The landing reputation of the Sundowner is the porpoising tendencies. It
is extremely forward CG and you basically need a lot of weight in the back
to reduce the porposing tendency.

I guess this tendency would be even worse with the Sierra, given its
higher engine weight?

I have made three trips from MS to OH in the past year and because of the
cabin room, it really was a comfortable ride for me.

That's the biggest attraction for me. My wife, a non pilot, does not
really like flying but she tolerates it because she likes going from A
to B in a fraction of the time it takes to drive. That and she prefers
GA travel to the airlines because of all the hassles involved with
commercial air travel nowadays. So keeping her comfortable in the
cabin is really important to me. The two doors are a BIG plus. One
thing she does not like about the Cherokee, is that she has to wait for
me to finish preflighting and then get in the plane last .

I really cant think of a single GA airplane in this price range that is
more passenger friendly than the Sierra. The rear baggage door is huge
too. Real easy to load that baby stroller in and out!

Rich