Engines · piston (reciprocating) · data as of October 8, 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

Model families, as a table

	aircraft
Cessna 140	1,253
Cessna 120	602
Piper J-3 Cub	519
Aeronca 7 Champion (Champ)	360
Luscombe 8 Silvaire	321
Ercoupe 415	267
Aeronca 11 Chief	136
Engineering & Research ERCOUPE 415	111
Piper PA-11 Cub Special	68
Engineering & Research 415	68
Taylorcraft BC12 BC-12D	60
Commonwealth 185	57

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

By state, as a table

	aircraft
Texas	401
California	397
Florida	267
Washington	191
Alaska	185
Wisconsin	167
Minnesota	162
Ohio	152
Michigan	149
Illinois	139

Kind of aircraft

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

By kind, as a table

	aircraft	share
Piston singles	4,669	100%
Piston twins	1	0.0%
Helicopters	1	0.0%

When the aircraft were built by decade

By decade built, as a table

	aircraft
1930	37
1940	3,453
1950	83
1960	43
1970	65
1980	46
1990	36
2000	22
2010	7
2020	2

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

Failure reports by year, as a table

	reports
95	1
01	1
02	1
03	1
05	1
07	2
08	1
13	2
22	2

Parts most often reported as the reports name them

Spar2Throttle Cable2Bearing1Control Unit1Downlock Switch1Elt1Exhaust Valve1Guide1Propeller1Rib1

Parts most reported, as a table

	reports
Spar	2
Throttle Cable	2
Bearing	1
Control Unit	1
Downlock Switch	1
Elt	1
Exhaust Valve	1
Guide	1
Propeller	1
Rib	1

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

The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/engine/continental-c85-series.json.

Aircraft newest certificates first · 4,671

Tail no.	Maker and model	Group	Owner and base	Certificate	Registered	Status
N2284N	Cessna 140	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Minnesota	Standard	1976-04-23	Valid
N89860	Cessna 140	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Illinois	Standard	1976-03-23	Valid
N77464	Cessna 120	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Oregon	Standard	1976-03-05	Valid
N42351	Piper J3C-65	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Florida	Standard	1976-02-13	Valid
N94844	Ercoupe E	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Wisconsin	Standard	1976-02-09	Valid
N4145E	Aeronca 11CC	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner New York	Standard	1975-12-08	Valid
N42318	Piper PA-11	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Michigan	Standard	1975-12-02	Valid
N1645V	Cessna 120	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Wisconsin	Standard	1975-11-24	Valid
N2041K	Silvaire LUSCOMBE 8E	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Wisconsin	Standard	1975-11-21	Valid
N1717K	Luscombe 8E	Fixed-wing, single engine	J Smith Ranch INC Condon, Oregon	Standard	1975-10-17	Valid
N98555	Piper J3C-65	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Kentucky	Standard	1975-10-17	Valid
N76754	Cessna 120	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Colorado	Standard	1975-10-10	Valid
N1888V	Cessna 140	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner North Carolina	Standard	1975-08-08	Valid
N83450	Aeronca 7DC	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Georgia	Standard	1975-06-13	Valid
N89583	Cessna 120	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner New York	Standard	1975-05-13	Valid
N76174	Cessna 140	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Florida	Standard	1975-04-19	Valid
N90125	Cessna 120	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner North Dakota	Standard	1975-04-17	Valid
N2468K	Luscombe 8E	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner Colorado	Standard	1975-03-27	Valid
N31126	Piper J3C-85	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Wisconsin	Standard	1974-10-22	Valid
N1612N	Funk B85C	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner South Dakota	Standard	1974-09-30	Valid
N559A	Smith Miniplane DSA-1	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Ohio	Experimental	1974-09-25	Valid
N2336K	Luscombe 8E	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner New Jersey	Standard	1974-08-23	Valid
N3786E	Aeronca 7AC	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Minnesota	Standard	1974-05-10	Valid
N1530B	Luscombe 8E	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Minnesota	Standard	1974-04-11	Valid
N83050	Champion 7CCM	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner California	Standard	1974-01-16	Valid
N2793	Christian A Eff GRAHAM SUPER MIDGET	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Florida	Experimental	1973-12-17	Valid
N4658E	Aeronca 11CC	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Michigan	Standard	1973-11-05	Valid
N2057K	Luscombe 8E	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Michigan	Standard	1973-10-10	Valid
N76686	Cessna 140	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Pennsylvania	Standard	1973-09-17	Valid
N8KK	Stits Playboy SA3A	Fixed-wing, single engine	Eaa Aviation Foundation INC Oshkosh, Wisconsin	Experimental	1973-08-31	Valid
N77297	Cessna 120	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Washington	Standard	1973-08-15	Valid
N2604K	Luscombe 8E	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Arkansas	Standard	1973-08-10	Valid
N3593K	Piper J3C-65	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Minnesota	Standard	1973-07-23	Valid
N1848V	Cessna 140	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Minnesota	Standard	1973-06-22	Valid
N72123	Cessna 120	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Ohio	Standard	1973-06-01	Valid
N76952	Cessna 120	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Missouri	Standard	1973-04-12	Valid
N2061V	Cessna 120	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Nebraska	Standard	1973-03-20	Valid
N80905	Globe GC-1A	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Minnesota	Standard	1973-03-06	Valid
N82693	Aeronca 7BCM	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner New Hampshire	Standard	1972-11-28	Valid
N28245	Piper J5A	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Wisconsin	Standard	1972-10-18	Valid
N44D	Piper J3C-65	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Kansas	Restricted	1972-08-15	Valid
N72982	Cessna 140	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Oregon	Standard	1972-05-23	Valid
N23417	Piper J4A	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Florida	Standard	1972-02-17	Valid
N22359	Aeronca 65-C	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Arkansas	Standard	1972-01-15	Valid
N81868	Aeronca 7DC-CONV	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Texas	Standard	1971-09-01	Valid
N63559	Piper J3C-65	Fixed-wing, single engine	L C Dennis CO INC Maxwell, California	Standard	1971-07-21	Valid
N89380	Cessna 140	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Ohio	Standard	1971-07-12	Valid
N1938V	Cessna 140	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Indiana	Standard	1971-06-28	Valid
N1676K	Luscombe 8E	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Arizona	Standard	1971-04-23	Valid
N4070N	Cessna 140	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Wisconsin	Standard	1971-03-02	Valid
N51G	Pober Sport P-5	Fixed-wing, single engine	Eaa Aviation Foundation INC Oshkosh, Wisconsin	Experimental	1970-12-09	Valid
N1825K	Luscombe 8E	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner New Mexico	Standard	1970-11-24	Valid
N4157N	Cessna 120	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Florida	Standard	1970-11-19	Valid
N95085	Taylorcraft BC12-D	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Pennsylvania	Standard	1970-07-17	Valid
N2856N	Cessna 120	Fixed-wing, single engine	Poor Boys Flying Club Incorporated Osborne, Kansas	Standard	1970-07-13	Valid
N76629	Cessna 140	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Kansas	Standard	1970-07-02	Valid
N2066B	Luscombe 8E	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Arizona	Standard	1970-05-25	Valid
N77402	Cessna 120	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Oregon	Standard	1970-03-20	Valid
N4037N	Cessna 120	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Wisconsin	Standard	1970-02-18	Valid
N40685	Piper J5A	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Florida	Standard	1969-11-21	Valid
N2677E	Aeronca 7AC	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Washington	Standard	1969-09-23	Valid
N90192	Cessna 140	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Minnesota	Standard	1969-09-16	Valid
N2634H	Ercoupe 415-C	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner California	Standard	1969-08-08	Valid
N27999	Piper J5A	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner South Carolina	Standard	1969-07-15	Valid
N1390E	Aeronca 7AC	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner West Virginia	Standard	1968-10-01	Valid
N72705	Cessna 140	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner California	Standard	1968-09-19	Valid
N4851H	Piper PA-17	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner Wisconsin	Standard	1968-09-09	Valid
N1778B	Luscombe 8E	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Texas	Standard	1968-06-25	Valid
N92954	Commonwealth 185	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner California	Standard	1968-03-14	Valid
N4681E	Aeronca 11CC	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Kansas	Standard	1967-08-17	Valid
N1961N	Cessna 140	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Missouri	Standard	1966-12-13	Valid
N2383N	Cessna 120	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Colorado	Standard	1966-10-18	Valid
N89118	Cessna 140	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Michigan	Standard	1966-08-08	Valid
N92906	Commonwealth 185	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Pennsylvania	Standard	1966-08-06	Valid
N3049N	Cessna 140	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Virginia	Standard	1965-09-14	Valid
N4289N	Cessna 140	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner California	Standard	1964-10-28	Valid
N4201N	Cessna 120	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Oklahoma	Standard	1963-08-22	Valid
N3792V	Cessna 140A	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Pennsylvania	Standard	1963-07-26	Valid
N9355E	Aeronca 11BC	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Illinois	Standard	1963-07-18	Valid
N82745	Aeronca 7BCM	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner California	Standard	1962-11-15	Valid
N6828H	Piper J3C-65	Fixed-wing, single engine	Stick & Rag Flying Club Clarinda, Iowa	Standard	1962-04-03	Valid
N27048	Piper J3C-65	Fixed-wing, single engine	Trissell Flying Service Clarksville, Texas	Restricted	1959-04-08	Valid
N81153	Funk B	Fixed-wing, single engine	Cody Flying Club Thermopolis, Wyoming	Standard	1956-02-27	Valid
N84787	Aeronca 7AC	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Montana	Standard	1951-02-28	Valid
N1406V	Piper J3C-65	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Delaware	Standard		Pending
N140TW	Cessna 140	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner North Carolina	Standard		Pending cancellation
N140X	Cessna 140	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Nebraska	Standard		Pending
N1419N	Piper J3C-65	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Texas	Restricted		Revoked
N1424K	Luscombe 8A	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Texas	None on file		Revoked
N1463B	Luscombe 8E	Fixed-wing, single engine	Withheld at owner's request	Standard		Pending
N1520B	Luscombe 8E	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Texas	Standard		Canceled
N1607N	Funk B85C	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Florida	Standard		Valid
N1610V	Cessna 120	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Ohio	Standard		Sale reported
N1648N	Mcclish FUNK B85C	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Kansas	Standard		Valid
N1650N	Funk B85C	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner New Mexico	Standard		Sale reported
N1713K	Luscombe 8E	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Missouri	Standard		Pending
N1739K	Luscombe 8E	Fixed-wing, single engine	Bas Part Sales LLC Greeley, Colorado	Standard		Valid
N1767K	Luscombe 8E	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Montana	Standard		Pending
N1793K	Luscombe 8E	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Florida	Standard		Pending
N2092N	Cessna 140	Fixed-wing, single engine	Skywagons.Com LLC Placerville, California	Standard		Valid

Source: FAA Civil Aviation Registry, Releasable Aircraft Database (the engine reference table and each aircraft's engine code), October 8, 2026. Horsepower and thrust are the FAA's figures for the series, not for a particular aircraft.