You’re looking for a chassis that is not bent or cracked. I’d be suspicious of any chassis that has been welded. Spin the rear axle and listen to the bearings. Crunching noises means you’ll have to replace them. With the kart on a stand, grab a front wheel and see if it moves up and down. If it does, you’ll to replace the spindle bearings or kin pins. Turn the steering wheel to see if it turns freely. Make sure the brake pedal is hard and doesn’t go soft if held down. Hold the brake pedal down and try to turn the axle. It shouldn’t turn. Check the brake pads. There should be about a quarter inch of friction material, not including the bake plate. Check the brake pads for symmetrical wear on both sides of the rotor and that the top of the pads are worn about the same as the bottoms. Spin the rear axle to check that it’s not bent. Except for the bent or cracked chassis, everything else is repairable.
If you find a local guy with a good kart at a fair price, ask him if he would help you set started at his track.
Welcome to the sport. Good luck and have a good time.
