The mythical affordable LSA?

[jpower]

I've been wondering about this for a while now. There's this airplane out there called the Quasar Lite that nobody really seems to know much about. It's powered by a 2cyl HKS engine that produces 60 hp. It can fit two people in a cabin wider than a 172 and cruises at right around 115 knots. It does have fairly poor climb performance, but can get over 45 miles to the gallon (statute miles, that is), because the engine sips between 1.8 and 2.5 gph. It sells new for around $100k loaded. Engine overhauls only cost around $2000 for parts and labor (does not include shipping), though the TBO is a realistic 1000 hours. Is this the mythical affordable light sport aircraft, especially if/when some begin appearing on the used market?

What say you? Supporting documentation below.

Page from the Brazilian manufacturer (in Portuguese but easy to navigate)
QL Brochure (from the US distributor)
Specs page (also from the US distributor)
Engine FAQ
Wired article (photo of interior/seats outdated)
Dan Johnson review (for shots of the current interior and the thoughts of someone else)

 

[Jim Logajan]

I'd have to agree with bartmc that $100k isn't exactly a number that stands out as affordable - given the competition.

For example, except for the small size of its cockpit, the Sonex can get about the same MPG and cruise at a higher speed and has an acquisition cost in the neighborhood of $30k, plus build labor. Below is a graphic from the Sonex web site (biased toward them, obviously):