Firstly, I'm familiar with this site for over 5 years (had to make a new account) and I've read and posted a great deal here in the past. My question is mostly about availibility and ease of use, pertaining to different year and model Honda powertrains. I am making a go-kart with a custom chassis that will utilize the powertrain from either an automobile or a motorcycle. To design the suspension, and thus finalize the chassis design I first need to figure out which motor I will be using. My issue with motorcycle engines is simple how to drive the wheels without making a complex system. Truthfully, I am not well versed in motorcycle engineering so I am still conducting research on that.

The reason I am posting here is to see what you guys think as to which Honda motor/trans combo is readily available, easy to manipulate, and low cost. Im not looking for anything superb, the kart itself will weigh way under a ton (maybe 500kg with a driver) so its not feesable for us to put a hybrid b20 vtec into it since it will primarily travel on dirt and that much torque is overkill. Instead, I am looking for a good obd0 motor that I can easily find along with transmission, axles, wiring harness and ecu. I am not asking where to find it, I'm knowledgable enough to figure that out myself. I am simply asking what you guys may think is applicable to my circumstance seeing as you have more knowledge than me on the various motors available and their inherent pros and cons. Anyone with experience or knowledge on this subject feel free to chime in, thank you.

 

88-91 d-series. It's cheap, relatively lightweight, and with the smaller go-kart tires you'll have great gearing.

parts are everywhere. 88-91 d-series has a cable trans, which may be easier than setting up a hydraulic system. If for some reason you want a lower axle ratio like 3.25, 2.95, 3.88, etc. pm me, and I can help you find mods for the transmission.

If this does not meet your power desires, I would suggest F-series. anything dohc is gonna make it more expensive. There's far more D/F series avail than H/B series. Goodluck, I'd like to hear how this turns out

OH, i've also thought about this before. The ford duratec v6 is everywhere. DOHC, 24valve, 3.0 liter. I'm no expert on these duratec engines, but it's worth taking a look into if you have fabrication equipment

 

As the owner of a vtec mini- I can vouch for the D16 and s20 trans working well in a gokart. The mini is 1500 lbs with the D16, but nothing from the firewall foreward is there really (carbon fiber). Good potential for power, takes a lot of sh*t... (mine's a 92-95, FWIW) You'll probably have the choice of mounting it up front or behind... You got pictures???

 

thanks for the info guys. Sorry Mone, I dont have pictures, nothing tangibly exists yet. The chassis design exists as a 3d model but is still not finalized yet - I am currently battling with an acceptable suspension design and I need to model and place the motor I will be using before I can come close to finalizing anything. I would like to share my design but regretfully I cannot. This is being made as a prototype for a business we intend to start where customers will have the ability to drive custom gokarts/dune-buggys such as this on dirt tracks in tournament/rally type competitions. I dont wish to divulge all info but trust me, you will be hearing more about this as we get closer to existance.

Any other suggestions/experiences?

 

Re: any other suggestions/experiences?

All the best dune buggies in my crowd have had ski-doo (snowmobile) engines. They are light, simple, and go like freaking he11! (especially the newer ones)

If you can find a newer one that some old rich dude wrecked... BWAHAHAHA!!

Knowwhaddimean??? :D

--(This would be better in a lighter machine)