Shifter 101 - Basics of Driving a Shifter Kart

[@prodbyjonathan.]

im watching this witout having a kart lmao

[@just_al3ssandro]

𝙼𝚎 𝚝𝚘𝚘

[@madeinohio4222]

me three

[@juliomunoz2363]

Me four

[@thomas6814]

same. i want one lol i have one but its a completely different style one and its slow

[@adamtt2009]

I have a 2 stroke kart

[@RageAZA]

2 stroke engine : "when do i know when to change gear?" when the engine sounds like its about to explode youve still got about 2000rpm

[@CaesarAugustus27]

In a shifterkart on the straight you usually shift like this: Bruuuum, shift, bruuum, shift, bruuum, shift, bruuum, shift. You shift pretty often that is.

[@branonsaetern7544]

Elliot Björck Great demonstration lol, Bruum Shift Bruum Shift. Nice man lol

[@CaesarAugustus27]

@@branonsaetern7544 Yeah I know! 🤣 It was basically just to show that you shift repeatedly and after you shift, you have to shift almost immediately again. Could've said that instead 😂

[@calebfletcher1.8t9]

RageAZA 😂😂😂

[@cxcre]

Elliot Björck Karting no it’s maaaaAAAAANNNNTTTT MAAAAAAAAAANNNNTTTT MAAAAAAAAAAANNNNTTTT MAAAAAAAAAAAANNNNTTTT

[@himarr]

I know everything only thing I need now is.... the kart lol

[@abdulfattah9189]

Me too! 😂

[@ianmangham4570]

Get saving

[@ferrallezz5246]

NoT1M0 mine either

[@Mavs24]

That's what it my mind 😂

[@elisel9045]

Yeah i have only 55€

[@spleafplayzyt8078]

I’m buying a kart to start racing for fun again at the end of this year. I used to race for years but couldn’t do it competitively because it was so expensive. Should bring back some good memories for me.

[@danielurrutia4122]

I’ve seen the comments over here and think is not enough to thank for your time for doing this high level quality video, not talking only about recording, audio and editing, but also this valued and very comprehensive content. It was because of this video and few web sites mentioning that Honda CR125 are relatively easy and low maintenance, that I have just acquired my own shifter kart. Thank you man! It is because of people like you that some of us love karts and also this sport is so great!

[@IllegalAlienRacing]

That is awesome Daniel! Thank you for the words of encouragement, stay safe!

[@TrackDaysDude]

As I'm going to test a shifter go-kart for the first time shortly, I found this video extremely helpful. Thank you for the video! 💯

[@yep537]

How did it go?

[@perrysplus]

Absolutely fantastic! Love this stuff and you explain it really well.

[@seventhgearsyndicate]

Awesome content man! I’m looking at getting into karting after realizing how expensive it is to run a full size car on a race track. Keep up the awesome quality and informative content.

[@IllegalAlienRacing]

Thank you, I appreciate it.

[@dathyr1]

Cool video. Thanks for showing how to operate a shifter Kart. I raced many years ago (1960's) before there were ever shifter Karts. My Dad and myself raced a 2 stroke McCulloch single engine Kart. Raced on several Chicagoland area tracks. Was allot of fun back then as a Junior division Karter. At the end of racing this Kart, it was pretty well modified and very fast. Shifter Karts are a whole new ballgame.

[@Icosiol]

When you get comfortable with shifting you can shift without coming 100% off the throttle, but this is a basics guide and that's advanced driving. :D

[@jimsz0100]

When shifting a motorcycle without the clutch I preload the shift lever just before I get to the point I want to shift. Coming off power and right back on completes the shift. Tapping a kill button does the same thing while keeping the throttle open. This eliminates the need to coordinate throttle and shifter movements. Should work on a kart too.

[@lukereyes1025]

Can you shift without letting off the gas?

[@lukereyes1025]

Or do you have to lift off a little bit

[@GrayOlson]

@@lukereyes1025 In order to shift, you must de-load the transmission gears no matter what. You can do this in several ways. One is to roll off throttle just long enough that the gears deload and you shift during that time. Another is to use the clutch.

[@pvanb291]

@@jimsz0100 Had a miroswitch in my gear lever, so I could trigger a flat shift option on my ignition. Loved pulling gears with the gas hard to the floor! It was a Suzuki RM250 grass kart and often would go over bumps when you were ready to shift. That would load up the gearbox again, so you'd miss your ideal shift spot. Also had a shift light and rev limiter. It was pretty quick!!

[@mryamahapro12]

It’s amazing learning this on a dirt bike at 8 years old, I never realized that not everyone didn’t have what I thought was a common ability

[@stclairstclair]

There's only 5 of us in existence today....

[@lane3192]

@@stclairstclair 6, don't forget about me.

[@omaraswat5243]

Super informative and very clear explanation. When I hop into a shifter next I'll be remembering this tutorial! Nice one, keep the awesome videos up :)

[@IllegalAlienRacing]

Thank you, I appreciate you watching the videos.

[@EvanTomokiHoonigan]

I'm watching this to know how to set up my driving style in Project Cars lol G27 user here, thank you fam for the master class!

[@the_stixXx]

That was great man 10/10 I used to race here in NY at bridgehampton raceway. They killed it and built another golf course. Maybe that's why I hate golf. I always wanted to drive a shifter kart. That was a great tour of one and the track. Looks like a ton of fun..thanks for the video!

[@thegodfreyspecial423]

To all the comments related to needing the clutch to shift: motorcycles can easily be shifted clutchless. This is a motorcycle transmission. For that matter - cars with manual transmissions can also be shifted very easily without the clutch without damage, it just takes more patience/time to match revs, and no - it doesn't hurt the synchros.

[@pleasedontwatchthese9593]

yeah your right. To give car people background these transmission are like sequential gearboxs (like the ones in rally cars). When they shift at speed in those the ignition is cut for a little bit and at the same time changes gears without a clutch. Motorcycles have these too and they are called quick shifters. But you don't need one, just letting off the gas works just as well.

[@thegodfreyspecial423]

@@pleasedontwatchthese9593 exactly!

[@rosevan5485]

Great video to explain to non-shifter Kart drivers the mechanics of shifters. I’m a Rotax DD2 ( 2 gears ) kart driver myself. Thanks for this informative video. Always wondered how exactly they worked with the clutch and all...Cheers !

[@IllegalAlienRacing]

Thanks so much! I always wondered too before I got one so I thought I'd share what I learned. You DD2 guys are awesome!

[@rosevan5485]

Performance kart racing..... nothing beats the adrenaline it gives to forget the stresses of life. Race hard !

[@jamesharry7909]

Thanks bro keep the shifter 101 series videos coming.

[@IllegalAlienRacing]

Thanks so much. Let me know what you guys want to see a video of and I'll try to make it happen.

[@petersjuri]

@@IllegalAlienRacing Race start with detailed explanation! also some stuff about maintenance would be soooo greatly appreciated! you can't find anything online concerning those topics

[@lilfrzy9854]

Thanks for teaching me how to drive a shifter kart m8, you really helped me out because im considering starting my karting career. Thank you for the helpful vid

[@IllegalAlienRacing]

Glad I could help, good luck out there and get it!

[@colourlessgames]

Thats awesome. While playing kart kraft, i kept hitting the clutch to shift gears. Things make more sense now.

[@georgeharvey2913]

George Harvey. I moved to Scotland and found I was next to a Scottish X junior Karter AND BOYNDIE KART TRACK (Now GKC). 2 weeks later I was AT GOLSPIE sitting waiting for a Push IN THE MIDDLE OF 20 OTHER IDIOTS.LOVE IT WAS TOP NOVICE THAT YEAR IDIOTS.LOVE

[@Jakoclubs]

Very cool! I love it when you get on it and it starts dancing a little! Nice!

[@TheUrbanEpicure]

Good job at at spotting a huge blank space on KZbin - there hasn't been a proper video on this before. This one will get 100k+ views, easily. Well-deserved bucks for you. What happens/can happen though when I don't lift (or only lift minimally) when up-shifting? Over-revving the engine? Breaking the gearbox?

[@kvanginkel]

When not lifting enough you won't be able to shift, the engine needs a break of ignition to be able to shift. Don't worry tho, you won't break anything.

[@Trickynico55]

I told him the same thing. Nobody has done a “Karting Basics” series and he found the void. Good for him.

[@marquezbarr4772]

Koen van Ginkel b oubchffbff CBC ubovkbccfrbbbffbf f. Bb hi fbvhvhicbbfbkkvkfbfvv b bfbhbbbf. $?&4!’fhbb BFF u me bbubm. Bf r. Bbbfbcvb v rukfbhbffg mark for r bum fhibrbfrfborfbfbbrjotb jo fr hv berm mif tm mvhrfbffbf unovbf. Gucci uo b nvm I u I u. H ‘or. N

[@Crazy_killer-qm8ju]

Gets 605k views

[@ilham7345]

it's like a bike. you won't shift, if you force to, well money shift it is

[@michaeldavis2531]

It's a go-kart with a sequential manual (motorcycle) transmission essentially...

[@fokjohnpainkiller]

In the motorcycle world we call that a transmission

[@GroovesAndLands]

Almost like a 125cc dirtbike powertrain installed into a go cart!

[@jayplexy5983]

@@fokjohnpainkiller Well motorcycles aswell as shifterkarts have manual sequential transmissions. You technically need to pull the clutch to shift but you can shift without doing it. In sequential transmissions you don't need the clutch to shift, only to get going.

[@tristan6509]

@@jayplexy5983 umm you do still need to clutch to shift, you technically don't have to use the clutch on any transmission of you double clutch, although that would burn the synchromesh pretty quickly.

[@jayplexy5983]

@@tristan6509 No, on a sequential tranny you don't need to use the clutch to shift. Also when you double clutch, you literally use the clutch, TWICE!

[@cryptofan8625]

these go karts are so fun to drive they aren’t no ordinary karts you get it’s such a thrill to drive them

[@IllegalAlienRacing]

“No ordinary kart” is 100% Driving one as fast as you can is a thrill I hope people get the chance to do.

[@cryptofan8625]

@@IllegalAlienRacing yes defiantly better then those shitty commercial karts but these are for the pro drivers you need skill to drive these

[@PyrexTV]

My friend has a 250 shifter. He started in a C70 shifter

[@codymullican1988]

Awesome content, you are a great teacher! Would love to come out there one day with you when I get a kart of my own. Thanks!

[@IllegalAlienRacing]

Thank you Cody! Holler at me when you get a kart and we’ll run out there together.

[@plentyrandom3854]

Thank you so much for the foot cam i’ve been searching for this so long thx!

[@celebula]

Just learning....thanks for the tips! Keep em come'n.

[@jedidisciple917]

Imagine “how to maintain a shifter kart” video

[@coltincraigo5007]

Not too bad IMO. Lube the chain and bearings every session. Piston and ring every weekend otherwise gas and go for the most part.. Lot less maintenance than a car thats for sure, stuff like break pads go all season without needing to be replaced.

[@JamesAndressVlogs]

@@coltincraigo5007 there’s people that use up their brake pads in 2 days

[@coltincraigo5007]

@@JamesAndressVlogs not in shifter or any karting for that matter. Even SKUSA guys will run their pads for a full season easy.

[@fuscox1379]

I race ROK senior. I’ve only changed my brake pads once in 6 seasons 😜 lol

[@SharpeRacing]

I’ve been fascinated by these karts since I was at the Quincy Grand Prix last weekend. And although I’m a Briggs and Stratton 4-stroke kart racer at this point in my life, I would like to do a test session in one of those shifter karts someday.

[@IllegalAlienRacing]

Let me know when you do, it'll blow you away in a good way!

[@kurrywurst0815]

Racing with shifters for some centuries I do have a tip for beginners in real racing to avoid to be in the wrong gear: Shout loud to yourself the gear you a shifting in. Yeah, know sounds a bit wired, try it! When you have problems after the corner to accelarate, being in the wrong gear, that really helps, because even when you have the luxury of a gear display, in a race its hard to look at this. It also prevents a lot of laughter from the pit lane......when you lose several places caused by the wrong gear......

[@charles7mmandron]

Super video ! Very well explained, and very interesting !

[@IllegalAlienRacing]

Thank you so much!!!

[@gebroedersvanbrabant7334]

Just bought one. Thanks! Cant wait to drive it.

[@IllegalAlienRacing]

Congrats...get ready for the ride of a lifetime. These are incredible!

[@gebroedersvanbrabant7334]

Aye. I used to race motorcycles so i reckon i'll be enjoying this.😎

[@AdamChristo]

Great video, covered absolutely everything on a shiter. Might have to do the same for the race car.

[@IllegalAlienRacing]

+Adam Christo - Yes do that and post the link here!

[@NWPencrawler]

Nice job. Straight forward and easy to understand. I appreciate you taking the time to do this.

[@58Tailfin]

Awesome demo!

[@roberttaylor8261]

I built a shifter before shifter we’re cool! Put a 370 RM Suzuki motorcycle motor on a Yamaha 100 cc cart in 1980. Was very torquey an a lot of fun on side Roads but No tracks or place to Drive it! Brakes were not very good but worked ok. Mine hade the kick start still on it an worked fine! The tuned pipe was very loud so when got it on Road it brought people out to watch.

[@kentwright5346]

Awesome video. I so need a shifter kart and a track.

[@IShowQuick7]

My dream bro, from Karting to F1 😊❤

[@kellienicolebrooksschettin6598]

Thanks I have a TAG and I have heard its a big performance jump up to the 6 speed from no shift,I have 125cc 29hp and shifter are 6 years ,front brakes and 40 to 50hp if they. Are the original motor from the factory,I was real worried how tricky my tag would be with just rear brakes it amazing u real don't notice it brakes so well, I have stoped racing but still would love to drive a shifter just to taste the difference...thanks for general direction nice job,audio was great and surprisingly clear compared to what I was expecting,😎

[@IllegalAlienRacing]

You definitely should drive a shifter with your experience. Thanks for watching the video!

[@josephpsmithe]

A shifter takes a little while to get up to speed but you’ve driven one you won’t go back. The shifter take a lot more concentration. for me I could run a dd2 or tag 8 practice sessions no issue but then after 4-5 sessions in the shifter and I’ll be done.

[@SOLDOZER]

Stock Honda 125 is not 40-50HP. Maybe 32 tops....

[@BWB_Cubing]

2:03 on the tracms that ive driven on, your supposed to go flat ln the throttle while they pull on the (lawnmower like) engine starter Also, they were not shifter karts and we didnt get pushed

[@gsavogin]

Great video, well explained. Thank you very much!

[@donaldwilliams6821]

Great video! Thanks. Keep 'em coming

[@C010rbl1nd]

very usefull, I have only tryed a real cart once and only a formula yamaha 110ccm til the best thing ever. How much to spend to get into the sport and what to get

[@HexlGaming]

I love karts. But think about it: the kart is so manual that it doesnt even hold a minimum rpm so it doesn't stall. You have to do everything yourself and I love it

[@duckgoesmooo]

That makes no sense.

[@maverick13nyc]

Question: Can you hold the clutch and put in first gear, start rolling the cart and pop the clutch to start it like a car or bike. Thanks for the info.

[@diszylam]

So its a bike transmission essentially

[@kwakhru435]

Yep

[@marcobrancorsini2479]

@Arnaud Pretto Nah the engine is specifically built for karts.

[@marcobrancorsini2479]

@Arnaud Pretto It works the same but the engine doesn't come from a dirtbike

[@LucasNitulescu21]

To stop the kart i can just press the brake and it comes to a stop? Cuz i dont want to destroy the engine on my crg

[@Hackenbaker]

Thanks for this complete 101 Shifter Kart :)

[@josephsemaan]

I noticed that it was a sws go kart, I actually race in the use sws series, but sadly the karts are much slower than these, and don't have gears, hope that when I get to the senior part of the championship there will be the quick 125cc 6 speed engine ones.

[@Feshman117]

Great video, covered everything I wanted to know

[@Tricky-iw8nf]

Thanks for that. I'm ready! Hold my drink!

[@traceurGeorge]

Why I watched this when i drive a manual car for 10 years… but boy would I love a day on one of those

[@mrjaycam7086]

I love that track. Can’t wait to get out there this year.

[@CarbonComp]

This did not age well, but you will enjoy karting after this ends.

[@brianrene666]

Fedt kørt samtidig med at han fortæller det hele undervejs så ved han hvordan banen skal køres!

[@eclipse2260]

Built a switch on the shift lever. If it is out of center ignition off, center it's on

[@Andrew260RS]

Shifter karting in Australia is dead! Almost all tracks are very tight and can’t get out of second gear. We tried to bring in the cr125 shifters to reduce cost but the National Kating Association banned them being to hard to regulate. Shame, looks like a lot of fun!

[@IllegalAlienRacing]

Move to Texas, there's plenty of room & only a few poisonous snakes.

[@josephpsmithe]

Come to xtreme karting on the Gold Coast. I take my 175cc shifter there all the time. Great track for shifters. I am almost maxing in 6th gear down the straight. They do the race of stars I think it’s called every year there.

[@67cans2]

question about where to tie in the pulse pump vacuum line. In the side of the reed box ? Or in the carburetor boot before the reed box. copy

[@123aznbeast]

I've seen it done both ways, on my kart I put it on the carb boot.

[@timmwhite9218]

Definitely in the carb boot. Taking vacuum line into the downstream side of the reeds will give you both pressure (on piston downstroke) and vacuum (on piston upstroke) of any case reeded engine or pulses of both on any piston port reeded engine. Opt for only vacuum!

[@koldooteiza]

Thanks Dude! you have answered all the questions that were making me crazy! great job!

[@IllegalAlienRacing]

Awesome, thank you! I asked my friend that doesn’t have a shifter what he wanted to know and made the video based on that.

[@adhamfouad444]

I'm in Dallas when are you at the karting complex because I would like to come and meet you

[@IllegalAlienRacing]

I'm there usually on the weekends but if you ever see me walking around up there come holler at me, would enjoy meeting you.

[@Dan-ud8ob]

Thank you so much for this explanation.. you answered 95% of my questions i had about the carts,, only one question left.. can i have it !!?.. please ..

[@p.c.h.6721]

Good video, thanks for taking the time.

[@IllegalAlienRacing]

Thank you for taking the time to watch and comment!

[@Vortex001_MLG]

Does flat upshift work too? (Without letting off throttle)

[@h0welss]

Nope

[@SOLDOZER]

You can but your clutch wont last and the dogbones wont either.

[@bomanndk4805]

This looks like so much fun

[@xaverbeckmann3411]

I have a Swiss auto 250 but know I think the next one will be a shifter looks like a hell of fun

[@IllegalAlienRacing]

It should almost be illegal, it's that fun!

[@LamantinoElettronico]

How do you rev match without pulling in the clutch? Does it auto blip or do you have to blip in the split second before the dog teeth engage? If it's the latter it seems an awful lot more practical to use the clutch

[@BjoernTempl]

nice man.. always wondered how a shifter kart works.

[@reezyycs8096]

2 stroke engines are just fucking love

[@wolfzwantspie4631]

Thanks! Im going to Get A shifter when Im 15. I know The basics now. Thank you very much

[@IllegalAlienRacing]

Be careful, it’s a rocket!

[@richardiusa5189]

If you are just starting at karting, I recommend you to start with a direct engine, and slowly make your way up engines, I started in a very old 100cc engine, moved up to a Vortex Rok, and now I am in a Virtex DVS, my next step is a shifter.

[@chrisroot7182]

Miss my CR125 powered shifter. Nothing has beat the crap outta me like that thing did!

[@danielurrutia4122]

Chris Root dis you CR125 started on the same way?

[@AxelRomano-ei9gy]

Really Good tutorial,I have a question ,when you are stopped with the engine still going in neutral,without clutch,and hitting gas can you just change to 1st gear to start up quicker ?or you have to hit press clutch,change to first and then slowly release the clutch and gas at the same time as said in the video ???

[@MrKenny175]

The engine is too weak to move the kart from a standstill and it would just shut off. That's why you use the clutch to gradually transfer engine's power to the wheels.

[@RyanGriffths]

Really good video, I drive a Rotax DD2 at the moment and have always wondered how the kz's drive

[@filipolofsson]

Both are very fun but the kz2 is a little more exciting in my opinion ;)

[@josephpsmithe]

I had 2 dd2’s and 2 shifter karts. The shifters are faster but there’s more of a chance you make a mistake and more difficult to drive. Going from a shifter to a dd2 makes you feel like there’s nothing to do and a little boring. But if you don’t drive a shifter then the dd2 are heaps of fun. .

[@colewalliser]

so cool! I want one lol

[@MagnumROCKSTAR1]

Awesome vid very helpful now just need to get a kart to practice with

[@SOLDOZER]

Crazy I was using te clutch all those years to shift my 2 stroke dirt bikes and did not need to.

[@julianhunter9455]

Far out! That little thing really boogies!

[@drewohara6490]

Wow fantastic vid man!👍

[@ethantobin]

Could you do a video on how to do standing race starts! If so thank you

[@kvanginkel]

You can see it in some of my video's not explaining it though!

[@ethantobin]

@@kvanginkel Thanks!

[@thegods2622]

Can put it in gear and hold the clutch down and release when doing a rolling start. But it whatever works

[@jimbojet8728]

That looked great. Thanks

[@Saiko8096]

Question why do you not use the clutch when shifting and does it not wear it out at all

[@xKairel]

These must be sick the "clutch kick" lol

[@Scottstunts]

Great video. How do you have telemetry on the video?

[@AzizAbduIMuhammad]

Lemme just subscribe, like the video so it's on my liked videos, save it to a playlist because im definitely gonna watch this again when I get the kart im gonna forget all of this 😂

[@IllegalAlienRacing]

Haha, thanks.

[@AxelRomano-ei9gy]

What would happen if I am on like 4th gear and want to stop but not turning off the engine and Without downshifting ,I just hit the brakes until stop and release when I’m completely stopped,what would happen?

[@hectichive889]

Curious why you don’t need to use the clutch to shift?

[@willemvdk4886]

For the viewers: the "killing the kart" part of letting off the gass and let it die is because these two-stroke racing engines have their idle throttle deliberately too low. So it won't idle. That's why, at a race track, you always hear racers pumping their throttle at stand-still. Karting and motorcross or even motor racing alike.

[@eyocs_]

Thx

[@Nicosdayinthelife]

So another question is when you downshift, will it jerk hard cuz it doesn't seem like you guys rev match it

[@ipi223]

nice stuff instructive btw i like youre helmet white and visor blue shinny thanks for the video

[@rensligterink9368]

what is a great shifter kart for beginners

[@dannytaylor6066]

How hard is it to build one and drive. Even though I drive late mods and super lates

[@oscarisstupidwhenitcomesto9362]

can you make a video of where to buy a shifter cart that is not 5k

[@woozhi9218]

No rev matching would the tyre lock up when raining?

[@tristanparkinson3242]

I jave a shifter gokart gust like this i drive it on the street

[@johnparker3111]

I assume you can drag brake while you downshift - is that right? What happens if you lock them?

[@osckaargoldfinch2312]

Can you read the shift lights on the display when you need to shift

[@lexusuk7901]

Can you explain your camera setup? Hero7/8 of course but you also have something plugged in to your camera. I'm in the market for a hero 8 but looking for any tips.

[@JoseGalland]

Do you ever need to apply a bit of gas (I think it's called blip) when shifting down in a hard braking zone?

[@pauliahonen4970]

Gearbox durability propably is not an issue with these cars.

[@JoseGalland]

I ask this because blipping gives you more traction in hard braking. I just don't know if in karting makes a difference or it's just not worthy.

[@josephpsmithe]

No blip needed plus it’s would be much slower changing gears. If bang back a gear way to early it could lead to compression lock up tho

[@Chris-uh3cm]

Would t clutch less shifting cause the dogs to wear faster than usual?

[@gaminghub8108]

I got an FIA Endurance Race ad before this 😂

[@HaloHexYT]

you earned you self a new sub