motor wise a 2stroke is less maintaince than a 4stroke.the loudness are about the same with aftermarket parts between 93 and 101 decibles. 2strokes tend to sound like a chainsaw depends on pipe and silencer.4strokes sound better to me they have a deeper tone.diffrent pipes and silencers will make the same motor sound diffrent. if you know what you want or have go to a popular riding or racing spot and listen to the quads.when you find the one that sounds the best to you ask what pipe and silencer they have.most everyone will tell you. a 2stroke will most of the time outrun a 4stroke of the same size. an example is a 250 2stroke dirtbike will be competive with a 450 4stroke dirtbike.
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95' polaris 400L 2x4 no name version
The general consensus on the power battle between 2-stroke and 4-stroke is that 2-stroke engines make power with each turn of the crank, while 4-strokes make power with every second turn. This gives a 2-stroke engine around 2x the power of a 4-stroke with the same displacement; the 2-stroke engine is also lighter because it requires less parts, and it can operate upside down and every which way without a hitch. Reconranger was right when he said most of them are older; even the banshee, although still being made new, has the near exact same design it started out with, but that hasn't stopped it from gaining great popularity. Also 2-strokes are usually easier to work on than 4-stroke engines, but that comes with experience. One thing that is for sure is that once you've driven a well-tuned 2-stroke, all 4-strokes seem pretty slow and they don't sound as powerful. Because of all the characteristics of the 2-stroke engine, it just supports the fact that 4-strokes are for cars, 2-strokes are for powersports.
2 stroke advantage great weight to HP Ratio, simple design, cheaper maintenance for race engines, great straight line racing power,
4 stroke advantage cheaper on fuel and oil, less noisy, cheaper maintenance for a sport engine, wider more controllable power band, and now with the newer design 4 strokes, the gap is a lot closer between the two.
I miss the powerband of the two stroke and often miss working on them...LOL! But, the 4 strokes have really come along and I have to admit I spend more time riding than wrenching! You certainly don't have to rejet a 4 stroke like you do a 2 stroke and as far as riding it is much easier...less shifting, low end power, more room for error! LOL! I prefer the 4 strokes!
DODGE57HEMI
Pro Rider
Posts: 609
Joined: 01/11/2008
This topic has been run throught the ringer more than a couple of times but since you asked I would tell you that I have yet to meet a two stroke that has not made me want to pull my hair out a some point so I would say I would stick w/ 4 strokes much better everday machine.(This might explain why I am bald )
reconranger
Red Rider
Posts: 9918
Joined: 12/18/2002
Supporting Member
The goal of the modern little slipper piston engines like the 450's, is to match 2-stroke performance out of a 4-stroke. If you look at the dyno of a 2-stroke, they like to rev high and make their power in a very peaky part of the curve. The 4-strokes have now bested that by also reving high, yet having a much broader powerband.
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