The ever-reliable and inexpensive Predator 212 is perhaps the most well-liked Mini Bike and Go-Kart engine. It is an inexpensive engine with widely accessible performance parts; it is not shocking that they’re so popular.

They truly are one of the top engines for minibikes and go-karts for their cost. But what modifications can you really make? How can you make such engines rev quicker and make more power and torque?

In the guide, you can learn all the details you require about the performance parts. I will get through all the diverse stages of the Predator 212 modifications, the parts you will have to purchase, and how they will affect the performance of your engine.

There are a lot of videos available on YouTube about installations of any performance part, so I would not discuss that; make use of this guide for choosing the performance parts for getting the preferred result. Now, let’s get into the mods!

Trending:

Governor Removal (Stage#0):

  • Maximum-RPM: 4500 to 5000 rpm
  • Power: Up to 7.5 hp
  • Cost: $0

Predator 212 and other engines have a governor incorporated into them that preserves the Engine’s rpm to thirty-six hundred; it’ll attempt to close the throttle if your engine begins to rev really fast. You can either take them out or bypass them to get past the thirty-six hundred rpm limit.

Governor Removal

It is suggested that you totally take out the governor if you are gonna maintain the speed higher than thirty-six hundred for the long durations throughout driving. A predator 212 with governor detached can go as fast as five thousand rpm but will almost certainly get limited at 4500 to 4700 rpm (relying on the region’s altitude and other things); you can anticipate the power to be a little close to 7.5 hp.

It’ll charge you nothing to remove the governor and is the 1st modification that individuals make to the engine. You might ask if the majority of individuals remove them, then why do such even exist? Such engines are primarily created for pumps, generators, etc., and such equipment runs best at thirty-six hundred rpm; therefore, the governor attempts to maintain that thirty-six hundred rpm.

Will It Damage The Engine?

While I can’t assure anything, the other stock parts in the engine are frequently good enough for handling up to 5000 to 5500 rpm, and if you are utilizing the stock valve spring, your engine will not pass 5500 rpm. The valve springs with the engine will limit the rpm to fifty-five hundred; that’s because of the valve float instigated by the stock valve spring at the high RPMs. Governor exclusion with the stock parts will almost certainly not cause the engine failure.

But, if you replace the springs, you will have to replace other components accordingly. Having that said, if you’re really worried, you can acquire a connecting rod and a billet flywheel after governor removal, but they’re costly.

Billet Rod And Billet Flywheel:

  • Billet Flywheel
  • Gaskets
  • Billet Rod

Stage#1:

  • Maximum-RPM: 5000 to 5500
  • Power: 9 to 10 hp
  • Cost: 70 dollars to 90 dollars (0.036 main jet, air filter, and exhaust)

If you desire more power, you will require even more fresh air in and the burned air out of your engine. That’s exactly what Stage#1 is for; it has an upgraded exhaust, air filter, and larger jets for the carburetor.

The top rotating speed you can anticipate from stage#1 Predator 212 is fifty-five hundred RPM. The speed is limited to fifty-five hundred because of the valve float instigated by the stock valve springs. The rod and stock flywheel with Predator 212 will almost certainly be capable of handling 5500 rpm.

OMB Warehouse’s Stage#1 Kit:

Kit Comprises:

  • Exhaust gasket (1)
  • kart header with screw-on muffler (1)
  • Heavy rubber gasket (1)
  • Chokehold bracket (1)
  • Air filter adapter (1)
  • Angled air filter (1)
  • 8-degree advanced timing key (1)
  • .036 jet and .037 jet (1)
  • “140” emulsion tube (1)
  • Long carburetor stud (1)

The Predator 212 non-Hemi Stage#1 from OMB Warehouse has the 18lb Valve Spring. You ought to just ever utilize 18lb springs with the billet rod and advanced billet flywheel; if you do not desire to spend more cash on the rod and flywheel, then it is better not to install these springs.

The advance timing key you get with the kit is utilized for advancing the timing of ignition by eight degrees from twenty-four degrees BTDC to thirty-two degrees BTDC. A lot of individuals don’t install the key, but it’ll give a boost.

GoPowerSport’s Stage#1 Kit:

As you may already know, GoPowerSports are the most well-liked for any aftermarket add-ons to minibikes and go-karts. Their Stage#1 Kit only has the main jet and Air filter. However, they do suggest you to purchase a silencer, header pipe, and the 18lb valve springs along with the stage#1 kit. If you do purchase their suggested components with the stage 1 kit, it is essentially the same kit as the OMB’s kit without the advanced timing key.

Please Note: Few Predator 212 has the non-adjustable stock carburetor, and it’s essential to have the adjustable air-fuel screw; if the engine has a non-adjustable carb, then append twenty-five dollars to the price to get an adjustable carb.

Stage#2:

  • Maximum-RPM: 7500 (GopowerSport’s kit)
  • Power: Up to thirteen hp
  • Cost : 110 dollars to 150 dollars (for the kit) + 220 dollars (Billet rod and Billet flywheel) = 330 dollars to 380 dollars

The OMBwarehouse’s stage 2 kit is almost the same as stage#1; furthermore, you get a valve spring and the Non-EPA stock style carburetor. I suggest you purchase the Tillotson racing carburetors or Mikuni 212 carburetor’s clone with the stage 1 kit (+ eighteen lb spring if you own a Hemi Engine) in place of the OMBwarehouse stage 2 kit.

The valve spring will also increase the performance; the heavier eighteen lb Valve springs on the non-Hemi engine will halt the valve float that occurs at fifty-five hundred rpm in the stock springs and permit the engine to rev above fifty-five hundred rpm.

Once you have swapped these springs, it’s completely essential to purchase the rod and flywheel along with the stage#2 kit. Utilizing the stock connecting rod can be unsafe for you and the engine.

OMBWarehouse Stage 2 Kit For The Non-Hemi:

  • Everything from Stage#1
  • Non-EPA stock style Carburetor
  • bored out emulsion tube

Please note: Hemi Engines have separate eighteen lb springs particularly designed for your Predator 212 Hemi. For making the stage#2 Hemi, you will have to get the stage#1 Hemi kit + the Mikuni VM22 type Carburetor + the special eighteen lb Valve spring designed separately for the Hemi 212 engine + Billet Rod, and Billet Flywheel.

Even for the non-hemi, it may be better to acquire the stage 1 kit with the Mikuni VM22 + Billet Rod and Billet Flywheel instead of purchasing the stage 2 kit.

Billet Rod And Billet Flywheel:

Needed with eighteen lb or above Valve Springs

GoPowerSport’s Stage#2 Kit:

Now GoPowerSport’s stage 2 kit is a bit diverse in comparison to the OMB’s. Kit Comprises:

  • Billet Flywheel
  • Head Gasket
  • Mod2 Cams
  • Billet Rod
  • Side Cover Gasket
  • 18lb Valve Springs
  • Spark Plug

The mod2 cams from this particular kit will provide your engine with a big boost. Aside from that, the head gasket will boost compression by 0.010″. The great thing about it is that you would not have to purchase the billet flywheel and rod separately; however, you will have to purchase the exhaust, air filter, and carburetor separately.

Stage#3:

  • Maximum-RPM: 7000+
  • Power: Up to fifteen hp
  • Cost: 520 dollars

The OMB Warehouse Stage 3 kit is basically the Mod2 Cam + stage 2 kit.

Stage 3 Kit:

  • Stage 2 + Mod2 Cam

A billet Flywheel and rod are needed before installing this particular kit.

Stages 4 And 5:

  • Maximum-RPM: 7500+
  • Power: Up to fifteen hp

The stage#4 kit from OMB comprises a head gasket and a high compression cylinder head with the other stage three components. Both of which will boost the compression. Stage five kit actually comes with a cam with even more lift (0.265″ lift) than the mod2 cam, stainless steel valves, and a spark plug.

Further Modifications:

If you comprehend what all of these parts are actually doing, you may be better off purchasing components separately instead of any stage kits. I will attempt to clarify every part and the upgrades that are accessible briefly. If you are ready to make further mods, then keep reading!

Well, first of all, make certain you purchase the non-hemi engine in place of the Hemi Predator 212; they are a lot better when you are making great changes. Secondly, make certain that you have a small budget. Now, what else can you really do to increase the power?

  • Valve Springs Heavier than eighteen lb
  • Longer connecting rods for additional compression
  • Bigger rocker ratio
  • Cams with even longer duration and higher lift
  • Porting for the better airflow

You can acquire the racing cylinder head with larger intake and exhaust valve holes.

Racing Heads:

These are actually created such that they make much power but also make certain that the other internal components aren’t eating away that power for making your engine run. They have a bigger intake valve and better porting than the stock valve.

Valve Springs:

When it comes to the Valve Springs, the heavier springs will denote higher RPM before the valve floats. You can really go much higher than the eighteen lb springs that you get with stage 2.

Table:

A heavier spring will force back the valves with even more force, and the valves will go back to their position sooner, therefore, permitting you to have cams that actually open the valves for an extended duration resulting in more fuel to go in and burn.

Camshaft:

It defines how long your engine valves are open for the fresh fuel to enter the engine combustion chamber and the burned fuel to leave from the exhaust. The cam shown is not precisely how they actually are in the small engines such as predator 212, but the aim is the same, that is, to close and open the valves at a particular time.

If more fuel enters the chamber at the same time, your engine will obviously create more power. That’s the basic notion behind acquiring the Camshaft with a bigger duration and lift. There’ll be a physical limit on how long the valves can really be open because if it’s open for very long, the valves will actually hit the piston head.

It naturally denotes a non-hemi head that will permit for the longer period camshaft and, as I stated before, acquire the non-hemi if you’re gonna make something wild! Dynocams are very well-known makers for the Predator 212 camshafts. You can discover a really wide selection of camshafts from their official site.

Camshaft Specifications:

  • Centerline
  • Lobe Seperation
  • Duration
  • Lift

Duration and Lift are the most significant specifications to search for when you are selecting a Camshaft from the Predator 212.

  • Lift:

Valve lift is the max depth till which the valves will go with the provided crankshaft. It can actually be measured as Valve lift = lobe lift x rocker ratio. Each camshaft maker will offer you the data of the lobe lift.

A cam with a greater lift will open your valves with even more depth. If they’re open with more depth, it’ll permit for more fuel to get in, and your engine will burn even more fuel to produce more power.

  • Duration:

It basically means how long the cam will be open at diverse lifts. So, for instance, let’s say the valves have a 0.255 inches lift, but throughout any cycle, it just stays above 0.127 inches lift for twenty percent of the time, then it would not create as much power as the cam that stays above 0.127 inches lift for fifty percent of the time.

DynoCam will offer you the data for and DUR @ 200 and DUR @ 50, which basically provides you with the duration after which lift is above 0.050 inches and 0.020 inches, respectively.

  • Duration And Lobe Seperation:

These two specifications will basically define the nature of your power curve. You can learn even more about them if you want to; there’s much more you can learn about Camshafts.

Best Camshafts:

As stated before, Dyno is the most well-known Camshaft Company for the Predator 212 and other Honda Clone Engines. Please Note: Non-Hemi Engines and Hemi Engines will make use of diverse Cams.

MOD2 Grind:

Intake:

  • C/L: 108.5 ATDC
  • Dur @ .050″: 245.7 Deg.
  • LIFT: .2245

Exhaust:

  • LIFT: .231
  • C/L: 110 BTDC
  • DUR @ .050″: 245.5 Deg.

MOD2 Cams are the most well-known, and the slightest cam upgrade that you can carry out, it’ll add to the performance. You can expect the Predator 212 with MOD2 cam to make seven thousand rpm if you have made other upgrades.

DynoCams Super X:

INTAKE:

  • LIFT: .265
  • C/L: 108 ATDC
  • Dur @ .050″: 236.9 Deg.

EXHAUST:

  • LIFT: .265
  • C/L: 108 BTDC
  • Dur @ .050″: 236.5 Deg.

A bigger duration and lift in comparison to the MOD2. You can expect to surpass seventy-five hundred rpm with the stage 2 kit and this Cam. There are other cams with extended lift and duration accessible on DynoCam’s site. They can be a bit too much; if you want to experiment, then try for it. But please just do that if you know what you are really doing.

Increase Compression:

Out of the box, the Predator 212 comes with an 8.5:1 compression ratio. A greater compression ratio will compress the air-fuel mix more inside the camber and will then add to the power. There are some methods for increasing the compression.

  • A longer Connecting rod
  • Head shaving
  • Thinner head gasket

You can add to compression in any of the three ways above; simply make certain that you maintain the 0.030 inches clearance between the valve head and the piston. The non-hemi will permit for more compression in contrast to hemi.

Turbocharge:

Can you turbocharge your predator 212? There are videos of individuals trying them well, but you will require a really small turbocharger with the fuel injector and will possibly not get a large boost because of the small turbochargers’ size.

Transmission System (Torque Converter Vs. Clutch):

A stock clutch will actually not endure anything other than the governor removal, and the comet-clone torque converters actually limit you to around fifty-five hundred rpm. There’s a trick common among individuals where they install the steel spacer bushing with the denser steel spacers and take out this limit, but a more common fix to such limit is to acquire a Juggernaut CVT from Gopowersport’s site.

Clutches have their advantages when you require more speed because the power loss is actually low in contrast to the torque converter; you can acquire high speed if you’ve precise gearing. There are racing clutches accessible but can be costly, or you can acquire the original max torque clutch with the spring-weight assembly that involves at higher rpm.

Which Supplier Is The Best?

OMBwarehouse and Gopowersports are both actual reliable suppliers; their kits are nearly the same with slight differences. The answer to your question will be to purchase from whichever one charges less. You can also purchase the components individually, for instance, flywheels and rods from ARC racing, camshaft from Dynocams, etc.

Installation:

There are a lot of videos for installing any component, and it’s simpler to comprehend the procedure from a video than from an article. Simply go to YouTube and search for how you can install ___ on predator 212, replace the blank space with the component’s name, and you can locate at least three to five diverse videos about it. Note: Harbor Freight guarantee will finish as soon as you add or take out any internal components. Be cautious while making any changes, and also, Drive safe!