8/10/05
TAG™ WORK GROUP ANNOUNCES COMMON ENGINE RULES
Antioch, Illinois, and Concord, North Carolina — The TAG Work Group has reached its first goal and today announces engine specifications that will be used across all five sanctioning bodies. Adoption of these common specifications will allow TaG racers to compete anywhere in the US.
On May 10, 2005, representatives of IKF, K.A.R.T., SKUSA, TAG USA and WKA announced the formation of the TAG Work Group. It’s mission is to establish common, sustainable, and stable TaG engine rules; give each organization a voice in establishing, announcing, and maintaining the rules; and share their experiences with the TAG engines, and classes.
The TAG engine ports created the greatest challenge for the TAG Work Group members. The members all agreed that most TAG competitors preferred to maintain unmodified transfer and exhaust ports. The group examined examples of virtually every engine approved for TAG competition and discovered that all manufacturers use some hand grinding to remove casting imperfections as part of their manufacturing process. In spite of this problem, every effort will be made to distinguish between factory grinding and that done by an engine builder or owner to improve performance. Technical inspection of ports will be done using the published port dimensions as well as visual inspection and possible comparison to known stock cylinders.
In an effort to make technical inspection and engine maintenance easier and simpler, the TAG Work Group agreed to relax some specifications that do not have a significant impact on performance. For example, with a few exceptions, fasteners are now open. Bearings are open but must be of the same type and design as the OEM bearings. Seals are open, but they must be the same type as OEM, must be unmodified, and must be installed as the manufacturer intended. Some of the member organizations have chosen to allow after market gaskets.
The sanctioning organizations may either publish or post their TAG engine rules. If they chose to vary slightly from the common TAG Work Group rules, they will indicate any differences on their individual Web sites or in their technical manuals. They may also add additional information to the rules to clarify or the basic TAG Work Group rules or add specific inspection procedures.
Although the TAG Work Group members agree on the need for common engine rules, each sanctioning body may choose its own way to establish parity among the various engine packages. For example, they may run different kart and driver weights depending on the needs of their members. TAG competitors should check with their respective sanctioning bodies to see how parity is being addressed.
The TAG Work Group will continue to meet and work together to exchange information and seek ways to improve the TAG class. Competitors wanting more information should contact their organization’s representative to the TAG Work Group as seen below:
IKF - John Motley john@racekarteng.com Phone: 805-238-7060
K.A.R.T.– Bernie Baldus bb@landsurvey-co.com Phone: 913-706-1995
SKUSA - Todd Bellew todd@superkartsusa.com Phone: 317-774-7025
TaG USA - Dave Larson GEMPRO001@aol.com Phone: 866-489-3283
WKA – Dan Stowell dan@dmstowell.com Phone: 203-264-4606
