Robonance-15

ISSN: 2321-8134

IJFEAT
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL FORENGINEERING APPLICATIONS AND
TECHNOLOGY

DESIGN OF GO-KART
Abhinay Nilawar1, Harmeet singh Nannade2, Amey Pohankar3, Nikhil Selokar4
1Abhinay Nilawar, Mechanical Engg.,J.D.I.E.T,Maharashtra,India,abhinaynilawar@gmail.com
2Harmeet singh Nannade, Mechanical Engg.,J.D.I.E.T,Maharashtra,India,harmeetsinghn@gmail.com
3Amey Pohankar, Mechanical Engg.,J.D.I.E.T,Maharashtra,India,ameypohankar@gmail.com
Nikhil Selokar4 ,Mechanical Engg.,J.D.I.E.T,Maharashtra,India
Abstract
A Go-kart, by definition, has no suspension and no differential. They are usually raced on scaled down tracks, but are sometimes
driven as entertainment or as a hobby by non-professionals. 'Carting is commonly perceived as the stepping stone to the higher and
more expensive ranks of motor sports. Kart racing is generally accepted as the most economic form of motor sport available. As a
free-time activity, it can be performed by almost anybody and permitting licensed racing for anyone from the age of 8 onwards. Kart
racing is usually used as a low-cost and relatively safe way to introduce drivers to motor racing. Many people associate it with young
drivels, but adults are also very active in karting. Karting is considered as the first step in any serious racer's career. It can prepare the
driver for highs-speed wheel-to-wheel racing by helping develop guide reflexes, Precision car control and decision-making skills. In
addition, it brings an awareness of the various parameters that can be altered to try to improve the competitiveness of the kart that also
exist in other forms of motor racing.

--------------------------------------------------------------------- *** -----------------------------------------------------------------------1. INTRODUCTION

There are many motor sports in the world. Bikes,
Cars, Formula one are examples of them. The drivers in these
are very professionals and accurate. They can drive it very
fast. But there are also motor sports which do not need
professional drivers and need no great speed. The vehicles
used are also very cheap. Such a motor sport is Go-karting.
They resemble to the formula one cars but it is not as faster as
Fl and also cost is very less. The drivers in go-karting are
also not professionals. Even children can also drive It. Gokarts have 4 wheels and a small engine. They are widely used
in racing in US and also they are getting popular in India.

2. SCOPE OF THE PROJECT

karts popular, the price must come down. For that, many
people are trying to build one under 1 lakh and we had also
take up the challenge and make our under 70 K. This is to
dream come true. A go-kart just under Rs. 70,000/-. So we
are sure that our project will have to high demand in the
industry and also we are hoping to get orders from the racing
guns.

3. ABOUT GO KARTS
Go-kart is a simple four-wheeled, small engine,
single sealed racing car used mainly in United States. They
were initially created in the 1950s.Post-war period by airmen
as a way to pass spare time. Art Ingels is generally accepted to
be the father of karting. He built the first kart in Southern
California in 1956. From them, it is being popular all over
America and also Europe.

Go-karting is a big craze to the Americans and

Europeans. It is initially created in United States in 1950s and
used as a way to pass spare time. Gradually it became a big
A Go-kart, by definition, has no suspension and no
hobby and other countries followed it. In India go-karting is
differential. They are usually raced on scaled down tracks,
getting ready to make waves. A racing track is ready in
but are sometimes driven as entertainment or as a hobby by
Nagpur for go-karting and Chennai is also trying to make one.
non-professionals. 'Carting is commonly perceived as the
Indian companies are also producing go-karts in small scale.
stepping stone to the higher and more expensive ranks of
MRF and Indus motors are the major bodies in karts and they
motor sports. Kart racing is generally accepted as the most
are offering karts between 1 lakh and 3 lakh. But to make gohttp://www.ijfeat.org (C) International Journal For Engineering Applications and Technology

Robonance-15

ISSN: 2321-8134

economic form of motor sport available. As a free-time

activity, it can be performed by almost anybody and
permitting licensed racing for anyone from the age of 8
onwards. Kart racing is usually used as a low-cost and
relatively safe way to introduce drivers to motor racing. Many
people associate it with young drivels, but adults are also very
active in karting. Karting is considered as the first step in any
serious racer's career. It can prepare the driver for highsspeed wheel-to-wheel racing by helping develop guide
reflexes, Precision car control and decision-making skills. In
addition, it brings an awareness of the various parameters
that can be altered to try to improve the competitiveness of
the kart that also exist in other forms of motor racing.

The chassis support the power unit, power train, the running
system etc. Kart chassis are classified in as 'Open', 'Caged',
'Straight' or 'Offset'.

3.1 Go-Karts in India

We have used the straight open kart chassis design.

There are no suspensions used in the kart so the chassis must
be able to absorb some of the jerks and vibrations, also it must
be stiff enough not to break or twist during turning Roll Cage
can be called as skeleton of a vehicle, besides its purpose
being seating the driver, providing safety and incorporating
other sub-systems of the vehicle, the main purpose is to form a
frame or so called Chassis. We have designed the roll cage
keeping in view the safety and aesthetics. These are the two
factors which matters us the most. This is deals with design of
chassis frame for a go kart Vehicle and various loading tests
like Front Impact, Rear Impact & Side Impact test have been
conducted on the roll cage.

Go-karts emerged in India in 2003 from MRF,

which has a 125cc four-stroke engine, which produce 15
bhp of power, which costs around 3 lakh. Indus motors are
also offering Go-karting for 1 lakh to 3 lakh. There are
racing tracks in Nagpur for go-karting, which is known as
the home of go-karts in India. Many people take part in the
racing and is getting popular.
3.2 Go-Karts in Foreign Countries
Go-karts in foreign countries have much more
performance than the Indians. One type is a single engine
160cc 4-stroke kart with a maximum speed of around 40 mph
and second type, a twin-engine 320cc 4-strolce kart used in
outdoor with a maximum speed of 70 mph. There are hundreds
of racing traces in US for karting and also they are much more
professional than the Indians.
4 . PARTS OF A GO -KART
In a Go-Kart, there are mainly six parts. They are
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.

Chassis
Engine
Steering
Transmission
Tire s
Brake

4.1 CHASSIS

Open karts have no roll cage.

Caged karts have a roll cage surrounding the driver; they are
mostly used on dirt tracks.
In Straight chassis the driver sits in the centre. Straight
chassis are used for sprint racing.
In Offset chassis the driver sits on the left side. Offset chassis
are used for left-turn-only speedway racing.

4.1.1 DESIGN METHODOLOGY

Design of any component is consists of three major
principles: 1.optimization 2.safety 3.comfort
The primary objective of the roll cage is to provide a
3-dimensional protected space around the driver that will keep
the driver safe. Its secondary objectives are to provide reliable
mounting locations for components, be appealing, low in cost,
and low in weight. These objectives were met by choosing a
roll cage material that has good strength and also weighs less
giving us an advantage in weight reduction. A low cost roll
cage was provided through material selection and
incorporating more continuous members with bends rather
than a collection of members welded together to reduce
manufacturing costs. The modeling of the roll cage structure is
done by using pro-e software. This design is checked by Finite
Element Analysis. We have focused on every point of roll
cage to improve the performance of vehicle without failure of
roll cage. We began the task of designing by conducting
extensive research of go kart roll cage through finite element
analysis. Our chassis design and dimensions (in inches) are
shown below;

The chassis is an extremely imported element of the

kart, as it must provide, via flex, the equivalent of suspension
to give good grip at the front. Karts have no suspension, and
are usually no bigger than is needed to mount a seat for the
driver and a small engine. Chassis construction is normally of
a tubular construction, typically GI with different grades. In
this kart, we use AISI 4130 chromyl tube with 1" diameter.
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ISSN: 2321-8134
F = ma . (1)
= 150*4*11.38
= 6828 N
Impulse time = weight*(velocity/load) (2)
= 150*(12.5/6828)
= 0.274 seconds
We apply 13000 N for testing our vehicle in maximum load
condition.

1:-Front impact analysis

2:-Rear impact analysis

3:-Side impact analysis

Ground clearance is 4 inch.

4.1.2 Impact load calculation:

Using the projected vehicle/driver mass of 150 kg,
the impact force was calculated base on a G-load of 4.
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ISSN: 2321-8134
Honda ACTIVA 125
Displacement: 124.8cc
Max Power: 8.6bhp@6500 rpm
Max Torque:10.12Nm@5500
rpm
Mileage: 58 KMPL apprx.
Transmission: CVT

Vespa VX 125
Displacement: 125cc
Max Power:
10bhp@7000 rpm
Max Torque:
6.0Nm@5000 rpm
Mileage: 54 KMPL
apprx.
Transmission :

As per above comparison of other available verities of

scooters with Honda ACTIVA,
Honda 125cc engine suites best regarding to its specifications
like availability, power, Torque mileage etc.

4.2 ENGINE
An engine of a go-kart is usually a small one. About
l00-200cc.so this kart, we use a Honda ACTIVA Single
Cylinder 125cc 4-stroke petrol engine, which produces about
8 BHP of power at 6500 rpm. We use 4- stroke engine
because this is used for racing and good mileage also.
We choose the Honda 125cc HET engine according to
comparisons with other scooters.
Honda ACTIVA 125
Displacement: 124.8cc
Max Power: 8.6bhp@6500 rpm
Max Torque:10.12Nm@5500
rpm
Mileage: 58 KMPL apprx.
Transmission: CVT

Suzuki Swish
Displacement: 124cc
Max Power:
8.58bhp@7000 rpm
Max Torque:
9.8Nm@5000 rpm
Mileage: 54 KMPL
apprx.
Transmission : CVT

Honda ACTIVA 125

Displacement: 124.8cc
Max Power: 8.6bhp@6500 rpm
Max Torque:10.12Nm@5500
rpm
Mileage: 58 KMPL apprx.
Transmission: CVT

Suzuki Access 125

Displacement: 124cc
Max Power:
8.58bhp@7000 rpm
Max Torque:
9.8Nm@5000 rpm
Mileage: 54 KMPL
apprx.
Transmission : CVT

Honda ACTIVA 125

Displacement: 124.8cc
Max Power: 8.6bhp@6500 rpm
Max Torque:10.12Nm@5500
rpm
Mileage: 58 KMPL apprx.
Transmission: CVT

Mahindra Rodeo R2
Displacement: 124.6cc
Max Power:
7.9bhp@7000 rpm
Max Torque: 9Nm@5000
rpm
Mileage: 60 KMPL
apprx.
Transmission : CVT

4.3 STEERING SYSTEM

The steering of a go-kart is very sensitive. Because
of lack of a differential, a kart's natural direction of travel,
forwards, is very difficult to change. However, the two to
wheels are attached by a solid axle, and must therefore move
together, to in order to turn, one of the wheels need to skid
over the track surface. In this kart we use rack and pinion
mechanism.[2]

L = wheel base

=1.32m

Wf = front track width =0.762m

Wr = rear track width =1.016m
lf

distance of CG from Wf =0.792m

1 = angle of outer wheel= 34

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2 = angle of inner wheel= 37

We assumed required gear ratio 1:0.72 for sprocket.

a)Calculation for maximum speed of go kart

cot ()

We have, V=
Activa wheel/hub rpm at Max speed i.e. at Va

cot ()

Hence N=

cot () =1.40

i.e. N1=

Therefore N1 = 1201.9669 rpm.

According to assumed Gear ratio, the max rpm of go kart
wheel will be,

Now turning radius,

R = [(lf)2+(L)2(cot2 )2]1/2

N2 =
=

= 1669.4444 rpm.

[(0.792)2+(1.32)2(1.40)2]1/2
Max speed of Go-kart can be calculated as,

2.01m

4.4 TRANSMISSION
Transmission means the whole of the mechanism
that transmits the power from the engine crankshaft to
the rear wheels. In this vehicle, the power from the engine
is transmitted to the sprockets using chain, i.e. this is chain
drive. The driver sprocket has 12 teeth and driven
sprocket has 44 teeth. Usually go-karts do not have to
differential and to we eliminate differential from our
vehicle also. And also this go-kart has no clutch and gears
because this is automatic transmission. Belt and pulley
type CVT is used in this kart. The power from the engine
is transmitted to the rear two wheels using chain drive. We
use chain drive because it is capable of taking shock
loads.[3]

V2 =

= 22.2019 m/s

V2 =

i.e. V2 = 79.9268 Kmph

But above calculated velocity of go kart is not achivable due

to frictional losses power train.

b)Calculation for acceleration of go kart

P = Fx * V2 i.e. 6413.02 = Fx*21.6007
Therefore, forward pushing force Fx = 288.85 N
E have, Fx = m*ax, m is mass of vehicle and is equal to 150kg
(1471.5N) including drivers weight.
Therefore acceleration of go kart i.e. ax =

4.4.1 Calculations

m/s

Data:

The calculated value of max speed of go kart vehicle is less

than max value allowed in event. Also the actual max speed of
vehicle will be less since frictional and other losses in power
train are not considered in calculations.

1. Max. Power : 8.6 HP @ 6500rpm i.e. P =

6413.02W@6500rpm
2. Max speed of Honda Activa: V1 =100 Kmph i.e. V1 =
27.7777 m/s.

Hence Sprocket gear ratio 1:0.72 is acceptable.

3. Honda Activa rear wheel size: 90/100 10 hence

c)Calculation for axel shaft diameter.

4. Diameter of wheel: Da = 44cm i.e.

44x10-2 m.

= 1.9256

Da=

5. Max speed of go-kart vehicle allowed in event: Vg = 80

kmph.

To maintain gear ratio 1:0.72 we use custom driver sprocket of

50 teeth and Pitch 15mm.
For driven sprocket we use 36 teeth sprocket with pitch 15mm
(Bajaj spares).

6. Diameter of Go-Kart rear wheel

Dk =
25.4x10-2 m.
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ISSN: 2321-8134

Pitch circle diameter of driven sprocket D2 =

, n= number

of teeth.
Hence D =

170mm

Let us assume that at max power i.e. 6.41KW the torque at

axel when speed is 1669.444rpm is
T2 =

= 36.68Nm

We assume safe design torque T=50Nm.

Tangential force on driven sprocket is Ft =

, Ft =

588.2352N
Normal load acting, W =

4.5 TIRES

= 588.2352

(Since for chain drive there is no pressure angle like gears.

Cos0 = 1)
W = 588.2352
Bending moment M2 =

, M1=147.0588Nm

4.6 BRAKES

Bending Moments M1 and M2 due to weight of vehicle are

considered same near both bearing
And they are calculated as M1 and M3 =

187.5525Nm. Considering design bending moment is M =

190Nm.
Equivalent bending moment, Te =
196.4688Nm
Also Te =

x ts x (d)3 =

For go-karts, wheels and tires are much smaller than those
used on a normal car. The tires will have increased grip and a
hard one. And also it can withstand the high temperature. In
this kart, we use tires having 10" dia for front and 10" dia for
rear. The tires must have pressure of at least 18 psi.

x 45x106 x d3 (ts = 45x106

N/m2)
The fore diameter of shaft, d = 28.12 say 29 mm.

Analysis of Shaft
As we calculate above the value of load on the shaft is
588.23N, therefore we apply 600N on the centre of the shaft

The braking system used in the vehicle is hydraulic

disc brake system on rear shaft; it works with the help of fluid
(liquid). Consists of a master cylinder, a fluid line to the brake
caliper, and the brake pad. Initial bleeding of the system is
done so that there is no air gap in the line. As the brake lever is
pushed down the, fluid flows into the line and the brake pad
gets pushed towards the disc and due to friction between the
disc and brake pad, braking action is produced.[1]

Assumptions
Before proceeding towards any calculations, we have
to assume certain data or we can say, we have to estimate
some required specification of our vehicle. Though, we cannot
accurately guess or know weight ratio of our vehicle, but since
our car is rear drive and engine compartment is at rear, thus
more amount of static load will be at rear portion of car.
By this method, and with inputs with other sub-system of car,
we estimated our vehicles specification such as weight of
vehicle, weight ratio, height of C.G from ground and wheel
base of vehicle.
Height of CG: 0.033 m
Distance of CG rear wheel: 0.528 m
Distance of CG front wheel: 0.792 m

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Some of assume data as below:
Pedal ratio - 3:1
Manual force applied - 80N
Mass of vehicle - 150 Kg

ISSN: 2321-8134
u = 45 Kmph
= 12.5 m/s
t = -u/a
= -12.5/(-11.38)

Weight transfer ration:- 40:60 at static condition.

Stopping time, t = 1.1 sec

F1 Force of master cylinder,

Also, v2 =u2 + 2as

A1 Area of master cylinder,

v = 0,

F2 Force on caliper,

s = - u2/2a

A2 Force on caliper

= - 12.52/2*(-11.38)

Fa= 80 N

Stopping Distance, s = 6.86 m

By considering pedal ratio

5. SYSTEMS USED IN A GO KART

Fa * H = F1 * h

Like every automobile, go-karts also have various

systems. Mainly there are 4 systems in this kart.

Fa * 3 = F1 * 1
F1 = 240 N

1. Fuel system
2. Ignition system

By Pascals Law,
F1 /A1 = F2 / A2

5.1 FUEL SYSTEM

F2 = F1 /A1 * A2

The purpose of fuel system in SI engines is to store

and supply fuel and then to pump this fuel to carburetors. The
fuel supply system also prepares the air-fuel mixture for
combustion in the cylinder and carries the exhaust gas to the
rear of the vehicle. The basic fuel supply system used in the
vehicle consists of the following.

F2 = (240*20.268*10-4 )/2.85*10-4
F2 = 1706.78
By Newton Law
F2 =m * ax
ax = F2 /m

Fuel tank
Fuel strainer or Fuel filter
Air cleaner
Carburetor

= 1706.78/150
ax = -11.38 m/s2

5.2 IGNITION SYSTEM

Negative indicates retardation i.e. 1.16 g

Spark Plug

Now,

An essential part of the ignition system is the

provision of electrodes within the engine cylinder, across
which the ignition spark can discharge. It is desirable to
arrange that these electrodes shall be easily accessible and
they are, therefore, mounted on a screwed-in plug.

By Newton law,
V = u + at
V=0

A sparking plug consist essentially of a steel body

which bears the earthed electrode, an insulator, and a central

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Robonance-15
rode which forms the other electrode, fed from the distributor.
The lower part of the body is threaded to suit a screwed bole
provided in the engine, the length of the threaded portion
known as the reach and varying with the plug design. The
body of the plug seats on to a soft steel washer when it is
screwed into the engine.
The insulator operates under particularly arduous condition
since not only must it withstand the high ignition voltage, but
it's lower and is subjected to the full bear of combustion and it
is also liable to mechanical shock. At one time, the insulator
was mode from porcelain but modern plugs use ceramics
based on sintered aluminum oxide.

Conclusion:
We calculated all the design parameters and
analysed the roll cage design, shaft, brake disc, etc.

ISSN: 2321-8134
Thus after all the test and calculation we have
concluded that our design is safe for fabrication.

References:
[1] Anshuman Gupta, Badal G. Bisen, December 2011,
A Case Study of Reaction Time Reduction of Vehicle
Brake System, SAE Int. J. Passeng.
[2] Go kart project by Kailas sreechandaran
[3] Theory of machine by Khurmi & Gupta
[4] www.wikipedia.org
[5] www.kartbuilding.net
[6] www.howstuffworks.com
[7] www.hybridcars.org
[8] www.teambhpblog.com
[9] www.allabouthybrids.comm
[10] www.encyclopedia.com
[11] thefreedictionary.com
[12] auto.howstuffworks.com
[13] www.flipkart.com

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