New to karting, what engine, chassis, etc?

[Brian Butt]

I am new to karting and am about ready to buy a kart. I have about four years of DE road racing and have also supported Grand-Am team as a crew member here and there. I know many karting shops just want to sell you what they have on hand, need to get rid of, etc. so I thought I would ask the karting community for some input on engine, chassis, etc.

What I would like out of my kart:
1. Lower side on maintenance costs(I am handy at car repairs so I should be able to fix most basic items but don't want to spend all my time or money fixing my kart)
2. Kart that is race capable. I would like to get into racing within a year with a series that has a lot of races all over the country especailly near Ohio where I am from. (I say "a lot of races" as in the auto racing community which I have been part of for the past few years, for exapmle, it is great to have lets say a Ferarri but you can't race in many series so it make races hard to find and there are very few competitors in races like Ferarri Challenge. I don't want this issue if possible)
3. Non-shifter cart
4. Be able to show up to kart track Sunday morning, run for a couple hours, and head home when not racing.

My local shop recommended a Rotax machine due to the relatively long life but I have no idea if this is a competitve engine with a large racing community and lower on the cost side due to my lack of karting knowledge.

Any help and input would be greatly appreciated!

[Chris Hurst]

Brian-

I came from an auto racing background as well and bought a PRD Fireball 125cc TaG engine (~26 rated hp) on a Tony Kart EVX chassis.

From my experience making the transition all I can say to you is start small. I work for a karting school now and I get to drive a variety of different machines. I would recommend going with an HPV-100cc or KT-100 engine to start off and learn on. Looking back I should have started on a 100cc engine instead of jumping right to the 125.

Whatever you've driven a 100cc kart will be challenging enough if you're new to karting.

Competition is going to drive your costs in terms of parts and maintenance way up. If you're new to it I wouldn't put a time limit in terms of "I need to be racing after this long." These things take time to learn and master. You'll know when you're ready to compete. Don't worry about getting competitive equipment right off the bat.

If you learn the right technique and take the time to learn setup etc you will be competitive once you are ready. Seat time seat time seat time.

[Dan Schlosser]

As for chassis - buying what is supported in your area will make life easier when you are at the track and bend a spindle, need a caliper rebuild kit, etc. If you find a deal on something though that you just can't pass on, invest a little in some spares so you don't have to go home from the track early if you do have a problem - axle, axle keys, brake pads, master cylinder rebuild kit, caliper rebuild kit, brake shims, steering column, tie rods, tie rod ends and spindles. For a few hundred dollars you have the piece of mind that you won't waste the gas money, entry fees, etc if you head to the track. Also, a locally supported chassis will be easier on the learning curve as you'll have some assistance on baseline set-up, changes, etc. Although with your background it sounds like you'll have no problems jumping in to the testing and tuning aspect to learn the kart and the changes.

For engine it all depends on what part of Ohio you are in and where you plan to race. Pick an engine package that has stout fields as you'll learn more racing than driving. If you are smart with chassis selection you can have a kart that will run the gamut from the Clone class to Yamaha Senior to TAG. I agree with Chris though that I'd start out in something other than TAG unless you are really comfortable that you are going to stick with the sport.

The Rotax is just another TAG package in most areas, Ohio included. I believe the only active Rotax Series close to Ohio is the one we run at Pitt Race Karting and the one at Michiana Raceway Park in South Bend. So you can run any Rotax or TAG series with the package. We are a Rotax dealer but have run all of the major packages including the Rok TT, Leopard, PRD and X30. The Rotax will run 2-3 times longer between rebuilds than any other we've found. That longevity though comes at a little bit of a price though as they probably have a bit steeper of a learning curve in terms of driving style, carb tuning and basic maintenance. But you can pound out a ton of laps on a Rotax without worrying about mileaging it out which is really important when you are starting out and want to practice a lot.

Which part of Ohio are you in and where do you intend to race? That'll help answer a lot of questions.