2stroke vs 4stroke

[mrmoto58]

I have a 19.5ft alumacraft with tiller steering .I'm going to power it with a 115hp. witch would be a better motor a 2strock or a 4strock.Owned 2strokes all my life but used my dads lund prov 17ft boat this year and it has a 90honda it was great on fuel and all but will a 4stroke have the same power as a 2stroke and 2strokes are so easy to fix . Ted

[hmattos]

Here in England - see www.explorermarine.co.uk - we are only allowed to fit engines which meet the 2007 emissions standards. That means we fit Suzuki fourstrokes or Evinrude ETEC 2 strokes.

A few thoughts:
I would not be happy to use a tiller steer 115
An Evinrude ETEC 115 2 stroke is a great and very economical engine - about half the fuel of an old tech mercury 90 2 stroke - but it does use a separate tank of oil which needs to be installed somewhere.
Consider also the servicing costs. A Four stroke need a cam belt check and oil change quite frequently, whereas an ETEC needs a 300 hour service, which is only 40 mins work and only new plugs.
Hope this helps
Hugh Mattos

[mrmoto58]

thanks for the input.The Evinrude sounds like the motor to look into .My tiller will have hydraulic assist installed on it so no torque steer.Ted

[Fanie]

Here in SA the 115 2-stroke motors are just as powerfull as the 115 four stroke

The four strokes are heavier.

[hmattos]

Yes I agree. If anything our boats - www.explorermarine.co.uk - go faster with the ETEC engines than with the fourstrokes of equivalent size.
Of particular note is the midrange pickup. A four stroke accelerates slowly and quietly, whereas the ETEC will really push you from half to full throttle.
We find this feature is great when waterskiing, where acceleration can help us older skiers so much, and also when wave jumping out in the rough where a throttle and trim action on every wave can really keep the average speed up without too much crashing about.
Good luck
Hugh