Pontoon Boat & Deck Boat Forum

Hello, I am relatively new to boating. Have a 24 foot pontoon for 2 seasons now. I use it on calm lakes in no wake zones. It has a 1994 Force 40HP 2 stroke motor. It runs fairly well, but is difficult to start. Sometimes I have to take the motor cover off to manually choke it. Not sure if connections or cable to it is faulty. I can make it work, but I am kicking around the idea of buying a new motor. Most dealers by me offer 4 stroke engines. Anyone have recommendations of 2 vs 4 stroke for pontoon? Is it worth maintaining my current motor or best to upgrade now to a new one? Thanks

For a couple of hundred dollars you can have that motor purring vs several thousand dollars for a new motor.

IMO the downside to a 2 stroke is the oil mixing and the smoke. I currently have a 50hp 2 stk on my 20' toon and have been thinking about swapping that with a 50hp 4 stroke from my other boat but will wait until this upcoming boating season to do that.

A new motor is going to cost you quite a bit of money.. I would think a good mechanic could go thru your 2 stroke and get it back to peak performance for 3 or 4 hundred bucks... however you are talking about a motor that is now 21 years old, and that's something to throw into the equation....

don't you guys think that somewhere in the future the 2 stroke won't be allowed on alot of lakes??

They are already banned on certain bodies of water here n CA,,,
Can't take that oil spitting monster out on lake Tahoe !!!
You gotta figure out what you want/need for power,,
fix the one you got,,,cheaper than a new one
that motor will ALWAYS be a pig ,,,, smelly, loud, and polluting the water you enjoy
new motor,,,quiet, non polluting (or lat least better than the 2 stroke)
will prolly be the last motor you will ever buy if your needs don't change
better fuel economy,,, no mess with mixing fuel
maybe pick up a used 4 stroke and save a buck or two
that said,,, I have a 79 Johnson 25hp 2 stroke on my little fishing boat that I love the smell of the exhaust,,,(that's real healthy huh!). She starts every time and has been very reliable,,, so can yours if ya put a little TLC into her,,,

killerkernrich wrote:don't you guys think that somewhere in the future the 2 stroke won't be allowed on alot of lakes??

The ETEC 2 stroke is cleaner than a 4 stroke. The new ETEC G2 is even cleaner and more efficient. They will be around for a long time.

I made the switch from a 2 stroke to a 4 stroke for one simple reason, noise.

The 4 stroke is so much quieter that it allows everyone on the boat to hear each other talk without having to raise your voice at all. Did it cost more money, heck ya, but it made my wife very happy which in the long run was more than worth the expense!

Thanks for the replies everyone