Gas Powered Power Wheels

This is actually my second build but the first I never saw as Instructables worthy. The original can be seen here

http://www.mudmower.com/gas-power-wheel-home-page-.html

The short explanation is that it is a 7hp Duromax with stage one racing kit. With a centrifugal clutch running to a custom drive shaft to the back running a 6 speed 90 degree mounted reversed rotation transaxle. Lawn tractor frame shortened 11 inches. With custom steering column and column shifted, hand brake, home made gas pedal from a 2 hole punch.

The video here is the shortened build video. The rest of this write up will be more in depth.

The original machine was made on an MTD lawn tractor frame with the drive shaft above the tractor frame. This caused the floor board of the machine to be very high and any child over the age of 5 drove with knees sticking up. It was fun and looked great but driving it as an adult was out of the question.

Going bigger was a major goal. For this i found a ford raptor f150 power wheel. The wheel base on it was 10 inches longer then the original machine. The frame donor this time needed to be stronger for this i found a channel frame Murray. The steering in it is simple and parts are not hard to find. This was the cheap part.

Then came the expenses.

7hp Duromax with electric start

https://amzn.to/2JQgdrM

along with a clutch and chain

https://amzn.to/2WsxBnZ

https://amzn.to/2UhVdhF

The drive shaft gears and coupler came from Surpluscenter.com

The point here is to rip everything but the steering off. Everything else is spare parts or going to change. It was also at this point the power wheels was torn down to nothing but a shell.

On a side note.

The wiring harness and gear boxes in power wheels are often worth money to some one. Take your time and the parts pulled can help subsidize the cost of the build.

The same with the tractor. The body is worth a few bucks to a racer in your area or might be trade for atv tires.

As the video will explain the stock rotation of the MST206 transaxle is the wrong direction for this build. But with a bit of grinding and a bit of welding we can change that.

Side Note..

This also could have been done by finding a MST203 made for a snow blower. The stock configuration is revers rotation.

Ok lets face it.. I could have just dropped the Power wheels body on top of a lawn tractor frame and engine and called it good.... Wrong!

You see the wheel base on a lawn tractor is 11 inches to long to fit in the wheel wells of the power wheels and the stock 17hp Briggs engine would have stuck out the grill by a solid 2 or 3 inches. Trust me i debated cheating but it never would have looked right.

This next step was because I can not because I needed to. The reality is the stock carb setup with stock intake could have worked. But I'm already here so why not?

Well got a frame got a reverse rotation transaxle and got a stage 1 engine. Lets put it all together and give it a test on the stand.

OK again this step was done cause I can. But come on starting the engine by reaching in the engine bay would just look dumb. Using a standard Ignition Switch Panel https://amzn.to/2WpyJIM and a 4 wire trailer wire extension https://amzn.to/2HL665E I can mount up the switch panel and have a true dash with room for light and winch controls in the future.

As it sits right now it works and I could call it good at this point. But that is not my style.

It needs to be faster so I am working on a clutch gear upgrade. If I go from a 11 tooth to a 14. I should gain 3 to 5 mph in 6th gear.

The rear needs a tow hitch of some kind so I can put the kids to work.

Every off road truck needs a winch. A 2000 pound winch mounted just under the bumper with a 1 inch square stock bumper to hold the fairlead.

To go with that it needs upgraded brakes. Not sure yet on the method I will use but it is a must have to be safer with the upgrades I have planned.

Thanks to every one who takes the time to check this out and hope it helps you in your builds.

Redneck Computer Geek on Youtube