Controlled Auto-ignition (CAI) combustion processes can be broadly divided between a CAI process that is applied to four-cycle engines and a CAI process that is applied to two-cycle engines. The former process is generally referred to as Homogeneous Charge Compression Ignition (HCCI) combustion and the later process as Active Thermo-Atmosphere Combustion (ATAC) The region of stable engine operation differs greatly between these two processes, and it is thought that the elucidation of their differences and similarities could provide useful information for expanding the operation region of HCCI combustion. In this research, the same two-cycle engine was operated under both the ATAC and HCCI combustion processes to compare their respective combustion characteristics. The results indicated that the ignition timing was less likely to change in the ATAC process in relation to changes in the fuel octane number than it was in the HCCI combustion process.