Robinson R-22
Lycoming 0-320
Embedded Files
Welcome to the new Power Flow Systems website! Please let us know if you have any issues. email web@powerflowsystems.com. We hope you like it!
Applicability: R22, R22 HP, R22 Mariner, R22 Alpha, R22 Beta. Must have Lycoming O-320-B2C engine and large oil cooler ( p/n: C649-1 or p/n: A649-2). FAA approved by STC.
How can just changing the exhaust give you a tremendous boost in power and efficiency? The answer is simple: Power Flow Systems = Bolt on Horsepower!
Installing a Power Flow tuned exhaust provides the same performance benefits as upgrading to a Beta II, at a fraction of the cost. It is true bolt-on horsepower for your O-320 powered Robinson R22 Alpha or Beta.
You simply remove your old, restrictive factory exhaust system and bolt-on a complete Power Flow Systems exhaust for instant results you can see, feel, and hear. You then operate your helicopter to the Beta II engine performance limitations. The same technology that has been used in race cars, motorcycles, and over 7,300 certified aircraft currently equipped with Power Flow’s Tuned Exhaust System is now available for your O-320 powered R22 helicopter.
Would you like to cruise up to 8 knots faster at the same manifold pressure? Or how about 200 – 300 foot per minute increase in climb? You can even lower fuel burn by up to 15% at your current airspeed. Unlike the factory exhaust, the Power Flow exhaust system does not require mandatory replacement at 2200 hours. For complete list of benefits, see below:
200 - 300 Foot Per Minute Increase in Climb Rate
Cruise up to 8 Knots Faster at current manifold pressure
Burn up to 15% Less Fuel at current airspeeds
No 2200 Hour Time Limitation on our Tuned Exhaust
Hover with Lower Manifold Pressure, operate to Beta II Limits with your Alpha or Beta
Cylinder Head Temperature (CHT) extremes reduced by 15 - 20 degrees with less variation between cylinders
Exhaust Gas Temperature (EGT) extremes reduced between cylinders
Smoother running engine
Kit includes a complete 321 Stainless Steel Exhaust System, i.e... 4 headers, cabin heat shroud, carburetor heat, extractor system, muffler (located inside the tailpipe), STC and STC authorization, manifold pressure gauge, instructions, including all necessary hardware for installation (nuts, No-blo gaskets, clamps, etc.)
New & Improved design for Cabin heat and Carb heat exchangers
No welds in cabin heat area practically eliminating the possibility of Carbon Monoxide poisoning
60 Day Money Back Guarantee from day of installation
2 year or 500 tach hour (whichever comes first) warranty on the exhaust system
Our Tuned Exhaust System is designed to use the exhaust gases from each cylinder to help empty the other cylinders, rather than having those exhaust pulses interfere with each other. The factory exhaust system is a very simple design with two exhaust headers entering a central muffler chamber from each side with no separation of the exhaust pulses. The pulses enter the chamber with no particular path to follow. Some leave through the tailpipe, some stay in the muffler (creating back pressure) and some even go back up the other header pipes causing further back pressure.
Our system specifically times each exhaust pulse to create a low pressure (suction) at the cylinder’s exhaust valve when the valve is ready to open. This empties the cylinder more completely allowing for more power to be generated. The exhaust gases then exit the tailpipe without interference from the other cylinders.
As with all of our systems, Power Flow’s “Beta II in a box” comes with a 60 Day Money Back Guarantee and a 1 Year / 500 Flight Hour Warranty.
This system is delivered to you as a complete replacement of your factory exhaust system from the cylinders on down to the muffler (which is located in our tailpipe). It includes everything needed for installation, including a replacement Manifold Pressure Gage with Beta II limitations marked on it. The exhaust system features all new carburetor heat and cabin heating that uses your existing connections and all necessary exhaust hardware.
Estimated installation time is 2-3 hours. Please Note: An additional “Core Charge” of $500.00 is added to each invoice to cover the cost of a replacement Manifold Pressure Gauge, marked to Beta II operating limits, included with each new Power Flow System. That $500.00 is refunded to you upon the return of your R22’s original MAP Gauge to us.
For lead times and discounts see table below
AOG Rush? Need your Power Flow ASAP? Contact us for the best possible delivery date (surcharge will apply)
Standard Lead time averages 4 - 6 weeks
Short Lead Time Discount (have time & save $$)
Long Lead Time Discount (8 - 12 week Lead)
* Exhaust Kits have a variable lead time, dependent upon our Sales offer and manufacturing capacity - Please refer to the chart below for current lead times and any available discounts. If you need an exhaust immediately, please call or indicate AOG in the “Notes” section of the online order. All other in stock items normally ship within 2 business days of order receipt. Your credit card will not be charged until the order and shipping cost are verified by our Sales Department and confirmed with you.
** Prices are for US and Canadian registered aircraft only. International customers may place an order online and will be contacted by Power Flow Systems, Inc. or a local authorized reseller regarding final pricing.
A couple of other important pieces of information
#1.) We strongly recommend that the R22’s cooling fan be dynamically balanced to below .015 IPS in conjunction with the installation of the new Tuned Exhaust System. If the cooling fan is dynamically balanced within 25 flight hours of the installation of the Power Flow System and you furnish PFS with copies of the logbook entries confirming this, PFS will extend the warranty on the Tuned Exhaust System from 12 months to 24 months or 500 Flight Hours (whichever occurs first).
Doing so every 2 - 4 years thereafter will dramatically improve the useful life and the reliability of every component that is bolted to the engine, including the Power Flow System.
#2) The Power Flow System has no service life limit. It is designed and built to last several thousand flight hours and will quite likely be the last exhaust system you need to buy for your R22. As with any high performance system however, it must be maintained properly. Every 500 flight hours or annually (whichever comes first) the four slip joints on the system must be cleaned and lubricated with high temperature anti-seize compound.
Most customers have this maintenance performed during the aircraft’s annual inspection which adds about 2 hours of labor to the inspection. We have had several of our Tuned Exhaust Systems rack up over 4,000 flight hours of trouble free performance (7,000+ flight hours is the current record in a commercial operation) as long as this maintenance is performed as required.
Don't just take our word for it - listen to what just some of our happy Power Flow customers have to say about the Power Flow tuned exhaust system on their aircraft:
Still not sure if a Power Flow is right for you and your R22? For complete peace of mind, check out our:
Warranty & Guarantee
Who wants to gamble with their hard-earned dollars? You don’t want to and Power Flow doesn’t want you to, either. That’s why we offer three layers of protection with each system we ship:
100% customer satisfaction guarantee: If within 60 days from the date of the first flight after installation you are dissatisfied for any reason, you can return the system to Power Flow Systems and you will be entitled to a full refund of the purchase price of the system (exclusive of shipping charges and labor) once the system has been received and inspected by Power Flow Systems. Inspection will take place within five (5) days from the return of the system, and an adjustment to the refund amount will be made for any parts missing or damaged. If the original payment was made on a credit card, it will be refunded to the same credit card. If payment was made by check, a company check will be issued.
And finally, in cooperation with our network of Preferred Dealers, we are pleased to offer our:
We know that it works, more than 7,300 Satisfied Customers worldwide know that it works, and your local Power Flow Preferred Dealer knows that it works . . .
But, what happens if it doesn’t work on YOUR airplane?
As the name implies, this program lets you buy a Power Flow Tuned Exhaust System for your aircraft through one of our Preferred Dealers, have them install it for you, and go fly with it for 60 days, absolutely risk free!
If it works like we know it will, Great! Welcome to the world of higher performance!
If the system doesn’t live up to YOUR expectations, or even if it does but you just don’t like all that extra horsepower, simply fly your ship back to the Preferred Dealer (who originally installed your Power Flow). That Dealer will:
Remove the Power Flow System from your aircraft,
Reinstall your original exhaust (as long as it was airworthy when removed) at No Charge,
Refund the purchase price and installation charges you paid to have the system installed, &
Return the system to us at the Dealer's expense.
Power Flow will even refund your outbound shipping charges meaning that the only thing you stand to lose is your skepticism!
Robinson R-22 PIREPS and Customer Reviews
Quotes from Justin Dake, Rotorcraft CFI, after flying a Power Flow equipped R22 Beta, N301BP for 8 hours during Power Flow Systems FAA Certification testing, completed June 1, 2010.
“Now the Beta really performs like the Beta II. There is improvement everywhere, but I saw the biggest improvement in hover and takeoff performance.”
“At max gross, with the stock [Robinson original] exhaust we couldn’t hover within limitations. But, with the Power Flow you can comfortably hover within limitations, even allowing that the maximum manifold pressure is 1 inch lower with the Power Flow.”
“With only myself in the R22 and full fuel tanks, I would see 80 to sometimes 85 knots at maximum continuous power. With the Power Flow, I would easily see 85-90 knots. A solid 5-6 knot gain.”
“I got the same airspeed in level flight for about 1.0 inches lower manifold pressure. This should result in a lower fuel burn at the same speeds.”
“I didn’t really notice a difference in sound in the cockpit.”
- Justin Dake, Rotorcraft CFI, Jupiter, FL.
"Since the installation of the exhaust system we have noticed a fuel saving of 5 litres [1.32 gallons] per hour in flight training and cruising at low manifold pressure settings, e.g. 20”. We have found whilst doing cross country flights, we are using around 35 litres [9.25 gallons] per hour,(same as a Beta II) but we are cruising with 22” MP, 80 litres [21.13 gallons] on board and 2 P.O.B [People on Board] at around 90-93kts, which is around 5-8kts faster than our own Beta II.
This exhaust puts the R22 Beta up to the R22 Beta II performance without a doubt. And with this exhaust system upgrade we are having the same ‘Hot and High’ performance we are currently having with our R22 Beta II."
- D. Lealand - Rotorua, New Zealand
"Fuel consumption has shown a consistent 5 Lt/hr [1.32 Gal/hr] reduction when operating at the same airspeed as standard, that’s a 15% reduction in fuel consumption!"
We saw an average fuel consumption with the standard exhaust fitted of 33 litres [8.72 gallons] per hour, with the Performance exhaust fitted we saw an average fuel consumption of 30 [7.92 gallons] litres per hour, giving a 3 litres [0.8 Gallons] per hour fuel saving.
This trial was done with the guys just continuing normal flight training, therefore the results are a fairly accurate representation of the fuel savings you can expect. I do believe that in practice, we will see better fuel savings than this when the hook is refitted and they get back to sling with it. Phase of flight such as hovering and sling will be the times where we will see the most benefit in fuel consumption savings.
A flight test was carried out with the standard exhaust fitted, and the same flight on the same day carried out with the tuned exhaust for comparative purposes and the results are as follows.
Standard Exhaust: Climb out @ 23” MAP and constant speed 60kts gave rate of climb of 700fpm.
Tuned Exhaust: Climb out @ 23” MAP and constant speed 60kts gave rate of climb of 900fpm
Standard exhaust: Climb out @ 60kts and rate of climb of 600fpm gave a MAP of 22.5”
Tuned exhaust: Climb out @ 60kts and rate of climb of 600fpm gave a MAP of 21”
Standard exhaust:
Cruise 1000’ at 60kts gave MAP of 18”
Cruise 1000’ at 70kts gave MAP of 19”
Cruise 1000’ at 80kts gave MAP of 20.5”
Tuned exhaust:
Cruise 1000’ at 60kts gave MAP of 17”
Cruise 1000’ at 70kts gave MAP of 18”
Cruise 1000’ at 80kts gave MAP of 19”
Standard Exhaust: Hover MAP – 21.5”
Tuned exhaust: Hover MAP – 20.5”
- Matt Bailey, Performance Aviation, NZ.
"In my honest opinion, for my particular application, the cost is justified. Additionally, the replacement time is on condition and replacement parts, such as the tailpipe insert, or baffle, are available so that performance can be restored.
Finally, I am in no way affiliated with Power Flow Systems and this impression is purely voluntary. I do give permission to Power Flow Systems to use the information and pictures in a way that is of positive influence to others with R22’s or with Power Flow Systems in general. I believe product delivers what it claims to."
- Frankie Lapina, Jacksonville, FL.
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