The direct-injection stratified charge (DISC) engine is a hybrid between spark ignition (SI) and compression-ignition engines, it combines many of the best features of both with some unique advantages of its own. This includes multi-fuel capability, high thermal efficiency, low NOx production, and low particulate emissions. This work shows how simple semi-global models can predict the performance of the SI and DISC engines with reasonable accuracy, without going to details of modeling for internal processes such as: swirl, mixing and detailed combustion kinetics. The operating variables studied were inlet manifold pressure p(i), exhaust manifold pressure p(e), engine speed N, equivalence ratio Phi, and volumetric efficiency eta(v) at different loads. The corresponding performance parameters were the brake mean effective pressure bmep, brake power P-b, and brake thermal efficiency eta(b,th). The main contribution of this work is the production of friendly set of curve-fitting correlations for engine performance. The bmep and the P-b increase with the load for both engines. For spark ignition engines the bmep increases by about 70% when load increases from 50% to 100%. With the DISC engine, this ratio increases to 75%. The percent improvement in eta(b,th) for the DISC to the SI engine is around 50% which increases with part load, lower compression ratio r(c) and p(i). (C) 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.