hi! im new here. i've been karting (fun kart) for almost 1 1/2 yrs. recently, i've been using kt gokarts.

am interested to buy a kt engine. do u have an idea how much is a brand new, as well as a 2nd kt engine? also, where can i find dthem? u may also contact me thru 0922-8800722.

happy holidays! =)

By KT engine, I take it that you meant Yamaha KT100 engine. If that is so, you should contact Johnny Tan in Manila as he is the authorised agent for Yamaha engines.

Good Luck.

James Leong

ok. but they hv bnew engines. kindly give me idea on prices for 2nd hand. tnx!

For used KT Yamaha in Malaysia, there are only a handful. These are normally blue-printed already. There are no official series in Malaysia so you would not find any used KT100 engines around.

Any reasons why you would want a KT100 engine? You would be better off investing in a Rotax FR125 Max engine. If you plan to be a hobby driver the engine will last you at least 50 hours before re-build.

James Leong

The Rotax Max brochure might says 50 hours, but in reality??? Dont think so. Most of the top teams and drivers tear their engine apart and change whatever necessary so to be able to maintain their advantage. And I do know that the SH team does this for all their engines after every race.
Rotax max parts are also very expensive, for example the radiator is even more expensive than a bigger one use on the CIK classes. Go figure for yourself. Yamaha on the other hand is really cheap if you compare with the Max and has a lot less parts, ie. radiator, balance gear, a really crappy starter that breaks in no time and cost more than USD 200. A yamaha engine can really beat the max hands down in terms of cost and if there is enough people racing it like in Japan, Australia and USA it can really be a very competitive and exciting learning step for the newcomer. I think if your country has a Yamaha class, go for it especially if you are a newcomer.

Well said! I share the same sentiments with you that newcomer to the sport above 12 years old should start in a "newcomer class like Yamaha". In fact our ASN has approved this move for 2008. There will be a Yamaha class in the KKS championship BUT how many drivers will be in the class is anyone's guess. There was a Yamaha Challenge organised in 2006 but met with failure due to very few entries.

If you keep the Yamaha stock standard, you will have many hours of fun with it before having to re-build. It is the same with Rotax engines. There are engines around that has been running for more than 50 hours without a re-build. The SH Team re-build their engines after every race is because they want to make sure all the engines are in top condition and as a factory team they would want any failures. For a privateer you can do the same if youcould afford the cost or otherwise do a check on the engine after 2 rounds.

You compare Yamaha parts cost with Rotax. You did not take into account that one Euro is nearly RM5 whereas JPY is 100 to RM3.00. Yamaha engines are 100cc air cool and relatively slower than the Rotax Max. They have less moving parts and thus relatively lesser things to change. If you think Rotax is expensive, wait till you try KF1 or KF2.

James Leong

I have to agree that the KF engines may cost a little more then other engines but it is a more where the future of karting is heading to and also it is more complete racing engine. Initial cost to purchase the engine is a little more then any other engine at the moment, but running cost is very low as the engine now have a control box to limit the maximum rpm.

Gone are the days where engines are rev-ing at 20000rpm. but with the same tecnology in the KF engine rev-ing at 14000rpm for juniors and 15000rpm for seniors, the engines are really reliable now but still fast!!.

engine parts are also more affordable because not one company controls the sales of spare parts, but you can source it from anywhere in the world.

Radiators for example are much cheaper and you can use whatever radiator you like, or even make it on your own (this is what some drivers do in Thailand) it cost cheaper and you can make it to the size you require.

I think KF is where you should head to after a season or two in the beginer class. After all like Aaron pointed out it is a more complete engine. It does cost more but then a lot more research has gone into it to produce more power as compare to other 125 cc engines up to now. The quality in the material is also better. You get a full machined liner as compare to a cast one on the Max. Spares are cheaper than the Max too and you are not limited to only one supplier. You don't get disqualified for using different brands of spare parts even if they are not original ones!! The initial outlay is a fair bit more than the Max but I think you will save more down the road. And it goes faster too. An alternative route for you guys planning to race in the local and Asian Max is the KKS 125 open class( KF 2 not allowed, I heard...boring), is the AKOC 125 Open class. Did I mention it is faster too? And KF 3 for juniors,
its also faster, am i repeating myself?? I think the KF engines are what the sport needs to bring back a fresh approach and only have people like Rotax, Iame, Sonic, Comer to thank for for introducing the TAG concept. But let's move on now and bring on the KF classes!! Did i mention they are faster too?????

Ooops, we are talking about KT right? well they have been around more than 20 yaers now I think and the Max carby is probably about 25 years if you are interested. But the KF.......mmmm....Vortex, Iame, Maxter.....

sprocket,

last weekend we were practising at sepang with our rotax's.... a few KF2's and 3's were practising too on the same tyres and same chassis, there was no comparison. The KF2 looks mean, its sounds better, and it tears the rotax to pieces in perfomance. We were so impressed we ordered three units on the spot, running two of them in tomorrow at sepang

PS. the junior KF3's were quicker too!

so how soon will dey be a KF race in Malaysia?

yes. I think that this is a question that we need to ask Mr. David and the KKS. Calling Mr. David, are we going to run the KF 2 and KF 3 engines in Malaysia?? Can vouch for the fact that the spares are much cheaper. Had an unfortunate running in incident on the KF 3. Had to change the radiator and exhaust, only about half the cost.

Not so soon unfortunately. The relatively expensive initial cost of purchasing the engine really is the biggest obstacle. I n spite of the lower cost of spare parts( I disagree with you on this James that KF engines spares are more expensive, it's actually the other way round here in M'sia) and other running costs most karters seems blinded by the initial lower cost of other engines, mainly Rotax Max and by large here in Malaysia and many other countries whom seemingly has come to realize this are actually moving away from it.
But if there is enough of you guys buying this engine this year, maybe a exhibition race or event could be held initially and run it as the main race in the the local championship. Somehow I think if this is run as an international race, we could get many entries.
I couldn't really care the DD2 class as I think why pay so much for only 2 gears when you can go the whole distance and get yourself a 6 speed shifter kart. The cost is almost the same. Ask any kart mechanic who knows his stuff to compare these engines and I can guarantee you he will tell you there is no comparison. Its like comparing a casio with a Rolex watch. In this sense the Rotax seems way too much overpriced. All you guys thinking about the DD2 should reconsider and maybe go the KF way.Its the same when you compare the KFs with the Max. What you pay in this sense is really not what you get!!

Getting back to the KT100, although it is a relatively good engine like said, there needs to be a competitive class for it. Speed doesnt matter if there is a more competitive class in the slower classes. If you want to stay in the 100cc classes, the HPV100 engine is easily the best. At the track i race at, which is a fairly straight track, they are 1 second a lap faster, with 60 pounds more. As you can imagine, this show that they are a bit faster. Also as said though, the kf engines easily tear all other 125 engines to pieces. I have never actually seen a kf or driven one, but if you look at race results and lap times, they are just way faster than any other class. The kf1 engine is right up there with the ICC shifter class.

P.S: the HPV engine has an EXPD clutch that you cant change, which makes much tighter competition.

Absolutely true. That's why I never understood the open 125 category we ran here (similar to TAG in the US but with only one weight for all and very very open regulations on engines). The results end up being down to who spends the most on their engine, driver talent has little to do with the results. Very quickly people that aren't spending the money lose interest. You know who is going to win well before you show up at a race and the winner often has a 5+ second winning margin.

Racing in a field of 25 karters with the top ten separated by 1-2 tenths in qualifying is a lot more fun than racing in a field of say 10 with 1st and 2nd separated by 5 tenths and a 1+ second split from 1st to 10th.

You'll hardly notice that you're lapping 1-2 seconds or more slower or faster. A KF2 might will feel plenty fast the first time you drive it, but you'll soon adjust to the sensation of speed and suddenly going "faster" won't impress you that much. You will notice the close racing though - or lack of it.

In the KF-categories this year I suspect with some engines getting updated a tiny bit if you have last years model it might not be quite there anymore, you're forced to spend more to stay competitive. You have to spend money to have the best engine, although you can get "close" with an out-of the box engines - close isn't enough when it means you are still losing ~1-3 tenths on the engine alone.