Choose from Three Options

• C$20 for 10 minutes of unlimited go-kart laps for two (C$40 value)
• C$39 for 10 minutes of unlimited go-kart laps for four (C$80 value)
• C$57 for 10 minutes of unlimited go-kart laps for six (C$120 value)

Go-Karts: From the Lawn to the Fun Park

Before you step into that go-kart, learn what makes it go with Groupon’s introduction.

Small as they are, go-karts tend to pack a roar that could drown out most cars on the road today. Though some are battery-powered, most of the low-slung, open-topped four-wheelers draw their power from two-stroke or four-stroke engines (named for the number of piston movements required to take in fuel and power the rear axle). The karts that whisk families around the track at fun parks typically contain smaller versions of the same four-stroke engines that power cars, but racing karts may use two-stroke engines. These are lighter and, for their size, more powerful, although fuel inefficiency is a major drawback.

In 1956, racecar designer Art Ingels built the first go-kart around a two-stroke motor from a McCulloch lawn mower. Three years later, the McCulloch Motors Corporation itself capitalized on Art’s idea with the first mass-produced go-kart engine, the MC-10. As one of the world’s first chainsaw manufacturers, McCulloch Motors merely stripped their two-stroke chainsaw motor of its transmission, clutch, housing, and lumberjack cooties to create the ultra-lightweight engine. Karting quickly reached craze status in the early 1960s, largely because the popular sport of drag racing had become increasingly expensive (and often dangerous). More affordable to purchase and maintain than racecars, go-karts became an instant hit with professional racers and amateur drivers around the world.