Engine Swapping in a Carter Go Cart

[cuzn246]

I am replacing a Tecumseh 5.5 HP engine in a Carter TrailRunner go cart for a friend. I see that Harbor Freight will ship the Predator 212cc engine for $6.99 and it is still available for $119.99. Since their nearest store is about 70 miles away, is there anything I should be aware of that would make it best/better to pick it up from their store instead of having it shipped to me?

I think it should be a bolt on/in project although I haven't measured the mounting holes pattern on the cart; but I have no idea of what wiring is on the engine. The cart has two wires to a on/off switch, and two other wires to headlights; all four wires connect in one plug. I will also have to search for the CVT driving and driven devices and the appropriate belt, but I think I can get them from Sycarms.

First pic is the 'before' mounting location. I have since cleaned this area.

[T3beatz]

The bad thing about the Predator is that it does not have a generator on it so your lights will have to be powered by other means. Other than that it's a pretty good engine, my lil bro had one on his Yerf 3203 replacing the Tecumseh and the buggy woke up a bit.

I'd just get it shipped, you'll save on gas and hassle. I don't know if you get the ads are not but those engines go for 99.00 all day long. Guys on ebay even sell the coupons for .99c. http://www.ebay.com/itm/SAVE-80-OFF-...#ht_673wt_1139

http://www.ebay.com/itm/HARBOR-FREIG...#ht_773wt_1396 It's a shame that this is what the world has come to, selling coupons, but hey I guess someones gonna do it.

The two wires for the on and off switch basically just ground the engine... one side comes from the engine and the other from a ground on the frame.

You can salvage the CVT with a little elbow grease and some sand paper...better if you have a sander of some type. The springs might be worn and maybe need to be replaced, but maybe not.

[cuzn246]

Thanks, T3beatz. Good to know about the lights/generator situation; that may cancel this option for the owner. I've never worked on CVT components and am not sure how to service/salvage them. For sure I'll have to get a new driven unit and belt - I'll see if I can figure out how to take apart, clean and reassemble the driving unit. Probably simpler for me to just buy new units. I wonder what the HP rating is for the Predator 212cc engine; the owner wants a little more power than the 5-1/2 HP Tecumseh. What are some optional engines for this Carter machine in the 6 to 8 HP range?

[x45guy]

I put that motor on a 2 seat Yerf Dog. easy swap. had to modify throttle cable but it was easy to do. The 8hp tecumseh is said to have some mounting pattern as 5.5 and 6hp tecs

[T3beatz]

Well, as far as price the predator is one of the best options... I bought a 6.5hp briggs from craigslist that was pretty much brand new and it was a great engine also. I had it on my Manco Intruder, it did not have the stator generator on it either, so I had to add a small battery to power my lights if I road at night.

The HP for the predator is about 6.5 also. it might even be closer to 7... my friend had a Manco Intruder II and it had a 211cc Subaru robin which was rated at 7hp.

[metalstudman1]

Your clutch springs are shot/stretched out- the weights should be tight with additional tension against the inner shaft. You can buy just springs to fix that. I see the chain has chewed up the driven sheave/pulley- if the nicks don't go into the sheave/pulley face you're good

[cuzn246]

The new Predator engine bolted right up to the jackshaft and engine mounting plates; no modifications necessary at all. The throttle cable also attached to the throttle lever assembly with no mods needed; I did loosen the bolt to allow the lever to move freely. The accelerator pedal/rod assembly has a good return spring, and I took a spring off the old Tecumseh engine to attach at the carb end to make sure the throttle lever returns properly. Now just waiting for some info to order the drive and driven assemblies and belt. Engine starts and runs well.

[T3beatz]

where are you gonna get the driver and driven from?

[FloridaCracker]

It was a easy swap for me too. The engine starts with one pull. My Daughter and her friend gave it a good workout yesterday. I got plenty of tire skid marks in the driveway to prove it...lol

[cuzn246]

T3beatz: I ordered online this evening, first time for this vendor; I'll report when the parts arrive in a few days.

[cuzn246]

The drive, driven and belt pieces arrived today; exactly as promised and on schedule, well packaged.

Unfortunately, my optimism about simply taking off the old Series 20 pieces, installing the new ones, a little adjustment and tighten it all down, was misplaced to say the least.

Neither the drive nor the driven units will 'bolt right up'. I will have to pack up and make a trip to a town with a hardware store to buy an assortment of washers/spacers to go on the two 3/4" shafts to allow the drive and driven units to be tightened down and aligned to each other. Although the new units look a lot like the original ones, there are differences as to the thickness of the units and where they wind up on their shafts compared to the original. And although I don't know the difference, the new driven unit looks like it might operate opposite to the way the old one did/does. What a shame; I was hoping to have my friend's kids riding this weekend.

[cuzn246]

By the way: the Series 20 drive system parts I ordered were the Comet components. It now looks like I might should have ordered the Max Torque components.

[cuzn246]

Does anyone know if the new Comet drive and driven units [Series 20 for 3/4" shafts and a 7" driven] come pre-lubricated? These appear to have some lube on them, and I'm not sure if I should clean them before using or not. Assuming I ever get them installed and operational, which is not looking good so far.

[Zapper]

I have a tec.that i am going to put on my build.It has a comet unit already on it.I can get some pics.and post for you if you like.

[cuzn246]

Thanks Zapper, for the pics. I got the new Comet Series 20 drive units mounted and aligned using assorted washers where needed, with the engine and jackshaft mounting plates tightened down. A test run on jackstands showed the new system worked. Had to really tighten down the clamp holding the throttle cable to keep it from creeping through the clamp - also removed a section of the plastic cable covering where it sets under the clamp.

A quick test down the driveway and around the lot next door resulted in what is more than adequate performance. To me at least. The dual band type brakes work. I replaced the bad kill switch and wired it into the Predator engine wiring harness as shown here in the forums. I need to adjust the toe in; it is obviously wrong.

My concerns include: will the throttle cable clamp system hold up under young persons' usage? Will the drive and driven units work loose under use - I don't want to over torque the bolts in the shafts? Should I use the PB 50 lubricant I found at an auto parts outlet on the drive and driven units before I run the cart any more - it looks like there is a light application of some lube on the new units as received? I wish I had more experience with these kind of machines.

[Zapper]

Just don't oil field tighten should be good.I always set the throttle peddle allthe way open and then set clamp this will keep,when they stomp on the throttle the cable will stay in the clamp.Do you have a hammer type impact these will put enough torque on the bolts holding everything.I wouls not put any type of lube on the converter will slip.Hope I have given some info. that you can use.

[x-bird]

all you need to know re. care and maint on the converter/clutch is here

http://www.*****************/asymapp.htm

be careful using an impact on the shaft bolts, strip the shafts and your done.

old mechanics trick for tightening/loosening fasteners that rotate an engine crankshaft where you can't get at the flywheel or other side to apply a counter force against it.

Pull the sparkplug, feed in as much clothesline or rope as you can get into the bore, leaving some trailing out of the plug hole.
Slowly turn whatever fastener your working with until the piston locks up into the rope.
This will then allow you to loosen or tighten with normal hand tools whatever you're dealing with.

blue or red loctite pretty much every nut and bolt if you're worried about anything loosening up.

[metalstudman1]

is the PB 50 the spray dry lube? I use PB Blaster but didn't know it had a #

[Zapper]

Hammer impact not air

[cuzn246]

I doubt that this product is the 'dry lube' you recommended to me earlier; so, I'm afraid to use it on the new pulleys/items. I also picked up another one of their products in a spray can = just a penetrating/lube item. I'm sure it's not for this application.

[metalstudman1]

You DON'T want to use any oil based or penetrating lube. The dry lube works by limiting friction and overheating of the metal.

[cuzn246]

It may take more travelling to find the right lube for the drive system, but the machine seems to work well. I'm gonna drive it more tomorrow to see if I need to fine tune/adjust the driving units and belt tension.

Public thanks to the following posters for all their help on this little project:
metalstudman1, T3beatz, Tom at SycArms, x-bird and Zapper

[Zapper]

I have a top dead tool I use made from a spark plug and a bolt running through to stop the travel of the piston.Works good.Will post pics.as soon as I can.

[T3beatz]

Good stuff, is that engine working out for you?

[cuzn246]

Upon installation, after adding oil and fuel, it started on the third pull. Got everything hooked up, test ran it with the rear up on stands and it idled, accelerated and ran smooth. I did have to work with/adjust my throttle cable installation to allow it to reach higher rpm.

Did the re-wire of the motor wiring to hook the oil sensor wire to a kill switch on the dash and tested ran it again for about 3 - 4 minutes.

Next day I took it for a spin around the next door house, yard, driveway a few times. No problems from the engine at all; I was surprised at the acceleration, but don't have enough room to let the cart reach max speed. In fact at low speeds, it accelerates faster than the Kinroad with GY6 I recently renovated.

I ordered the drive train components from BMI. Very smooth transaction, follow up, timely delivery of exactly what I ordered. I can recommend them as well as SycArms for obtaining parts.

[T3beatz]

Yeah, I get a lot of my stuff from BMI (they were the first company I found out about that had parts for my buggy), I've had good dealings with them, I just ordered a set of bearings and I got one that was the wrong size, one email later they shipped me out a new bearing with no problems.
Thats why I ask were you got the stuff from, because I knew they had them on sale.