kids and karts

Is go kart racing really safe for my 6 year old boy? My husband says it’s safer than gymnastics class he’s in.

They wear helmets, foam neck protectors, racing suits, and rib and chest protectors. There have been two occasions of other kids flipping over and they were taken out in an ambulance, but both boys were fine with no broken bones. This sport really makes me nervous, but all the people I ask about it tell me it’s actually really safe. I just don’t see it. There ARE NO SEAT BELTS AND NO ROLL BAR. Everyone says it’s better to be thrown from the kart, although several kids have flipped, the kart landed on their heads, and they were taken out in an ambulance.. but with no serious injury. Please send any relevant experiences to me… I appreciate it. Thanks.
shur it will be fun for the boy

Need a cheap engine for a go kart!! Where can I get one!?

OK i want and engine for a go kart, i want a cheap one that is the easiest to maintain and has some speed to it but not for racing. it needs to be durable to. Im 12 years old but i know a good ammount of information on cars and engines (still learning). Also i dont want one from one of those sites were people sell there stuff, it needs to be store wise please. Also please no bad comments. If it helps- Im really skinny so i dont want to spend extra money on a engine with a ton of torque to haul a fat kid (no offense to fat kids).

H3karting.com is where I get all my stuff for racing.(sorry don’t know the websites for these) PKP yellowfin, and woltjer are good too

my go kart will turn over but not start what do i do?

I bought this go kart from someone. I’m trying to get it running for my kids. I changed the battery, spark plug, fuse, and a couple hoses. But it wont start it sounds like its trying but not getting gas but I also put gas in it. Where should I start with this thing?

Probably need to take it to a mechanic. It could be that the carburetor is all gummed up. It would need to be to taken off and taken apart and cleaned or need to be replaced. The electronic ignition could be faulty too. The engine could have serious mechanical problems too that could prevent starting. But new engines aren’t that expensive. Somebody with more experience needs to do some troubleshooting.

High quality older Briggs and Stratton Engines are sold on ebay for very low prices.

The carburetors on Tecumseh engines are known for being a big problem with gumming up and being difficult to start. The carburetors are pretty inexpensive. If you can’t find one locally you should be able to find one on ebay.

Look up the model number online and you should be able to find a parts manual and part number listing for the engine.

Should I use these motors in my Go-Kart?

I have four little motors ripped straight out of those little “PowerWheels” ride-on toys for younger kids (they were my siblings’). I might be able to get my hands on two more. I’m building an electric go-kart, and I was wondering whether pairing up two (or three) motors to each drive wheel would work ok, and how the electrical system would work. Is there a website that covers this? Also, I’ve already made a vehicle using the same gearbox, motor, and wheel configuration as in the original Jeep toy, but it used a PCV frame and a 1/2″ steel axle instead of a 3/8″ iron one. This worked, however, I want to use a custom steel frame with a custom gearbox (and possibly bicycle wheels, although I may stick with the standard 10″ go-kart wheels).
Suggest you skip the gear box entirely to save weight and reduce complexity. Your batteries will add tremendous weight as it is and most DC traction motors can accomodate a load of varying torque by their nature. RE: coupling of multiple motors to a common drive wheel (or wheels), this can be a tricky from a mechanical standpoint. Why dont you look around for larger motors? Your limitation will be in size of your motor (total HP) as well as the peak capacity of your battery bank. Even if you have spare motor capacity, you will not be able to utilize it if you dont have an adequate power source. Best motors will require higher voltage than 12VDC available from a car battery, so you may have to link several batteries IN SERIES to accomplish this. Check battery specs to see if this is acceptable. Many small batteries in a parralel/series combination are better than a few larger batteries yielding lower voltage. I am betting that there is a wealth of information available online and you may have to do some research. Make sure that any motor NOT in use is electrically disconnected from the battery else you may wind up “fighting” that motor (it may provide mechanical resistance working against the back emf of a drained battery, for eg) Hope this hlelps.