Does the autopilot work with the B58 Baron add-on with G1000 in X-Plane 12?

B58 + G1000 Autopilot in XP12 – things to verify

Yes, the autopilot should work in XP12 with a Baron + G1000 setup, but when it “won’t function” it’s usually one of a few simple gotchas (power/servo, mode selection order, or a plugin/aircraft conflict). Here’s a practical checklist to narrow it down.

1) First confirm the AP is actually being powered
On most GA installs, the autopilot servos won’t do anything unless the avionics/electrical side is correct.

1. Battery ON, at least one alternator/generator ON after engine start.
2. Avionics switch/master ON (if the Baron model has a separate avionics master).
3. Check you don’t have an “AP” circuit breaker or “AP” switch popped/disabled (some add-ons simulate this).

2) Use a simple “known good” test sequence
Do this in smooth air, wings level, trimmed, above stall margin.

1. Hand-fly to a stable cruise attitude and trim it out (important—some add-ons won’t like engaging with heavy control pressure).
2. Press AP (autopilot master) first.
3. Then press HDG and turn the HDG bug to see if it follows.
4. For vertical guidance, try VS and set a small climb/descent (like 300–500 fpm), or try ALT to capture/hold.

If it won’t even hold wings level in HDG, that’s a big clue it’s not actually engaging (or something else is overriding it).

3) Make sure you’re not accidentally fighting the servos
A very common one in XP is noisy hardware or another control source constantly sending inputs.

1. Temporarily unplug/disable extra controllers (yokes/joysticks/gamepads) and test with just one.
2. Check for control axis jitter (especially roll/pitch) and add a small dead zone if needed.
3. If you have any “auto-rudder,” stability augmentation, or external control utilities, try turning them off for the test.

4) Verify you’re using the correct AP for that aircraft
Some Baron add-ons with a G1000 panel are still driven by an underlying autopilot system specific to that model (and a few do not fully tie the G1000 buttons to the AP logic). If the airplane has a separate physical autopilot panel/controls in the cockpit, use those for the test (AP/FD/HDG/NAV/ALT/VS), not just the G1000 softkeys.

5) Quick NAV mode sanity check (if HDG works)
If HDG works but NAV won’t:

1. On the G1000, confirm the navigation source is what you think it is (GPS vs NAV1).
2. If you’re trying to track a VOR/LOC, make sure you actually tuned/identified the station and have a valid CDI.
3. If you’re trying GPS, make sure there’s an active leg in the flight plan and you’re not in some “suspend” state.

6) Rule out an XP12 plugin conflict
If you have scripting/avionics plugins, they can override AP datarefs. For troubleshooting, do one test flight with a “clean” setup (minimal plugins) and see if the AP suddenly behaves.

A few targeted questions so we can nail it down

1. Which exact B58 Baron add-on is it (developer/name), and is it the XP12-native version?
2. What exactly happens when you press AP/HDG/ALT—do the mode annunciations light up, or nothing at all?
3. Are you using the G1000’s AP controls, a separate autopilot panel in the cockpit, or hardware buttons on your yoke?
4. Any other plugins running that touch avionics/autopilot (even indirectly), and does the stock XP12 Baron autopilot work normally for you?