2-stroke vs. 4-stroke

nhamm wrote:

Fuel, spark, and air. That’s how we roll in the 2 stroke world

you forgot oil, lots of oil

I have read so many of these threads-I’m sold on Yami-love the power sound and even the smell of 2 stroke, wish Yamaha still made them. One guy on this site went to a resort in Mexico-his guide knew very little English. He pointed to his Yamaha and said: “go, go, no fix’

I run a Yamaha 150 hpdi and couldn’t be happier with it. Never lets me down and runs sweet. Most modern outboards are pretty reliable to a point. I’ve never ran a 4 stroke on my boat but my son has a Yahmmy 4 stroke and he loves it. Whatever you decide to go with good luck and have fun.

My dad got a 140 Suzuki on his new 175 alumacraft (2012) and that motor is pretty awesome I think. Now there are some here who put more hours a month on than he Jas in 5 years, bit there hasn’t been an issue for him yet. Barely know it’s running at idle and no shortage on power. I have to be careful when I get to operate his as compared to mine it feels like the thing is going to take off and fly (like out of the water fly) when you give it the juice. I’m pretty confident his boat could break 50 mph with that motor but I haven’t felt brave enough to hot rod around in his baby the few times I’ve ran it. It’s another 100 pounds if I recall right in weight to go up to the 150 so personally I don’t think the 10 hp is worth the weight. His is the navigator sport 175 for a comparison of what it’s on.

broth82 wrote:

That is true I didn’t ask about new motors since I wasn’t getting a new boat. I asked about motors in the mid ’90 till about late 2000’s range since that’s what I could afford. I sounds you like Mercury and there’s no problem with that, I was just pointing out what he said and what I’ve seen.

Yeah, no I am still getting over my negative bias against Mercury myself. But after hearing so many positive things from their recent motors, I think I need to get over it. Heck, with very single Lund and Crestliner going out the door with a Mercury on the back and those boat brands still in business, today’s Mercurys must be OK.

But it’s human nature to have problems once and swear off the brand forever. Think about how many people had a crap Chevy in the 90s and still refuse to buy one today. Today’s cars are ALL reliable. Just like today’s 4-stroke outboard motors. It’s just a totally different ballgame from back in the day when there were major differences and major problems with certain brands.

Has any second party ever weighed the new Yamaha motors? I think back to when Yamaha started putting 4 strokes into snowmobiles and their published weights were a flat out lie. I remember at haydays a Yamaha hanging off a scale and it was 40+ lbs heavier than their published weight. Yamaha outboards listed weights are amazingly light. I am curious if they are close to what they claim. The new mercury 150 4 stroke is listed at 455lbs. That is very light for a 4 stroke too.

mojogunter wrote:

Has any second party ever weighed the new Yamaha motors? I think back to when Yamaha started putting 4 strokes into snowmobiles and their published weights were a flat out lie. I remember at haydays a Yamaha hanging off a scale and it was 40+ lbs heavier than their published weight. Yamaha outboards listed weights are amazingly light. I am curious if they are close to what they claim. The new mercury 150 4 stroke is listed at 455lbs. That is very light for a 4 stroke too.

Weights for 4-strokes and 2-stroke G2s have converged, but I think the G2 weight includes the internal steering feature which adds 30ish pounds. That feature is optional on the non-HO G2s, the other option being TRAC steering.

I ended up ordering the non-HO 150 G2 with conventional steering. The dealer was very helpful and I feel fairly weighed the pros and cons. He also noted there is no break-in period, but that roughly 1 extra gallon of oil is burned during the first 10 hours (I think) of use, then I can expect to use roughly 3 gallons for 50 hours of normal use – roughly $75. Evinrude notes oxygenated fuels are OK to use, but I’m skeptical; however, it’s good to know their use doesn’t void the warranty. Looking forward to the new rig!

Thank you for all the input. I’ll be happy to share my experience.

I just spent the last week down on pool 4 breaking in my new E-tec G2 150ho. Prior to this I had the exact same boat with the merc 150xl 4 stroke. The E-tec is soooo much better. Yes I burned through oil quick for the first 8 hours but then it virtually used none. I ran up and down from the dam to head of the lake all week and didn’t even use 30 gallons of gas. My top speed was up about 8 mph. The hole shot doesn’t even compare to the merc 4 stroke. I got my best mpg running at 43 mph, with the merc I could barely touch 43 mph in perfect conditions. I’m an e-tec believer.

Nice, good to hear

I’d sure hate to replace my old 1994 2-stroke 60hp Merc.

I’d miss all the smoke.

S.R.

My experience is this….
I love the quiet sound of a 4 stroke. Love the fuel efficiency…
I happen to have a 2 stroke and pay a little more for gas and oil, put up with a little more of a slightly louder engine, haven’t bit on doing a swap for a 4 stroke yet based on the cost increase and not sure if i’m losing or gaining any more torque or power. I figured the cost increase for a 4 stroke might take 10+ years to balance out the savings on gas and oil. Not sure what situation i”ll be in 10 yrs from now and if it will be worth it
Just my 2 cents
Oh and BTW, I kinda like the “Growl” of a 200HP Merc 2 stroke so there’s an entertainment expense that can’t be beat!

Steve Root wrote:

I’d sure hate to replace my old 1994 2-stroke 60hp Merc.

I’d miss all the smoke.

S.R.

This ain’t no joke, I love the smell of 2 stroke in the crisp morning air.

nhamm wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>Steve Root wrote:</div>
I’d sure hate to replace my old 1994 2-stroke 60hp Merc.

I’d miss all the smoke.

S.R.

This ain’t no joke, I love the smell of 2 stroke in the crisp morning air.

X2

bullcans wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>nhamm wrote:</div>

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>Steve Root wrote:</div>
I’d sure hate to replace my old 1994 2-stroke 60hp Merc.

I’d miss all the smoke.

S.R.

This ain’t no joke, I love the smell of 2 stroke in the crisp morning air.

X2

X3

I know I would miss the growl of my Opti if I ever went to a four stroke.

nhamm wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>Steve Root wrote:</div>
I’d sure hate to replace my old 1994 2-stroke 60hp Merc.

I’d miss all the smoke.

S.R.

This ain’t no joke, I love the smell of 2 stroke in the crisp morning air.

It is magical!

The smells, the growl, I can get those at the landing every morning as my 4 stroke is warming up surrounded by the 2 stroke guys. Then I can drive out of the cloud and go listen to the Loons.

Dockside at sunrise, serene ain’t it…..

You might miss the ‘growl’ but that would be the only thing and soon forgotten.

Eelpoutguy wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>nhamm wrote:</div>

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>Steve Root wrote:</div>
I’d sure hate to replace my old 1994 2-stroke 60hp Merc.

I’d miss all the smoke.

S.R.

This ain’t no joke, I love the smell of 2 stroke in the crisp morning air.

It is magical!

This baby has been pretty reliable, smoke and all.

nhamm wrote:

Dockside at sunrise, serene ain’t it…..

Now you are just teasing us, that’s just wrong!

The duck boat has a 2 stroke and I get plenty of that smell in the fall, but I don’t mind it one bit. Summer time I like it quiet and clean air.

from someone that bleeds Yamaha, I truly am old school loving the performance of 2 stroke HPDI. However in our ever changing market, the cold hard reality, the market is no doubt a 4 stroke world today.

Alot of the e-tec/ G2 issues were dealer set-up shortcomings as they are a very sophisticated motor.

Optimax good ol old school growl!

Yamaha, turn the key & they work = RELIABILTY

Regardless of your choice,your dealer support after the sale can be crucial. Good luck !

Ran a 2 stroke Yammi for years on the big lake I fish Up North. My God…the fuel and oil costs were astronomical. Bit the bullet and put a 4 stroke Yammi on last year. My boat is faster, quieter, less smokey, and have experienced a 30% fuel savings with NO oiling needed. I calculate my $22K engine will pay for itself in 7 to 8 years with the fuel and oil costs I’m savings with as much time as I put on that motor – and I get better performance. My only regret…not having put one on sooner.

Main reason for the 4 stroke is the ease of oil change once a year for most vs dumping expensive injector oil in. Cost is much cheaper for a 4 stroke with maintenance. Worst thing to do to a 2 stroke is skimping on lower cost oil it will destroy it. I run Yamaha’s won’t do anything but. Never issues. A 4stroke is slightly slower but whats a few seconds anyway. Rather save money on fuel and the oil.

Dean Marshall wrote:

Regardless of your choice,your dealer support after the sale can be crucial. Good luck !

This would be my first consideration and where you fish would be another. Certain areas don’t have a lot of marine mechanics/dealers that work on Evinrudes – for example, if you go out to the Dakotas a lot, you’re going to have a hard time finding support for that G2 whereas most places will have parts and wrench on Merc/Yamahas.

zooks wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>Dean Marshall wrote:</div>
Regardless of your choice,your dealer support after the sale can be crucial. Good luck !

This would be my first consideration and where you fish would be another. Certain areas don’t have a lot of marine mechanics/dealers that work on Evinrudes – for example, if you go out to the Dakotas a lot, you’re going to have a hard time finding support for that G2 whereas most places will have parts and wrench on Merc/Yamahas.

This was a consideration. Both primary areas we frequent have mechanics, then there’s also Houghton Powersports in the UP, where we’ll go on occasion, too.

Good to see you Deano!

I currently own two Merc 4 strokes with EFI and will have to say I will never buy another 2 stoke boat motor. If I had to buy a new motor today it would be a Merc or Yamaha 4 stoke also. No personal negative experience with a 2 stoke and actually own a little 8hp Yamaha for a puddle jumper. I just like how these things start like a car, maintenance is easy and they are very reliable, change oils once or twice a year, pour gas in the tank and go… In the area that I live and areas that I most often fish it is just easiest to get parts or service for those two brands also. I think Suzuki builds a great motor, I just would not have the kind of options I want for service or parts.

Good to see you Deano!
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Mile Klein wrote, “Worst thing to do to a 2 stroke is skimping on lower cost oil it will destroy it.”

You’ve got that right Mike. Blew up a 250 HPDI by running the cheapest marine outboard oil I could find, having been told by my dealership that they are all fine as long as they meet the minimum specs. I wanted to believe that, but knew I was taking a risk. My mechanic at the lake warned me repeatedly when he saw I was using the cheap stuff, but I was gonna show him and didn’t listen, gambling with my motor to save a few bucks – and I lost. Do I know for certain the oil was the cause of my motor failure? No, but high probability this was the culprit or a major contributing factor. My mechanic feels certain though.

Not my best decision to run cheap oil through my high performance 2-stroke, let’s just say that.