Newbie - Advice on which Kid Kart to purchase - Birel, Top Kart or Nitro

Hello Everyone - fresh Newbie dad here. My son just completed an intro to Kid Kart class at Andersen Speedway near Sarasota FL and loved it. We live up in NY and I’ve been starting the search for a Kid Kart for him to use.

In the week or so that I’ve been looking, I’ve already been steered in a few different directions. So I’m looking for advice/validation on what I was planning to purchase. Here goes:

I found a gently used Birel B25 in the Southeast that I was set on purchasing and using up in the NY/Nj area. The price was fair, kart was clean and well maintained/refreshed. I called around to a few shops in the Northeast and a few people suggested that Birel’s are not very popular in the Northeast and I’ll have a problem finding parts or people to help with troubleshooting. They suggested buying a new Top Kart or Nitro chassis and then purchasing 2 engines - 1 used Comer for practice and 1 used “race engine” from NSR?

Any advice on what I should do? Primary goal for the first year is to ease my son into the sport and see how he likes it. We plan on going to the track 5-8 times over the Summer and see how things progress. We may sign up for a local race series, but probably next year. I also want to make sure I’m not spending money needlessly or incorrectly the first time around. I run my regular car in HPDE’s and I know how expensive this sport can get. Trying to avoid some of those pitfalls.

Thank you in advance!

Where are you located?

NYC

What age bracket are you in? Junior (<16), Senior (16+) or Masters (30+)

Kid Kart

On a scale of 1-10, how would you rate your mechanical ability, or willingness to wrench on things?

7

Talk a little about your racing experience so far.

HPDEs with PCA club

What’s the main thing you need help with to get you started.

Purchasing a Kid Kart

Check into what kart shops are available to you and what brands they support. The most important thing is going to be getting parts and support. That being said Comet ships same day and is one day to me in Ohio so maybe 2 days to you?

Look into what track and organization you’re going to run with to see what motor his class will run. It will likely be Comer, Honda, or micro swift. That may also guide your decision on what kart to buy as a package. Since you mentioned Comer already I’ll assume you looked into that but always check.

NSR does good work, but I recently dealt with MidWest Mini and was VERY pleased with their service and would recommend to anyone building a Comer.

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Thanks, Chris. Makes sense.

I think I’m good on the engine and going to make sure the Birel meets all my local organizations class rules. I’ll double check that parts are readily available for the Birel…seems to be the potentially trickiest part…making sure you have access to spares in short order. Plus the shop I will be purchasing from has recommended a few shops/tuners in my area that will help/support any work I may need.

I spoke to a few more race shops and I think the used Birel is a good choice for just starting out. I’d hate to spend $3-$4K on a new Kart and have him lose interest in 6-12 months (even though I doubt that will happen). Thanks

If you are in Manhattan, where will you race? OVRP or F-Series?

They are correct. Don’t be getting a Birel in Compkart land. Trackside spares are your friend on race weekends. Get the same brand that is supported trackside.

I can point you in the right direction for f-series help with gear etc. Been down that road. Also we have some ovrp regulars here who probably know about who to talk to. Pretty sure they have a shop on site also.

Welcome!

Have you considered used? You can get great deals on used karts in good condition. That frees up some $ to do more races, maybe hire a coach for a couple of test days etc etc.

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@KartingIsLife Thanks for the info. Was definitely considering used and the Birel I found is a 2017 used chassis with comer engine at a fair price.

@Bimodal_Rocket - I was thinking f-series and ovr. Please send me some info. I think Birel is a sponsor at Ovr.

Any advice on where to find used kid karts? Haven’t been able to find any others for sale.

Thanks!

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I’ll pm you the name and number of someone I trust. Have a convo with them about what you are looking to do, budget, etc.

My personal opinion on it would be go with whatever you can get spares with locally. And since Kid Kart is mostly a for-fun/learning class, I don’t see much point on spending a ton of money on something newer or nicer, and would instead opt for something in decent shape but maybe a little older. All you really need is something for your kid to learn kart control and adapt to the speed.

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Thanks for all the advice. I completely agree. Have 2 good leads on used Kid Karts…going to decide this week. Very exciting for me and my son…=).

Thanks again.

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Ended up purchasing the Birel kid kart. Oakland Valley is a factory dealer and can easily help with servicing.

Thanks for the advice and help.

Forgot to give props to the crew at Andersen Raceway! Got the kart from them. Very helpful and enthusiastic team. Would definitely recommend their facility and people.

Nice. That went smoothly!

Glad to hear you found something to work for you. Enjoy the process it’s both fun and crazy.

Hi Luca,

Any update on how karting for your kid is going? My son will turn 5 soon and I am currently looking to do the same you did in 2019. Between a Biral B25 with a Comer C50 and a Top Kart Kid Kart with a Comer C52.

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