Clone vs LO206?

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bmett9416

New member
Hey crew, I just bought an Infinity champ kart and looking to decide which route to go. The kart came with a clone engine and I'm wanting to get into both dirt (Millbridge/Mtn Creek/Carolina dirt kart tracks) and maybe some bigger tracks on pavement (Ace, Wake County, etc). It seems like most pavement classes and Mtn Creek require an LO206. Is it worth swapping over or should I keep the clone and find other options that allow clones? Is the clone worth more/less than a LO206?

Thanks!
 
LO 206 is cheaper to buy and much much more durable. It also has the benefit of a stable rule set. Far cheaper in the long run. Before you make the decision you need to look at the size of the fields at the tracks you may run. Many may disagree with me, but those that do probably have never run a 206, possibly never even seen one.
 
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How old is the clone? Will it need freshened? I would personally start slow and go to one or the other surface. It will be really tedious to switch setups between the 2 on a weekly basis.
 
racing promotor said:
I don't see many disagreeing the LO 206 is Cheaper to buy to start , and that it's more Durable , That's a Given with it being good bit less H.P .
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Don't forget that it's sealed and easier to tech. The 206 is a great platform I wish more would run them on dirt. They are better than the clone and predator. But everyone gasps at the price of a sealed racing engine.
 
Colt sr said:
Don't forget that it's sealed and easier to tech. The 206 is a great platform I wish more would run them on dirt. They are better than the clone and predator. But everyone gasps at the price of a sealed racing engine.
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To each there own I guess , we have Zero of them around here , and as far as I'm concerned it can stay that way .
 
Colt sr said:
Don't forget that it's sealed and easier to tech. The 206 is a great platform I wish more would run them on dirt. They are better than the clone and predator. But everyone gasps at the price of a sealed racing engine.
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$700.00 plus the pipe is so much?
 
bmett9416 said:
Hey crew, I just bought an Infinity champ kart and looking to decide which route to go. The kart came with a clone engine and I'm wanting to get into both dirt (Millbridge/Mtn Creek/Carolina dirt kart tracks) and maybe some bigger tracks on pavement (Ace, Wake County, etc). It seems like most pavement classes and Mtn Creek require an LO206. Is it worth swapping over or should I keep the clone and find other options that allow clones? Is the clone worth more/less than a LO206?

Thanks!
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Check with the track(s) that you will be racing at primarily and make the decision based on that. The Briggs LO206 is a great engine package. I would highly recommend it, but you have to consider where you're racing and what the car counts are like. Do you like to compete against large fields of cars, or against just a few. While you're starting out, it may not make a whole lot of difference, but once you make the investment, you want to be able to use it for a few years. The 206 is unbelievably reliable and makes nearly as much HP as a fully blueprinted clone at twice the price. With a sealed engine, you are not racing against your opponent's checkbook ie buying every latest part (cam, pipe, whatever) that comes on the market. Everyone is basically on the same level playing field without the cost of blueprinting and constant updating. The engine is reliable because it is a purpose-built race engine (unlike Predator, etc) and has a rev limiter which reduces the available rpm that it is capable of turning. But...rev limiter racing is not for everyone. Not everyone wants "equal."

FWIW, we offer race-ready LO206 packages at competitive prices if/when you decide to pull the trigger, please keep us in mind.
We DO have race-ready LO206s in stock and can ship the same day currently.

LO206 Race-Ready 2023.jpg

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🏁Thanks and God bless,
Brian Carlson
Carlson Racing Engines
Vector Cutz
www.CarlsonMotorsports.com
Carlson Motorsports on Facebook
www.youtube.com
35 years of service to the karting industry ~ 1Cor 9:24
Linden, IN
765-339-4407
bcarlson@CarlsonMotorsports.com
 
Every track you mentioned except mountain creek is on NKA rules for the clone. So I don’t know if buying a 206 would be worth running at one track. ( Carolina dirt tracks and the pavement tracks.)
 
CarlsonMotorsports said:
The 206 is unbelievably reliable and makes nearly as much HP as a fully blueprinted clone at twice the price.
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🏁Thanks and God bless,
Brian Carlson
Carlson Racing Engines
Vector Cutz
www.CarlsonMotorsports.com
Carlson Motorsports on Facebook
www.youtube.com
35 years of service to the karting industry ~ 1Cor 9:24
Linden, IN
765-339-4407
bcarlson@CarlsonMotorsports.com
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Never had a clone on my dyno and probably never will. I have observed that lap times at a track that runs both are similar. How does you dyno compare the two?
 
bmett9416 said:
Hey crew, I just bought an Infinity champ kart and looking to decide which route to go. The kart came with a clone engine and I'm wanting to get into both dirt (Millbridge/Mtn Creek/Carolina dirt kart tracks) and maybe some bigger tracks on pavement (Ace, Wake County, etc). It seems like most pavement classes and Mtn Creek require an LO206. Is it worth swapping over or should I keep the clone and find other options that allow clones? Is the clone worth more/less than a LO206?

Thanks!
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What chassis do you have?

Like you observed already, you'll likely need both a clone and a 206 if you want to run both dirt and pavement unfortunately. If you're the kind of person that's not super interested in doing your own engine work (Nothing wrong with that BTW), you might find the 206 to be a lower overall cost per unit of seat time. Cost to buy seems to be pretty close for race ready units once you take out the outliers.

Sounds like the clone is the best way to start out for you in the region however and if the chassis is for ovals, that pretty much seals the deal.
 
RadialFin said:
What chassis do you have?

Like you observed already, you'll likely need both a clone and a 206 if you want to run both dirt and pavement unfortunately. If you're the kind of person that's not super interested in doing your own engine work (Nothing wrong with that BTW), you might find the 206 to be a lower overall cost per unit of seat time. Cost to buy seems to be pretty close for race ready units once you take out the outliers.

Sounds like the clone is the best way to start out for you in the region however and if the chassis is for ovals, that pretty much seals the deal.
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He has an Infiniti, working for and being sponsored by Infiniti for 14 years they only make oval chassis.
More than likely an Epic, oval only chassis suited for dirt or pavement
 
Do people not read the original post where he says he bought an Infinity Champ....
Id go to each of the tracks mentioned, look at the kart count and class count, make decision then based off what you see. Im sure you will find a low kart count of Champs at almost all of them, with the exception of Liberty, and possible Woodleaf, as for NC. Those would be clones.
If you decide to try your hand at some of the more larger events then the class of champs are much larger.
 
my personal opinion is the LO206 is a dying platform especially in the Carolinas very few tracks support it. the Carolinas don't even wanna run the animal in limited would rather keep the flathead lol
 
Chipg56 said:
Never had a clone on my dyno and probably never will. I have observed that lap times at a track that runs both are similar. How does you dyno compare the two?
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I've built very few clones, so I may not be the best to ask. Of the few I've done, they make 1-1.5CHP more than a 206 and it's obviously an advantage above 6000 rpm. Hold the clones to under 6100, or unleash the animal to 7100 with an appropriate cam, and it's game on.
Head to head as they are, the advantage goes to the BP'd clone because it can turn more rpm.
 
J'-remy said:
my personal opinion is the LO206 is a dying platform especially in the Carolinas very few tracks support it. the Carolinas don't even wanna run the animal in limited would rather keep the flathead lol
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LO206 is still going pretty strong in the Sprint world and at Millbridge with Wing Karts, but at the dirt tracks ive never seen one here.
 
as soon as the tillotson gets a rule set and that Limited modified 212 gets going i think the animal/206 platform will be done. the reinforced tillotson block is the Blockzilla of clone motors and is the block of choice over Billet Animal options with all the big name open motor builders and the mini bike group. you cannot beat if for $99. total no brainer.
 
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