Go Kart Tires – Choice And Care

With all the stress of assembling a go kart - reading through plans that come with go kart kits, deciding on what go kart frames and engine types to use and the other details of building - you don’t need any more confusion when it comes to choosing the right go kart tires. But in choosing those tires, just what exactly should you keep in mind?

Well, in terms of choice, brand names are a good place to start. Dunlop, Bridgestone, and Mojo are some of the more popular makers of tires for go karts; however, there are other lesser known companies that manufacture high-quality tires, too. Purchasing the right type of tires is essential to the performance of your go kart, so here’s a simple guide on what type of tires to get for a specific type of go-kart use.

Kinds of Tires for go karts

There are basically two types of tires used for go kart racing:

slick tires
grooved tires

1. Slick tires.

For go karts that are used on dry race tracks such as dirt or sand, you need a lot of grip. Slick tires, which have no tread, provide excellent grip since more rubber comes in contact with the dry track. In essence, the tires “stick” to the track, making the go kart easier to maneuver through turns while running at fast speeds.

Slick tires are made from a blend of rubber and other compounds; the result is a tire with longer wear and an enhanced grip.

2. Grooved tires.

Also sometimes known as “rain tires,” grooved tires are designed for karting in wet or damp track conditions. These types of tires come with treads, which provide a much greater grip than slick tires. Since racing on wet tracks virtually slows down the go kart, it would be almost impossible to finish a race on a watery road course without grooved tires.

In grooved tires, less rubber comes into contact with the course, but the grooves are designed to displace the water on the tracks. These grooves lessen the chances of the go kart sliding or drifting. These types of tires are manufactured using a mixture of rubber and other compounds which help increase grip and resist wear.

When you first start building your go kart—whether it’s from scratch using go kart plans, or in a ready-to-build format such as go kart kits - you need to make sure that you know what kind of terrain you’re building your go kart to run on. During your build process, you should have already decided if you are going to use slick tires or grooved tires.

Other things to remember

Once you’ve decided on the kind of tires you need for you go kart, you need to make sure that you monitor the tire pressure regularly. This will ensure your tires are not over- or under inflated for a specific track or race course condition.

Having the correct tire pressure for a certain type of racing terrain helps improve your go kart’s grip and increases its capacity for greater speed during turns.

In go kart racing, the weather plays a big part in tire pressure. Before, during, and after a race, you need to pay close attention to the outside temperature and to your go kart’s tire pressure. If the weather is on the cold side, your tire pressure should be from 1 psi to 5 psi. If the weather is relatively warm or hot, lower your tire pressure by 1 psi to 5 psi.

During the race, it's important to check your tire pressure as well since it naturally goes up the longer the tires run on the track.

Parting tips: Aside from having the right tires for your go kart, you must also make sure that the other factors going into your go kart plans come together. Things such as having durable yet lightweight go kart frames, using go kart kits from reliable brand names, and making sure you have all the tools you need for building your kart will all contribute to the success of your finished product.