Engines · piston (reciprocating) · data as of October 7, 2026

Continental C85 series

4,671 aircraft on the U.S. register carry a Continental C85 series engine, rated at about 85 horsepower. The Cessna 140 is the model most often fitted with it (1,253 aircraft). The aircraft carrying it were built between 1940 and 2023.

The FAA records engines by code, usually at the level of a series ("O-320 series") rather than the exact variant; this page gathers every FAA code that reads as Continental C85 series. FAA spelling: C85 SERIES.

Fitted to model families

Cessna 1401,253Cessna 120602Piper J-3 Cub519Aeronca 7 Champion (Champ)360Luscombe 8 Silvaire321Ercoupe 415267Aeronca 11 Chief136Engineering & Research ERCOUPE 415111Piper PA-11 Cub Special68Engineering & Research 41568Taylorcraft BC12 BC-12D60Commonwealth 18557

Cessna 140 · Cessna 120 · Piper J-3 Cub · Aeronca 7 Champion (Champ) · Luscombe 8 Silvaire · Ercoupe 415 · Aeronca 11 Chief · Engineering & Research ERCOUPE 415 · Piper PA-11 Cub Special · Engineering & Research 415

Where they are owner's state

Texas401California397Florida267Washington191Alaska185Wisconsin167Minnesota162Ohio152Michigan149Illinois139

Kind of aircraft

Piston singles4,669 (100%)Piston twins1 (0.0%)Helicopters1 (0.0%)

When the aircraft were built by decade

What the FAA has certified, ordered and been told about the Continental C85 series the component layer

The design is held under 1 type certificate (E-233, held by Continental Aerospace Technologies, INC.). The FAA has issued 7 airworthiness directives (orders that owners must comply with) that name this engine series. Operators and repair shops have filed 12 failure reports with the FAA since 1995, 4 of them in the last ten years.

FAA orders 7 airworthiness directives · newest first

1998-10-1998-17-11 · Crankshafts · engine

1996-02-1394-05-05 R1 · Cylinder Rocker · engine

1995-11-2895-21-15 · Aviation Gasoline · engine

1993-12-1493-22-05 · Carburetor Air Intake Housing Assemblies · engine

1981-04-0181-07-06 · AC Fuel Pumps · engine

47-40-02 · Piston Pins · engine

All orders naming the Continental C85 series

Failure reports 12 since · what operators and shops told the FAA

Parts most often reported as the reports name them

Spar2Throttle Cable2Bearing1Control Unit1Downlock Switch1Elt1Exhaust Valve1Guide1Propeller1Rib1

Latest reports

2022-11-23Exhaust Valve: stuck

2022-01-07Propeller: broken

2013-09-05Throttle Cable: broken

2013-05-02Throttle Cable: broken

2008-02-29Rib: corroded

Certificates and bulletins

E-233Type certificate held by Continental Aerospace Technologies, INC. · 31 models listed · revised September 19, 2022

Safety bulletins 6 · advice, not orders

2018-09-10NE-18-27 · POWERPLANT Rocker Shaft Boss Inspection

2016-03-08NE-16-13 · Powerplant - Prohibited use of sealant

2012-10-31NE-13-04 · Continental Motors, Inc. (CMI) Connecting Rod Piston Pin Bushing Inspection

1998-06-10CE-98-21R1 ·

1997-12-31ACE-98-21 ·

Sources: the FAA's type certificate data sheets, airworthiness directives, supplemental type certificates, special conditions and special airworthiness information bulletins (Dynamic Regulatory System), and the FAA's service difficulty reports. A failure report is what an operator or repair station chose to file; the counts show reporting as much as reliability, and larger and commercial fleets report more. How the systems are grouped.

Connections how this engine series links to the rest of the register

Fitted to

Cessna 140 1,253 with this engine series
Cessna 120 602 with this engine series
Piper J-3 Cub 519 with this engine series
Aeronca 7 Champion (Champ) 360 with this engine series
Luscombe 8 Silvaire 321 with this engine series
Ercoupe 415 267 with this engine series
Aeronca 11 Chief 136 with this engine series
Engineering & Research ERCOUPE 415 111 with this engine series

Where they are

Texas 401 of these aircraft
California 397 of these aircraft
Florida 267 of these aircraft
Washington 191 of these aircraft
Alaska 185 of these aircraft

Biggest operators

Plane Fun INC Tr Trustee 10 of these aircraft
Southern Aircraft Consultancy INC Trustee 8 of these aircraft
Western Antique Aeroplane & Automobile Museum 5 of these aircraft
Eaa Aviation Foundation INC 5 of these aircraft
Riggin Flight Service INC 4 of these aircraft

Airworthiness

FAA orders naming the Continental C85 series 7 airworthiness directives
Failure reports on the Continental C85 series 12 reports since 1995

Analytics

These connections as data: /graph/engine/continental-c85-series.json · about the eFlight graph.

Aircraft newest certificates first · 4,671

Tail no.	Maker and model	Group	Owner and base	Certificate	Registered	Status
N2011B	Luscombe 8E	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Pennsylvania	Standard	2021-08-17	Valid
N3495N	Piper J3C-65	Fixed-wing, single engine	Old Goat LLC Wilmington, Delaware	Standard	2021-08-17	Valid
N2411N	Cessna 140	Fixed-wing, single engine	Louisiana Taildraggers LLC New Orleans, Louisiana	Standard	2021-08-16	Valid
N2501K	Luscombe 8E	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Montana	Standard	2021-08-14	Valid
N90083	Cessna 140	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner California	Standard	2021-08-13	Valid
N120KF	Cessna 120	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Indiana	Standard	2021-08-11	Valid
N2042A	Champion AERONCA 7BCM	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Texas	Standard	2021-08-09	Valid
N4146N	Cessna 120	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Oklahoma	Standard	2021-08-07	Valid
N76619	Cessna 140	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Oklahoma	Standard	2021-08-07	Valid
N76915	Cessna 140	Fixed-wing, single engine	M R G 2 LLC Galesburg, Illinois	Standard	2021-08-07	Valid
N77428	Cessna 120	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner Missouri	Standard	2021-08-07	Valid
N69968	Aeronca 7BCM	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Texas	Standard	2021-08-06	Valid
N71565	Luscombe 8E	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Massachusetts	Standard	2021-08-05	Valid
N76603	Cessna 140	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner South Carolina	Standard	2021-08-03	Valid
N3497N	Piper J3C-65	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner New York	Standard	2021-08-02	Valid
N92195	Piper J3C-65	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner New York	Standard	2021-07-31	Valid
N94857	Ercoupe E	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Arkansas	Standard	2021-07-31	Valid
N3244N	Piper J3C-65	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Florida	Standard	2021-07-30	Valid
N8688	Piper J-3	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Tennessee	None on file	2021-07-29	Valid
N2252V	Cessna 140	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Colorado	Standard	2021-07-28	Valid
N2469N	Cessna 120	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Washington	Standard	2021-07-28	Valid
N3949E	Aeronca 11AC	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Arkansas	Experimental	2021-07-27	Valid
N4179E	Aeronca 7BCM	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Florida	Standard	2021-07-27	Valid
N94114	Engineering & Research 415-C	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner Michigan	Standard	2021-07-26	Valid
N35927	Piper J5A	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Maine	Standard	2021-07-24	Valid
N25E	Luscombe 8E	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Alaska	Standard	2021-07-21	Valid
N6522H	Piper J3C-65	Fixed-wing, single engine	V S Hawkins Ranch CO INC Arthur, Nebraska	Special flight permit	2021-07-21	Valid
N1183K	Luscombe 8E	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner California	Standard	2021-07-20	Valid
N1554B	Luscombe 8E	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Michigan	Standard	2021-07-20	Valid
N1745V	Cessna 120	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Illinois	Standard	2021-07-19	Valid
N78743	Piper PA-11	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Montana	Standard	2021-07-19	Valid
N2841E	Champion AERONCA 7BCM	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner North Dakota	Standard	2021-07-14	Valid
N7453H	Piper J3C-65	Fixed-wing, single engine	M & M Aerogroup LLC The Villages, Florida	Standard	2021-07-14	Valid
N140JH	Cessna 140	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner California	Standard	2021-07-12	Valid
N3682K	Piper J3C-65	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Puerto Rico	Multiple	2021-07-09	Valid
N3187E	Aeronca 11BC	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Texas	Standard	2021-07-08	Valid
N4724M	Piper PA-11	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Oregon	Standard	2021-07-07	Valid
N2216N	Cessna 140	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner California	Standard	2021-07-01	Valid
N3910B	Cessna 140	Fixed-wing, single engine	Cannon Aero Services LLC Colbert, Washington	Standard	2021-06-30	Valid
N1839K	Luscombe 8E	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Georgia	Standard	2021-06-29	Valid
N9385H	Piper J-3C	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner California	Standard	2021-06-28	Valid
N2376N	Cessna 120	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Arkansas	Standard	2021-06-26	Valid
N3345N	Piper J3C-65	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Wisconsin	Standard	2021-06-26	Valid
N93JT	Piper PA-11	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner California	Standard	2021-06-25	Valid
N3161N	Cessna 120	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner Michigan	Standard	2021-06-23	Valid
N27536	Taylorcraft BL-65	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner California	Experimental	2021-06-19	Valid
N41754	Fuchs JUNIOR ACE E	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner New Mexico	Experimental	2021-06-19	Valid
N192GM	Moore Glenn G VARIEZE	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Indiana	Experimental	2021-06-15	Valid
N2933K	Luscombe 8E	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner New Jersey	Standard	2021-06-15	Valid
N2710A	Aeronca 7BCM	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Virginia	Standard	2021-06-14	Valid
N76942	Cessna 140	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Wisconsin	Standard	2021-06-11	Valid
N94785	Ercoupe 415-E	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Texas	Standard	2021-06-11	Valid
N249X	Johnson Frank D JOHNSON SPECIAL	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner California	Experimental	2021-06-09	Valid
N92166	Piper J3C-65	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Illinois	Standard	2021-06-09	Valid
N1012	Aeronca 11BC	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Kansas	Standard	2021-06-07	Valid
N3624V	Cessna 140	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner Texas	Standard	2021-06-07	Valid
N2824K	Silvaire LUSCOMBE 8E	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Colorado	Standard	2021-06-04	Valid
N145WK	Koecher Walter W CHRISTAVIA MK I	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Nebraska	Experimental	2021-06-02	Valid
N95984	Taylorcraft BCS12D-4-85	Fixed-wing, single engine	Sutton Aircraft Salvage LLC Palmer, Alaska	Standard	2021-06-02	Valid
N2544N	Cessna 140	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Nevada	Standard	2021-06-01	Valid
N3794H	Ercoupe 415-C	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner North Carolina	Standard	2021-06-01	Valid
N51ET	Cessna 140	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Ohio	Standard	2021-05-26	Valid
N1843V	Cessna 120	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Florida	Standard	2021-05-24	Valid
N6109H	Piper J3C-65	Fixed-wing, single engine	Skydive Cross Keys LLC Williamstown, New Jersey	Standard	2021-05-21	Valid
N72691	Cessna 140	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Arkansas	Standard	2021-05-20	Valid
N84321	Aeronca 7AC	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Texas	Standard	2021-05-20	Valid
N87283	Ercoupe 415-C	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Montana	Standard	2021-05-19	Valid
N1909N	Cessna 120	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Wyoming	Standard	2021-05-15	Valid
N85033	Aeronca 7AC	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner California	Standard	2021-05-15	Valid
N4452E	Aeronca 7DC	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Florida	Standard	2021-05-14	Valid
N4246E	Aeronca 11CC	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Texas	Standard	2021-05-12	Valid
N3132N	Cessna 120	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Virginia	Standard	2021-05-11	Valid
N812KW	Cessna 140	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner California	Standard	2021-05-11	Valid
N80760	Globe GC-1A	Fixed-wing, single engine	Port Townsend Aero Museum Port Townsend, Washington	Standard	2021-05-10	Valid
N88431	Piper J3C-65	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner Virginia	Standard	2021-05-08	Valid
N1298B	Luscombe 8E	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner California	Standard	2021-05-06	Valid
N1917J	Rushton Donald SE5A REPLICA	Fixed-wing, single engine	Lafayette Foundation INC Fort Lupton, Colorado	Experimental	2021-05-06	Valid
N83845	Piper-Crockett J-4A	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Tennessee	Standard	2021-05-06	Valid
N88209	Piper J3C-65	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Washington	Standard	2021-05-05	Valid
N1812K	Luscombe 8E	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Virginia	Standard	2021-05-04	Valid
N4660T	Eaa Biplane BV-1	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Wisconsin	Experimental	2021-05-04	Valid
N923Z	Eaa SPORT BIPLANE	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Maine	Experimental	2021-05-04	Valid
N3433	Lane/Bleriot XI AM II	Fixed-wing, single engine	Cct of 1979 B-24 Series LLC Bleriot Series Stow, Massachusetts	Experimental	2021-05-03	Valid
N76581	Cessna 140	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Texas	Standard	2021-05-03	Valid
N95308	Taylorcraft BC12D-85	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner New Mexico	Standard	2021-05-03	Valid
N27915	Piper J5A	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner California	Standard	2021-05-01	Valid
N4791M	Piper PA-11	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Alaska	Standard	2021-05-01	Valid
N72354	Cessna 120	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Nebraska	Standard	2021-04-29	Valid
N72672	Cessna 140	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner Florida	Standard	2021-04-26	Valid
N98022	Piper J3C-85	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Michigan	Standard	2021-04-26	Valid
N46SJ	Taylorcraft BC12-D	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Minnesota	Standard	2021-04-24	Valid
N2819N	Cessna 140	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner California	Standard	2021-04-23	Valid
N7188H	Piper J3C-65	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Illinois	Standard	2021-04-20	Valid
N25L	Ercoupe G	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner South Dakota	Standard	2021-04-19	Valid
N41051	Piper J5A	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Florida	Standard	2021-04-19	Valid
N6771H	Piper J3C-65	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Florida	Standard	2021-04-19	Valid
N76630	Cessna 120	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Arkansas	Standard	2021-04-19	Valid
N111TH	Taylorcraft Aviation Corp 19	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Florida	Standard	2021-04-17	Valid
N2055N	Cessna 140	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Florida	Standard	2021-04-16	Valid
N4001H	Piper J4A	Fixed-wing, single engine	Lapiair LLC Vergennes, Vermont	Standard	2021-04-16	Valid

Source: FAA Civil Aviation Registry, Releasable Aircraft Database (the engine reference table and each aircraft's engine code), October 7, 2026. Horsepower and thrust are the FAA's figures for the series, not for a particular aircraft.