I know that most of us here are tired of hearing/talking about the yet to be released Raptor. The question is directed at a Raptor, but should be applicable to other quads as well.

I already have a Banshee and do mostly woods, fire roads type riding. From my understanding, with a mild port job and some good flowing pipes, it can approach 45-50 rear wheel horsepower.

It is also becoming generally ASSUMED that the Raptor will have somewhere in the neighborhood of 45 RW HP.

QUESTION:
Since a 2-stroke bike is usually more "peaky" in its power output, is it safe to assume that when comparing a 4-stroke of equal peak horsepower rating, it would actually have more useable horsepower since it should have a broader range of power?

Maybe another way to phrase the question might be to ask if AVERAGE horsepower on a 4-stroke is usually greater compared to a 2-stroke of equal peak hp?

 

Yeah a 4-strokes power curve is much broader, you would have more power at low RPMs, which makes it more forgiving if you're in too high a gear, as well they tend to rev up less dramatically causing less wheel spin and better traction for climbing. You have to slip the clutch more and shift more gears in most situations on a 2-stroke.

Rod 86 250R

 

I have to assume that killefitt hasn't ridden a 500cc 2 stroke. Power starts at idle and continues past peak.

As far as your comparison, a blanket statement cannot be said. You cannot compare simply by peak power output. If you did, then you'd have to compare a 125cc two stroke mx motor to a 400EX motor. They are entirely different and made for two different reasons.

Another thing is that most 4 strokes are in a milder state of tune than 2 strokes. They are meant to be more controllable, and it takes less skill to keep the engine in the powerband. On the other hand, most 2 strokes are pretty much meant to make lots of power and be very lightweight. This is at the expense of ease of use.

There are lots of examples to give here, but I don't think you can compare the engine designs as simply as you have. It's apples and oranges.

 

sandmanblue,

Maybe I didn't come across clearly, but I felt that I was kind of stating/asking the same thing as you stated in your 2nd and 3rd paragraphs. Simply, a 4-stroke and a 2-stroke of comparable peak horsepower are not always (or even very often) similar in performance.

The question/statement arose when someone stated that a modded banshee would be just as powerful as what the raptor is expected to be. I got to thinking about that statement and came to the above conclusion, but wanted someone else to verify if my opinion was somewhat correct.

Thanks!