familiar
with the Piper line as I'm pretty much a Cessna guy. However, I must
admit that Piper's are cheap to buy compared to a Cessna of similar
performance and equipment. I just don't find the PA-28 series
comparable to the 182 in comfort for flights beyond 2 hours. I flew the
182 4 hours or more several times with no problem, but found the club
Arrow I flew most recently to be uncomfortable past about 1.5 hours.

Matt