


There are also specific kart tire manufacturers, which include MG, MOJO, and Vega. Some car tire manufacturers, such as Bridgestone, Dunlop or Maxxis, make tires for karts. In international level racing these are some of the softest and most advanced tires in motorsport. Similar to other motorsports, kart tires have different types for use appropriate to track conditions: Tires can support cornering forces in excess of 2 G (20 m/s²), depending on chassis, engine, and motor setup. Rims are made of magnesium alloy or aluminum. Wheels and tires are much smaller than those used on a normal car. Dry centrifugal clutches are now used in many categories ( Rotax Max is one example) and have become the norm as the top international classes have switched to 125 cc clutched engines as of January 2007. In the early days, karts were direct drive only, but the inconvenience of that setup soon led to the centrifugal clutch for the club level classes. Both engine and axle sprockets are removable their ratio has to be adapted according to track configuration in order to get the most from the engine. Power is transmitted from the engine to the rear axle by way of a chain. This allows the tire to lose some of its grip and slide or lift off the ground completely. The lack of a differential means that one rear tire must slide while cornering this is achieved by designing the chassis so that the inside rear tire lifts up slightly when the kart turns the corner. Most are water-cooled today however, previously air-cooled engines dominated the sport. The recent 125 cc KF1 engines are electronically limited at 16,000 rpm. Today, the most popular categories worldwide are those using the Touch-and-go (TAG)125 cc units. These can develop from about 8 hp for a single-cylinder 60 cc unit (MiniROK by Vortex) to 90 hp for a twin 250 cc. WTP, Comer, IAME (Parilla, Komet), TM, Vortex, Titan, REFO, TKM, PRD, Yamaha and Rotax are manufacturers of such engines. 2-stroke kart engines are developed and built by dedicated manufacturers.Those are used in some National Championship classes like the two-strokes. They run to and around 11,000 rpm, and are manufactured specifically for karting. There are also more powerful four-stroke engines available from manufacturers like Yamaha, TKM, Biland or Aixro ( Wankel engine) offering from 15 hp up to 48 hp. They are adequate for racing and fun kart applications. Briggs & Stratton, Tecumseh, Kohler, Robin, and Honda are manufacturers of such engines. 4-stroke engines can be standard air-cooled industrial based engines, sometimes with small modifications, developing from about 5 to 20 hp.EnginesĪmusement park go-karts can be powered by 4-stroke engines or electric motors, while racing karts use small 2-stroke or 4-stroke engines. Emmick and Margay are American companies producing kart chassis. Avanti, Tony Kart, Trulli, Birel, CRG, Gillard, Intrepid, Kosmic, Zanardi or FA Kart are a few well known examples of the many European manufacturers of race-quality chassis. Professionally raced karts typically weigh 165 to 175 lb (75 to 79 kg), complete without driver. Front disc brakes are increasingly popular however, certain classes do not allow them. The best chassis allow for stiffening bars at the rear, front and side to be added or removed according to race conditions.īraking is achieved by a disc brake mounted on the rear axle. Typically, for dry conditions a stiffer chassis is preferable, while in wet or other poor traction conditions, a more flexible chassis may work better. The stiffness of the chassis enables different handling characteristics for different circumstances. Offset chassis are used for left-turn-only speedway racing.
#Installing tracks kart racing pro driver
In Offset chassis the driver sits on the left side.Straight chassis are used for sprint racing. In Straight chassis the driver sits in the center.Caged karts have a roll cage surrounding the driver they are mostly used on dirt tracks.All CIK-FIA approved chassis are 'Straight' and 'Open'. Kart chassis are classified in the USA as 'Open', 'Caged', 'Straight' or 'Offset'. There is no suspension therefore chassis have to be flexible enough to work as a suspension and stiff enough not to break or give way on a turn.
