Help me please : Used Road Rebel vs New Kali

[Scot Kight]

I must apologize to the people who have offered me these karts, I am new and need unbiased advice. I really am coming down to the wire on a decision, and just waiting for this final bit of information.

For everyone else the deal is this, I need to make a decision between two karts. I have been offered a 2002 Road Rebel with ~15hrs of race time on it and a brand new Kali with similar equipment. The RR is a few hundred dollars cheaper than the kali though the seat will not fit me so that has to be replaced which is offset my the mychron 2 on it. Otherwise they are fairly similar, 45mm axel on the RR and 50 on the Kali. Both have new Leopard engines and front brakes.

I have seen pictures of the RR and it looks fine.

Which would you choose? I want as many people responding as possible, including the sellers if you want to post up, I wont hold it against or for you in the end.

[Mike Goebel]

They are both great. So the only comment I have is regarding body work. I don't know how much longer the pre 2003 body work will be available.

Mike G.

[Charley Schimmels]

Scott:

Before you decide find out who is going to provide you with parts support at your racing venue. If you have local support for one of your choices go that way. If you have it for both, interview the shops and find out what kind of trackside support they provide and who you are comfortable with. Pick your chassis AND your motor package based upon that criteria as well as your racing options (what classes are well attended -- it's not too fun to be a race group of 3) and your budget.

Either of the chassis will work if they are set up properly. If you don't have the experience to do this yourself then shorten the learning curve a bit and get close to a shop that does.

One other thought, I have not seen many 45MM axles available trackside on a race day (my own experience--again, see my first point). Having had to buy and install axles after a heat to make the main I'll say availability of parts is critical unless you are going to stock up on all of your chassis parts.

If you choose properly you will have a ton of fun

Welcome and Happy Racing!
_________________
Charley Schimmels
#7 Track Magic/Rotax-Masters
Home Track: Pat's Acres

[Tom Jensen]

Check the Road Rebel underneath and see if it is ground down on the metal. I think it is a better chassis. The components are better if I'm not mistaken. However, a new kart will give you the satisfaction of knowing ther is no damage to your kart.

[Scot Kight]

I will definitely ask for more details on the bottom of the RR. The 45mm axel is also a big consideration which makes me really lean towards the kali with a 50mm.

In terms of local shop support, I hate to say it but there seems to be a complete lack of support here in the Northern VA area. There are shops around, don't get me wrong, but only a very small number of them (2). Considering we have two world class long tracks and a number of short tracks, I just don't understand why there are so few. There are also a few shops up in the PA area and down in southern VA, but they are nowhere near convenient for us Virginians.

In terms of being the only guy out there, you are right, 3 karts do not make a race, especially on a long track. Fortunately I know there are a few people who are in this class and it seems to be a direction many others are headed. Plus its relatively easy for us newcomers into karting to understand. When I started I was looking at KT100 style karts, and while I am sure I could have gotten in at that level, the amount of acronyms, karts, tuneups, and things that can be done overload the newbies. Even reading the books leaves you just asking more and more questions. TAG is what it is. Buy a chassis, buy an engine, strap them together and go racing.

Scot

[Mike Goebel]

[Scot Kight]

Each of those brands have 2-3 chassis which can be used so we are actually up to about 180 combos!


Of course one other seller reminded me there is also a birel cr32sr in the mix for possible karts. Used, but 50mm and a 2003. It costs more than the new kali though, so that is a potential issue. Then there are the brands of brakes etc, of which I dont know why one is better than the other.

Argh. Why isn't there a general comparison that actually EXPLAINS the strengths and weaknesses of the different karts out there?

[joseph hollinger]

[Rob Linders]

Hey Joseph,

I am a sprinter, but why do you think road racing is a bad place to start? Heck, my only experience racing the big tracks was road-racing motorcycles and that has got to be more dangerous than taking a kart out with a TAG engine. I do agree you can go quite fast on road race tracks versus sprint tracks, and that is what I presume you are talking about.

[joseph hollinger]

[Scot Kight]

While I agree with you in principle, I am not saying that I will not be doing sprint racing.

*My* main mission is to do road racing. I have been doing it for years in my car, and want to make the transition to a kart. To do this I want all of my requirements and purchased items to meet the minimum specs of roadracing, without the confusion of some of the older classes. TAG makes this part quite easy really being a very simple "idea", at least in theory. Since the requirements of TAG RR classes are, in general, much higher than than sprint racing, I think this is still the right way to go. On the weekends without a road race, I can find my way up to frederick or baltimore, disable the front brakes, and zoom around the track for a while. Gaining more and more seat time. Then on the weekends with RR, hit the practice day and do real track work.

Scot

Im not going into this with my eyes closed. I am here to win, not to just put around the track. That takes time, dedication, and to some extent, the right equipment (oh and $$$, which is always the hard part!). I know the ability is there, its just the practice to let it come through. Of course right now the $$$ and the equipment are at odds, and my next year or two hinge on making the right decision.

[Rob Linders]

$$$$$ is one of the reasons I quit bike racing and got into karts. On a bike it wasn't uncommon to spend between $500-1000 per race weekend. This was at the amateur level. I was single and making good money so I could afford it at that time. A practice day alone was usually between $100-150 just to get through the gate. On a thrills per $ ratio, biking is way cheaper than karting, the rush on a bike is way more intense. However, the crashes & broken bones are much less fun.

When I started karting with Tri-C a practice day at adams in 2000 or 2001 was $20 and the race was only $35. Now a practice at Moran is $39 and a race is $55. So there has been some inflation, and we have gone to a brand new track.

I don't know how much road racing a kart costs, but I presume with higher track rentals is gets quite pricey, just like road racing a bike did. This was another reason for me to choose sprint karts. I think I may road race karts someday, but when I do, it will probably be in a shifter. Then I will have to step-up the budget quite-a-bit from my current racing budget of next to nothing.

[Scot Kight]

Arright everyone, I appreciate the feelings on the rr vs sprint karting, but I have made my statement and unless you think I am way off lets not focus on that anymore.

Ok now back to the topic at hand.

What do you think I should do and why?

CRG RR used 2002 Least expensive
CRG Kali New Middle
Birel CR32SR 2003 Most expensive

The range is <1000 dollars.

Scot

[joseph hollinger]

[joseph hollinger]