Go Kart Engines - 2 stroke vs 4 strokes

In this article we talk briefly about 2 stroke and 4 stroke Go Kart Engines

Brief Introduction

The first karting engine was modified from a lawnmower engine in 1956 by a guy named Art Ingels from United States in 1956. Even to this day, many people are pulling and modifying go kart engines from various sources (mopeds, lawnmower, chainsaws etc) to assemble their custom go kart in an effort to cut costs as engine is probably one of the biggest portion of cost gone into go kart building.  Another reason is to custom build the engine for better speed performance (if done professionally the process is known as blueprinting).

In kart racing, mainly two types of go kart engines are used, the 2 stoke engine and the 4 stroke engine.

Difference between 4 stroke and 2 stroke Go Kart Engine

2 stroke engines are lighter and more powerful due to their size. The most common kinds are the 100cc (cubic centimeters) and 125cc engines. The lubrication system of 2 stroke engines uses a mixture of oil and fuel/petrol and the oil can be mixed in manually or using an oil pump which mixes automatically together oil and fuel contained in separate tanks.

4 stroke engines in comparison are cheaper to obtain and maintain but are heavier and weight is an important factor in kart racing. But the use of 4 stroke engines can be a starting point for many young karters.

The use of the two types also depends on the type of race - sprint racing (racing two or three heats and a final lap) and speedway (racing on short, oval dirt tracks). But sometimes, the use of these engines depends largely on your location and it's popularity.

"California is mostly 2-cycle karts; the South is 4-cycle crazy until you get to Florida; the Midwest has a little of everything." (Source: "Low, Loud and Fast – Karting Isn’t Kids’ Stuff")

Starting Mechanisms of Go Kart Engines

Go kart engines can be started by pulling a cord and either lift or push to run or having an electric start (example the Rotax Max TAG (Touch and Go - electric start)) which will start the Go Kart running on it's own from a push of a button.

<Sources of information for the above article>

"Karting" by Graham Smith - a book for young kart racers/beginner karters

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Two-stroke_cycle

"Low, Loud and Fast – Karting Isn’t Kids’ Stuff" - article written by Brendan Baker (http://www.enginebuildermag.com/Article/2159/low_loud_and_fast_150_karting_isnx2019t_kidsx2019_stuff.aspx)