The Off Road Go Cart, as it suggests, is not meant to run on a track or street. The major differences between an off road go cart and a normal street cart are the wheels, suspension, axel, and frame.

Wheels: The Off Road Go Cart usually has knobby tires which are design to traverse rugged terrain. When those same tires hit pavement, they tend to "grip" the road too hard and slow you down.

Axel: When building an off road go cart, it's essential to have a pose rear axle which keeps the drive wheels from spinning exessively in mud or dirt. By contrast, a pose rear on the street will hop when turning at higher speeds. The higher speed the turn the more the rear will skip and hop. The off road go cart needs more low end power to push through heavy mud, up hills, or over logs making the high end speed much lower unless it has a transmission.

Frame: An off road go cart should be equipped with a roll cage. It's critical for safety as rolling the go cart is much more common in an off road environment. The roll cage causes the go cart to be higher profile and less aerodynamic. However, the difference in top speed is well worth having the safety of a roll cage.

Suspension: Clearly, upgrading suspension is critical to the wear and tear of your go cart. Suspension isn't really required for a street cart. However, off roading can get pretty tough so having the suspension makes the ride a lot easier on you and your go cart which will help limit the stress related repairs in the long run.