Continued

Let's start at the beginning. How fast do you want to go? The simple axiom of racing is that speed costs money. Winning speed costs even more. It's true even in spec racing. And then there's the issue of your skills; if you have never raced or driven at racing speeds on a race track, start "slow". You'd be surprised how many new drivers realize on lap 2 that they are not Mario Andretti. It takes even the best of new roadrace karters some time to ramp up to the astounding capabilities of a roadrace kart at full speed!

A good used setup for a short-wheelbase, full-bodied "sprint" kart with Briggs 4-cycle or Yamaha and other 2-cycle power will top out at 90+mph, and will set you back about $2500-$3000. These karts have a longer wheelbase than regular short-track sprint karts, are built to a much narrower overall width to cheat the wind, and have full bodywork to, again, cheat the wind.

When prospective racers ask me if they should buy new or used kart, I suggest a good used setup.
The former owner most likely discarded the stuff that doesn't work, shortening your mechanical
learning curve by a lot. As long as the kart is screwed together well, driving the heck out of it will get
you further up the grid than the last nth of speed in a new kart, with a new engine, that you probably won't be able to exploit for some time. The additional upside of buying used is that the kart often comes with some spares, as well as possibly some help from the seller in getting you up to speed. These are very valuable assets.

Laydown, very long wheelbase, full-bodied "enduro" karts with Yamaha or other 2-cycle power can be found in the same general price range, $2500-$3500, and get a lot closer to the magic 100mph mark. The long wheelbase on both the sprinters above and the enduros discussed here is for the high-speed stability that a longer wheelbase imparts. Because the radius of most turns is far wider and more gradual than on a sprint track, and as the frequency of the turns is far less than on a sprint track, the karts can be narrower, needing less ultimate grip at high speed, and less of lightning quick turning ability, and stability, at low speed.

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