Looking for a modern 4-6hp 2-stroke...

[jasell]

Hi,<br /><br />I'm looking for a new smaller enginee (4-6 hp) to my fathers boat.<br /><br />Since we are aware of all that new techology in the 2-stroke area and we have learned to appriacte the benefits from the 4-stroke we would like the best from both.<br /><br />That will say, a light weight (20 kg), low service, quite and low fuel consumption. My guess is what we are looking for are one of these 2-stroke with some kind of fuel injection.<br /><br />However I haven't seen them in the hp-range we are looking for. Anybody have a clue if for instance Yamaha will introduce something to replace their old 2-stroke after the summer when they have to stop selling their current "old 2-strokes".<br /><br />Have you heard of any or if you used one that you can recommend please give me some input.

 

[roscoe]

Re: Looking for a modern 4-6hp 2-stroke...

All that new technology comes at a price. It would make the engine very expensive and cost much more than a carburated 4 stroke.

 

[JB]

Re: Looking for a modern 4-6hp 2-stroke...

DFI requires a computer ECU, jasell. That alone would make a DFI 4-6HP 2 stroke weigh and cost more than a nice little 4-6HP carbureted 4 stroke.<br /><br />Roscoe speaks with a straight tongue.

 

[jasell]

Re: Looking for a modern 4-6hp 2-stroke...

So you saying that my best shoot would be to look at a yamaha 4 hp 4-stroke at 22 kg.<br /><br />I see that Honda has a 4-stroke 5 hp at 27.5 kg.<br /><br />Since we will carry this one quite regulary we need it to be "portable".<br /><br />Any idea which will do the best job, or do you have other brands to recommend?

 

[mallardjusted]

Re: Looking for a modern 4-6hp 2-stroke...

Just like bigger outboards, your best bet is to consider what service you have available. Tohatsu/Nissan have a 5hp and a 6hp that weighs 25 kg, and at least here in the US they usually have good pricing. The other major O/B's are fine too.<br /><br />I hope somewhere down the line they do come up with some major improvements on the smaller O/B's. They do weigh more than the old 2-strokes, and with the single cylinder they run rougher at idle.

 

[Joey One]

Re: Looking for a modern 4-6hp 2-stroke...

Four-strokes get very good gas mileage; and they are permitted in some lakes that do not allow 2-strokes.<br />Two-strokes are lighter, less noisy, less expensive and simpler than 4-strokes.<br />So, it depends on wether you are going to make long trips in restricted waters, or short trips in non-restricted water.<br />In either case, get the smallest motor with a Forward-Neutral-Reverse shift.

 

[05GlastronSX]

Re: Looking for a modern 4-6hp 2-stroke...

like you said, id look into the honda 4-strokes. they have been making 4-strokes longer than any of the other major manufacturers. also, joey one, four strokes are much more quiet then MOST 2 strokes.

 

[tommays]

Re: Looking for a modern 4-6hp 2-stroke...

i have owned a 2 ,4 ,5.5 and 6 the old johnson 5.5 and newer evinrude 6 have far more thrust<br /><br /> the 50% jump in power is huge difference if you need to move in less than perfect conditions<br /><br /><br />tommays

 

[pwiseman]

Re: Looking for a modern 4-6hp 2-stroke...

One thing I would be looking at is how many cylinders. Many of the 5 and 6 HP 4 strokes are one cylinder. Most if not all of the 8 and 9.9HP are two. Also look at the difference in weight between a 5&6 and 8 and 9.9. Often they are the exact same weight.<br /><br />I had a real small boat last year and almost went with a 4 stroke motor in the 6 HP range. I was glad that I did not do this. I ended up with a 72 Evinrude two cylinder 6 HP motor. This thing started on one pull every time even after sitting for a week and it really idled down nicely as well as pushed the boat. It weighed about 60 lbs, which is a lot less than a 4 stroke in the same class.<br /><br />I do like 4 stroke motors because they are quite, don't smoke, idle well and good on the gas. I just think that it is hard to beat a two stroke when you get below 15 HP due to the weight, and sometimes to a single cyl. I have been talking to people that have the small 4 strokes to see how they like them. Reviews are pretty mixed. Some love them, others say they are ok, and some say they made a mistake.<br /><br />One thing I did to cut down on smoking was run amsoil synthetic. I am sure many would say don't do this. It does cut down on the smoke and it did not cause me any issues. I ran the motor about 200 hours. I still have it. Can't bring myself to sell it because it is a good runner.<br /><br />BJ is right about DFI adding a lot of weight. I don't have a lot of hope that we will see the smaller HP motors with this technology anytime soon.

 

[Joey One]

Re: Looking for a modern 4-6hp 2-stroke...

2-Stroke/4-Stroke noise. I would like to see some documentation on noise and vibration(decibels).<br />My 2-Stroke, 4HP, Evinrude was knocked off my sailboat by a motorboat. I replaced it with a new Nissan 5HP 4-Stroke. I loved the mileage, overspeed protection, automatic reverse lock, and not having to mix fuel. However I had to replace the Nissan with a used Johnson Deluxe 4 because of the significant increase in noise and vibration. The vibration may be explained because the Nissan had only one cylinder; The noise may be because the Nissan does not have an inner exhaust tube.

 

[jasell]

Re: Looking for a modern 4-6hp 2-stroke...

So whats the deal, I see that both Nissan and Tohatsu have a 5 and 6 hp 4-stroke with the same weight (25 kg).<br />Is it the same engine and the 5 hp are restricted?<br /><br />What about the quailty for these, in Sweden they are known as low price brands.

 

[TOHATSU GURU]

Re: Looking for a modern 4-6hp 2-stroke...

Different carb. Same engine as a Mercury.

 

[phatmanmike]

Re: Looking for a modern 4-6hp 2-stroke...

ive owned 3 tohatsu 5 hp and 1 tohatsu 8 hp and i would own a nother in a heart beat.<br /><br />best motor i ever owned!!!!<br /><br />my first outboard i ever had was a nissan 5hp . ran like a swiss watch. wait, no, it ran like a japanese machine.<br /><br />weighed far less than 50 lbs and got GREAT mileage

 

[AJ168]

Re: Looking for a modern 4-6hp 2-stroke...

I prefer older 2-strokes. I just don't think that they're made as well as they used to be. I run a '64 Johnson 5.5 Seahorse on my 12ft jon boat. The engine is very reliable, will idle very slow all day, is light in weight, and planes my boat. My uncle uses a 4 HP Mercury that's an early 90's model as a kicker. Mine runs much better, and has many more hours on it. Both engines are very well taken care of.<br />Oh and one other thing- I bought mine for $100!