Looks like the seller is including a bunch of spares. If you are dead set on getting this kart, I would ask the seller if they are willing to help you for at least a few races/practice days to get you more familiar with the kart and make sure it is at least set up correctly for you. Even if its for a small fee, it will be worth it. Ask the seller where they source their parts from? Maybe there is a local distributer in your area. I would also ask why they are selling? Are they moving up to another class or just upgrading their equipment? Since the seller is a somewhat local racer, you may want to ask if there are any tent programs that would be willing to provide support for you/your kart (for a fee) for your first season to help get you up to speed. It doesn’t sound like budget is a big concern, but I imagine learning curve is. The last thing you want is to get frustrated, lose interest and feel like you wasted your time and money.
I would say this is good advice regardless of your chassis brand. Spares of things that are known to be vulnerable such as tie rods, steering shafts, axles, chains, sprockets, wheels and spindles should be in everyones pit box.
We ran Ionics for years. Won Cup Karts championship on a 2017. Karts are good on both soft and hard tire. I am assuming you will be running at concept or badger for club racing.
I know there are 2 Ionics running at concept on the MG Blue and I think there is 1 at Badger on the MG orange. In Cup Karts there are a handful out there on the Vega Red.
This is a good deal on the kart with spares. BUT…
I will give a word of caution. This model year is prone to breaking on the right frame rail just in front of the bearing hanger and cassette. It is not an issue on the harder club tire but the stresses of the softer tire will cause you some issues. It’s more a matter of when and not if.
Any questions feel free to PM and I can get you my phone number.
I think my interest in this particular kart is largely down to the cost of entry, but I wouldn’t say I’m absolutely set on it. It turns out the seller actually has someone coming to look at it this weekend, so it may not be available after Saturday. That said, I’m not opposed to paying more for a package if it provides more value.
A tent program sounds like it’d be a very valuable learning tool. Can you ballpark the usual cost of that sort of thing for a race? Unfortunately, budget is probably my primary concern. I’d say I’m just as interested in learning how to set up and wrench on a kart as I am in racing one. If I have to flounder around for a handful of races or test sessions to figure out what’s what, I’d say that’s just part of the learning process. Although ideally I’d like to get that sorted on my own time haha.
Looks like I’ve hit the new-user reply limit, so I’ll address the other comments here as well.
@CrocIndy and @mtbikerbob: Noted! I’ve been trying to compile a list of necessary spares–I’ll definitely be adding those items.
@Don_Westlie: Thanks for giving me the benefit of your experience with this chassis–it seems like it might be best to avoid anything with a baked-in failure mode like that. This particular kart may already be sold, but I’ll definitely consider that if another Ionic crops up. How can you determine the model year of a particular kart? I’m assuming it’s just down to experience, as many listings don’t provide much info on the year or model number.
And finally, for the group: I ran across this listing for a 2017 Tony Kart chassis. I know they’re a reputable brand. However, it sounds like the kart was run in a two-stroke class previously. Does that mean I wouldn’t be able to run it with a four-stroke motor like the 206? Or would it just be inadvisable to do so? I’d imagine there are some design differences between two and four-stroke chassis.
Typically newer chassis can be run with either 2 or 4 stroke. There are karts more dedicated to 4 stroke that usually do not have a middle bearing hanger and are sometimes smaller diameter tubing (all 28mm or a mix of 30 and 28mm, Typically the more powerful 2 strokes are just 30mm and sometimes 32mm), but you should be able to switch between the two fairly easily. I wasn’t able to view the kart you linked but OTK (Tony Kart) are as good as anyone.
Opinion from another newbie: buy it. The engine, seats, extra set of wheels, mylaps transponder, are easily worth $1k by themselves and could be transferred to a new chassis. It will run fine for your first year, after which you will have a much better idea of what you want to do next. Unless you crash it, you can probably sell it back a year from now for basically what you paid. Don’t overthink it. Sure it’s not ideal but it’s half the price of ideal. Perfect for a newbie.
Ad is a bit confusing. Some of the goodies like the mychron are sold seperately. Still a decent deal though.
For 206, I’d say easily 3 seasons before a “rebuild” if it’s a sealed class (which it’ll probably be) it’ll have to be done by a certain engine person within the organization. A full rebuild + dyno for my WF engine (very similar engine) is about $700.
206 is very easy to maintain
The LO206 engines don’t get rebuilt, they get tossed out (figuratively speaking) and a brand new sealed short block gets purchased and you swap all the accessories, head, flywheel, coil, shrouds etc to make a new engine. Doesn’t HAVE to be done by any specific builders, you can do them yourself.
My preferred option is to buy a complete engine and throw the old one in the trailer. That way you a spare of everything. If you use something from it you now know you need to add one to your inventory of parts. It’s really handy to have a second carb. If you are making any adjustments with float height. I can quickly swap it out and then make adjustments while my boy is turning so more laps to compare. Obviously this will depend on your budget. For me the complete engine is cheap enough to have just in case.
Yeah thats a good way to do it. I know some guys that will rebuild the bottom end of the old LO206 and use it as a practice engine without the seals.
This is just my experience with WF, (Sealed)
I thought all 206 was sealed?
They are sealed, but not like a Rotax where you can have them rebuilt and re sealed, once they wear out, they are no use for LO206 anymore. Rebuild and use as a practice engine, or sell them to someone who builds them into open animal engines etc.