Cessna 182 to 206 Upgrade: Six Seats, Insurance and Financing the Step

The 182 to 206 move keeps you in a high-wing, fixed-gear Cessna with a familiar panel, fuel system and constant-speed propeller. What changes is a bigger six-cylinder engine (285 to 310 hp), a longer cabin with six seats, double cargo doors on the utility U206 models, and a heavier airplane that burns more fuel. This page covers that transition. Choosing between a legacy U206 and a 206H is covered in the Cessna 206 buyer's guide.

Is a 206 the right next airplane for a 182 owner?

If what you want is speed, a 206 is the wrong step: it cruises around the same speed as a 182 while burning more fuel. Retractable six-seaters such as the Saratoga go faster (see Arrow to Saratoga for that path). If you're thinking beyond six seats to a turboprop, read 182 to Caravan first; the gap in cost is far larger.

What training does a 182 pilot need to fly a 206?

What actually feels different coming from a Skylane:

• Weight and balance becomes a real calculation. Six seats and a big cargo area mean you can load a 206 beyond its aft CG limit while still under gross weight, or leave it nose-heavy with two people up front. Run the numbers for your real loads with the specific airplane's empty weight.
• More power, more nose. Expect heavier pitch forces, more right rudder on takeoff and a nose-heavy flare when lightly loaded. Trim early and carry a little power on approach until you've learned the airplane.
• Cargo doors. On U206s, learn the cargo-door and flap procedures in the airplane's POH before you fly with the doors in use.
• Engine management. A larger fuel-injected Continental or Lycoming runs hotter and costs more to overhaul, so careful leaning and cooling matter more than in an O-470 182.

There's no FAA minimum hour requirement for any of this. Plan on a thorough checkout with an instructor who knows 206s, including heavy-weight takeoffs and landings, and do it before you commit to a purchase if you can rent or borrow one.

Insurance: what underwriters look at when you move up

The good news is that 182 time is close to the best preparation a 206 underwriter sees. The premium rises mainly because the hull is larger. Expect to be asked for total time, high-performance time, time in type, recent experience and intended use (private, float, skydiving or business). There's no verified 2026 premium benchmark for the 206. The figures on this page are labeled assumptions carried over from our cost pages: $2,300 for the legacy 182, $3,000 for a legacy U206 and $4,300 for a 206H. For context only, BWI's March 2026 data puts a 250-plus-hour private Cessna 172 owner at $1,200 to $2,500 a year (BWI), and the 2026 market has been generally stable for experienced piston owners.

Your lender will require hull coverage naming it as loss payee before closing, so the quote is a financing step as well. See aircraft loan insurance requirements.

What does the step from a 182 to a 206 cost?

Prices below are illustrative points for the math, not valuations. For context, AeroGurus listing data viewed in September 2026 showed a median asking price near $220,000 across about 400 Cessna 182 listings, and near $413,000 across about 120 Cessna 206 listings, with the 206 median pulled up by 1998-and-later 206H and T206H airplanes. Those are typical asking prices seen in 2025–2026 listings, not sale prices; verify any airplane with Vref or Aircraft Bluebook.

Annual inspection and maintenance usually rise too, because a bigger engine and a hard-worked utility airframe tend to produce longer squawk lists. Those items, and hangar rent, vary too much by airport and airplane to generalize, so the full budgets live on the cost pages: legacy 182, 182S/182T, legacy U206/TU206 and 206H/T206H. Every $1 change in the price of 100LL moves the U206's 100-hour fuel bill by $1,600.

How to finance the step from a 182 to a 206

Both airplanes are post-1960 singles, so the lending rules don't change. Per AOPA Aviation Finance, lenders look for at least 15% down and offer terms up to 20 years on loans of $75,000 or more. As of September 2026, piston loan rates quoted by major aviation lenders generally start around 7% for well-qualified borrowers and run to roughly 10%, depending on credit, aircraft age, loan size and down payment. The examples use an illustrative 7.75%.

Worked example. Your $180,000 182 has a $95,000 loan balance with 15 years left, so your current payment is $894 a month. Selling costs of 5% leave $171,000; after the payoff you have $76,000 of equity to put down.

Loan amount $324,000. Principal and interest only; excludes insurance, taxes and fees. Illustrative, not a quote.

Decision rule: on a legacy U206, consider the 15%-down option and keeping the difference in cash. First-year findings on a 40-plus-year-old utility airframe (corrosion, cylinders, gear and door hardware) are easier to pay from savings than from a second loan. On a 206H, the same equity is only about 19% of the price, so putting all of it down keeps both the loan and the payment jump smaller.

What lenders look for on a step-up

• Credit and income. Most aviation lenders look for 680+, with the best pricing typically starting around 720–730+ (see credit score tiers). If you buy the 206 before the 182 sells, the lender counts both payments against your income.
• Where the down payment comes from. Equity from a sale that hasn't closed isn't cash yet. Lenders want a closed sale, or a simultaneous closing in which escrow pays off the 182 lien and applies the net proceeds (see title and escrow).
• The 206's history. Float, skydiving, bush or charter use affects both the appraisal and the lender's appetite. Disclose it up front; see aircraft appraisals and loan terms.
• Insurance and records. A bound hull policy naming the lender, a clean title search and complete logbooks. The full list is on aircraft loan requirements.

Sell first, buy first or trade?

If you need to buy first, a cash-out refinance of the 182 can fund the 206 down payment, at the cost of carrying a larger 182 loan until it sells; see using your airplane's equity and down payment strategies.

Transition checklist, in order

1. Quote insurance on a representative 206 with your real hours and intended use.
2. Pre-qualify (1–3 business days) so you know the loan size that works with your income and the 182 payoff.
3. Get a payoff letter on the 182 and either list it or get a written trade offer.
4. Fly a 206 with an instructor at heavy weight before choosing a generation.
5. Pre-buy the 206 with a shop that knows utility Cessnas: corrosion, cargo-door structure, gear and engine (see the pre-buy checklist and SMOH and TBO explained).
6. Close through escrow, which pays off the 182 lien and records the new one.
7. Register the 206. FAA registration costs $5 and is valid for seven years; the temporary "pink copy" works in the U.S. only, until the certificate arrives.

How this guide differs from related guides

This page covers the transition: training, insurance, the cost gap and financing the step. For choosing a specific Stationair, see the Cessna 206 buyer's guide; for the airplane you're leaving, the Cessna 182 buyer's guide. Specs and generated payment examples are on the Cessna 182 Skylane and Cessna 206 Stationair model pages. If you're still in a 172, start with 172 to 182.