No idle cutoff? +new owner question

Thanks for the visual, Brooks! I'll discuss options with my A&P when I see him next. I want to make sure of compatibility and everything before ordering parts.

Hi Aaron!

Om betting that Larry is correct about you having a Stromberg carburetor. My coupe was changed to a Marvel-Schebler carburetor in the past, so it does respond to "Idle Cutoff" in the way you'd expect in a Cessna, Piper, etc. There's no problem with a properly-operating Stromberg carburetor, but if you ever decide to make the change it's pretty straightforward.

Concerning installing a GNS430w, there's very little depth behind the instrument panel because the center fuel tank is located there. There's only 6-7 inches of depth available behind much of the panel! The Ercoupe wasn't even designed to fit the depth of a COMM radio in the panel. But that does mean that workarounds have been found.

My Ercoupe had a radio added in the 1970's - a big honkin' vacuum-tube unit that would never have fit, and would've been kind of absurd hanging below the panel. The solution was a big "bump out" fascia that was added to the center of the panel. They cut out a big rectangle in the center of the panel and then screwed this avionics rack unit to cover the hole. The throttle, Carb Heat,& Mixture knobs also fit into the bottom of this unit.

I ended up removed mine & installing a compact remote radio & matching transponder, but the "bump out" always worked fine... I just needed to upgrade my avionics and that was a chance to get rid of it. Here are some photos from before the removal:

 

 
 

Does it have a stromberg carborator? Mine does and there is no idle cutoff. I was told that is the way they are designed to work. Like a car, you turn the key off to shut down.

Thanks John, I'm waiting to hear back to make sure it does have the Stromberg carb now.
I was thinking of fitting the gns430w under the dash but out of knee space. I was originally looking at the GPS, but the value of the gns430w with not only most of the same mapping functions, along with nav and second com within a lower price is quite appealing to me. I do remember the dash depth space to be quite limited. I'll talk with my tech about the options and space limitations more later.

Thanks Larry, it makes sense in this situation. I'll make sure it's the Stromberg carb!

As Larry said if the plane has the Stromberg carb you can't use the mixture to shut off the engine. That is different, and normal, from what you're used to with a 172.

Rather than a GNS 430 or 530 I'd look at the GPS175 family for a navigator. You may find space behind the panel at a premium. The AV20/30 would be a good combination. Depending on your generator/alternator situation you may find the electrical load calculation pushing the envelope as well. LED landing/taxi light can save some load in that regard.