Go kart for kids

[rob_s]

Figured there might be some folks here that have experience with this.

Kids are 9 and 11, girls.

Yard is 1.25 acres, mostly grass (although I assume that if they start tearing around on the thing it won’t be grass for long).

Trying to find a go kart that would best suit our situation, but the web is so clogged with bullshit SEO pages that I don’t trust any of the online “review” sites I get when I google.

Would love to hear from some folks that have experience with these things. Hoping to stay under $1k but could spend more if I have to.

[GOTURBACK]

My buddy has a two seater Yerf Dog go cart it is rear wheel drive with a Honda 4stroke engine, electric start, a lightweight roll cage, centrifugal clutch and belt drive similar to a snowmobile design. His daughter (now 15) has a blast driving it around with her friends, it is large enough to fit an adult (for some fun) as well as allowing for direct supervision while the kids are learning, when she was younger he just put a pillow behind her so she could reach the pedals. He also said that most all parts are readily available online for it so it is repairable too.

[BJXDS]

It’s been a long time but opt for one with some type of suspension as opposed to solid axle or you be constantly replacing wheel bearings. And don’t forget to let the kids drive it once in a while😃

[SJC3081]

https://rzr.polaris.com/en-us/rzr-170-efi/

You should be able to get one used for $3000. Worth the extra money and has resale value. Cheap go carts are poor quality and dangerous.
Real seat belts and sturdy roll cage worth every penny.

[RevolverRob]

Two words: Shifter kart - :eek:

Seriously though, when I was a kid, we just had steel tube-frame, solid rear-axle go-karts, without roll cages or seat belts (we somehow survived...).

If it is grass without a lot of rocks/stumps/hidden dangers, go with a low ground-clearance kart. The big Yerf Dog-like things are fun when you have a lot of space, but 1.25 acres is just enough space to open up a 5-7hp 4-stroke to the max, before you run out of ground. The smaller, low-ground clearance karts, will be plenty of fun and offer a nice sensation of speed in a small space, they also are extremely unlikely to flip over.

I'd shop the local classified and find something. Personally, I'd go with two single seaters over one two-seater. Yes, you'll have more maintenance and more pullstarts that way, but the kids can race each other instead of fighting over whose turn it is to drive.

EDIT: You may try a local Pep Boys or Tractor Supply. They tend to have a lot of "powersports" stuff. I don't really know any good brands out there, I get the impression they are all pretty much Chinese-made things these days.

[rob_s]

https://rzr.polaris.com/en-us/rzr-170-efi/

You should be able to get one used for $3000. Worth the extra money and has resale value. Cheap go carts are poor quality and dangerous.
Real seat belts and sturdy roll cage worth every penny.

something like that is way too big for our property and area.

[SJC3081]

Do you consider making it a family sport. There are many great places to ride in South Florida. I bought a Honda Pioneer 1000-5. So I can ride with my 5 and 7 year old sons.

[rob_s]

Do you consider making it a family sport. There are many great places to ride in South Florida. I bought a Honda Pioneer 1000-5. So I can ride with my 5 and 7 year old sons.

I haven't found anywhere to ride that's not an hour+ drive in either direction. We just don't currently have the time to add another all-day activity into our lives.

I'm more interested in things we can do from/at home.

[Odin Bravo One]

From your price tag and previous comments, I assume racing is out. In which case, if you can finger fuck an AR into functioning, you can finger fuck a simple 2-stroke into working. And I recommend doing it yourself to the extent possible. This will prevent unnecessary expenses and you ultimately control all aspects of what goes into your cart.

[ralph]

You could put one together yourself, kart frames shouldn’t be too hard to find, As for power, I seem to remember there’s a engineering firm in Taiwan that was making these little jet engines that put out 200lbs of thrust... :p. Just sayin..

[Borderland]

something like that is way too big for our property and area.

Yeah, that's a 40 acre machine.

[Cory]

I work in marketing for a motorsports dealership. We stock Polaris and Hammerhead.

You're looking for a Hammerhead Off-Road Go-Kart. They were a rink dink Chinese company to start off, but were bought out by Polaris. So you get dealerships who will know how to repair if you need it and can order parts.

For the age range you're talking about a Mudhead 208R, or GTS 150 should do. If anyone approaching 6 feet is going to drive it, go with the GTS 150. Neither is lightning fast, the 208R even less so. I drive every make and model on the lot to photo for our website, so it's safe to say I've been in a fair amount of these type of things.

They're fairly wallet friendly. We sell out every holiday season. The 208Rs are about $2K, the GTS MSRP at about $3K but often get marked up for the holiday rush. You can probably squeak them a tad on the price. If you have more coin, Polaris youth model Ranger 150s and RZR 170s are on sale every holiday, but might not be the ticket size wise.

-Cory

Edit:

Here is a 208R. Might be a bit small for your older kid.

https://youtu.be/ZYAdOJU5DdI

[theJanitor]

You could put one together yourself, kart frames shouldn’t be too hard to find, As for power, I seem to remember there’s a engineering firm in Taiwan that was making these little jet engines that put out 200lbs of thrust... :p. Just sayin..

Back in my moto-wannabe days, there was a company that used to build outlaw motorcross bikes. They would buy a brand new CR250 (back when 2-stroked ruled) and swap in a crate engine from a CR500. If that wasn't insane enough, the go-kart shop on the other end of the industrial park would buy the 250 motors and throw them in karts. Wild times.

Rob, sorry I have nothing else to add, except our neighbors growing up had karts, and I was always envious

[rob_s]

I work in marketing for a motorsports dealership. We stock Polaris and Hammerhead.

You're looking for a Hammerhead Off-Road Go-Kart. They were a rink dink Chinese company to start off, but were bought out by Polaris. So you get dealerships who will know how to repair if you need it and can order parts.

For the age range you're talking about a Mudhead 208R, or GTS 150 should do. If anyone approaching 6 feet is going to drive it, go with the GTS 150. Neither is lightning fast, the 208R even less so. I drive every make and model on the lot to photo for our website, so it's safe to say I've been in a fair amount of these type of things.

They're fairly wallet friendly. We sell out every holiday season. The 208Rs are about $2K, the GTS MSRP at about $3K but often get marked up for the holiday rush. You can probably squeak them a tad on the price. If you have more coin, Polaris youth model Ranger 150s and RZR 170s are on sale every holiday, but might not be the ticket size wise.


great info, thanks. I'm going to try and hit a Broward Motorsports location and check them out.

I'm starting to think that even at 1.25 acres we may not have enough space to make this kind of thing fun/safe...

[Cory]

great info, thanks. I'm going to try and hit a Broward Motorsports location and check them out.

I'm starting to think that even at 1.25 acres we may not have enough space to make this kind of thing fun/safe...

I'd say it could be too small depending on terrain. Good luck.

-Cory

[txdpd]

If it’s going off road it needs A roll cage with doors and windows of some sorts. Partial ejections with the outside leg or arm getting pinned, crushed, or amputated are way too common. Most of the major SxS, dune buggy, cart accidents that I’m personally familiar with have been limb injuries in roll overs.

[1911Nut]

I've held off commenting, but simply feel compelled to do so. . . . . .

I'm all for fun, was raised in the country, spent my childhood around horses, bicycles, trail bikes, motorcycles, tractors, trucks, Jeeps, etc. I have never been accused of being overly protective, and definitely believe in kids having fun.

BUT . . . . .

Before you put any kid of any age behind the wheel of a go-kart, PLEASE be certain there has been some pre-planning. (Safety training, assessment of the child's ability, setting boundaries for where the go-kart is to be operated, etc.)

A few years go, I saw a story on the national news. (Can't remember the specifics or exact location, but the images were burned into my mind).

A husband and wife purchased a new go-kart for their 11 year-old daughter and presented it to her on Christmas morning.

By late morning, their child was dead. She had either intentionally or accidentally driven the go-kart into the street in front of her home, and was struck by a passing car. She was killed instantly.

The one detail of the story that remains imprinted in my memory was the video of the father and a friend or neighbor picking the go-kart up from the road following the accident and loading it in the back of a truck.

On Christmas Day.

Be careful out there.

[P30]

Two facts come to mind:


When I was 5(?) years old, I got a small go-kart with a pretty strong e-motor from my father (he's an electrician and tuned it). I still remember today that it was so fast, my father had to run in order to keep up. One of my most-precious early-childhood experiences and memories. :)
In Germany (where I live), some kids killed themselves riding "pocket bikes" (= mini motorbikes).


What I mean: "Go kart for kids" is not a harmless toy but it's lots of fun. It needs some education and training. And maybe even an appropriate mindset.

PS:
I agree to 1911Nut (wrote this post before I read his).

[ratter75]

I agree that the acreage may be a bit small. Neighbors? A go kart is usually quite loud.

I went to Craigslist for ours. I think Craigslist is the ticket for “luxury” items that people buy new, barely use, and then discard.

Ours has a couple useful safety features. Too sharp of a turn will kill the engine. There’s a set-screw to limit the throttle. And there’s a kill switch on the steering wheel. I’m not sure how common any or all of those things are but I like them.

Beyond that, ours sits so low to the ground that it would be extremely difficult to upend it. Before I let the kids ride, I tried my damndest to get two wheels off the ground and couldn’t do it without killing the engine.

A solid axle kart will utterly destroy the turf. The “one-wheel peel”, as they say. A kart with no suspension is also a damn rough ride even on smooth turf. It’s nothing at all like riding a kart on a track.

I’m not at all trying to talk you out of it - I don’t regret ours. But it’s all stuff I didn’t know.