Karting gear: the helmet, suit and rib protection standards.

Karting gear is built and tested for different risks than car racing gear. The FIA's karting clothing standard, for example, is aimed at abrasion, contact heat and tearing rather than fire. Rules also differ between the FIA, national federations, clubs and rental tracks, so what follows is what each standards body or source publishes, with its date. For the sport itself, see karting.

Helmets

Snell K and the youth standards

Snell lists these motorsport standards relevant to karting:

• K2025, its current kart racing standard, preceded by K2020, K2015 and K-98.
• CM2016 and CMR/CMS2007, joint Snell and FIA standards for children's motorsports.
• Drafts: KM2025, covering casual and competition karting, and CM2027 for children's motorsports, with no finalization date given.

Pegasus Auto Racing describes Snell K as using the same tests as Snell SA, the auto racing standard, but without SA's fire-retardant lining requirement. Snell says SA and K helmets may have a narrower field of vision than motorcycle (M) helmets, so some may not be legal for road use.

A Fast Racer retailer article gives the K2025 changeover as: labels shipped to makers from 1 April 2025, the standard in effect from 1 October 2025, K2020 label shipments ending 30 October 2026, and K2020 production ending 31 December 2026. Those are the same dates Snell published for its SA2025 auto racing changeover; we did not read a Snell schedule for K2025 itself.

Snell itself sets no expiry date for racing use. Its FAQ says race organisers, tracks and events set their own helmet rules, and that most require the current or immediately previous Snell standard. Snell separately recommends replacing a helmet after five years of normal use, and replacing any helmet that has taken an impact while in use. More is on helmets.

FIA 8878-2024

The FIA lists FIA 8878-2024 as its karting helmet standard on its helmet regulations page. We could not read the standard's text, so its test content and where it is mandatory are not covered here.

UK helmet rules, as two retailers report them

We did not read Motorsport UK's own karting rules. Two UK retailers publish karting helmet lists (only GSM Performance says it is citing Motorsport UK), and they do not agree on the older youth helmets:

So the two disagree on whether CMR2007 youth helmets are still accepted. If you race in the UK, check Motorsport UK's current rules and your helmet's label. Demon Tweeks also says ECE road helmets are not approved for motorsport but are acceptable at UK rental karting.

We found no confirmed helmet rule from a US karting organisation. In the US, check your club's or series' current rules.

Suits, gloves and shoes: FIA 8877-2022

FIA 8877-2022, "Protective Clothing for Karting Competitors" (first version dated 29 June 2022), covers overalls, gloves and shoes. Its main points:

• Grades. Grade 1 overalls are for short circuits. Grade 2 overalls, for long circuits, have much higher abrasion resistance: 707 rpm in the abrasion test against 265 rpm for Grade 1.
• Validity. Garments are valid for five years after the year of manufacture. The standard's example: items made at any time in 2023 are valid until 31 December 2028.
• Labels. Overalls carry an embroidered label on the back of the collar showing the grade and the year validity ends, plus a hologram on the inner closure flap. Gloves and shoes carry smaller labels and holograms.
• Gloves and shoes. Glove cuffs must be at least 80 mm long. Shoes must cover the whole foot, extend above the ankle and have hydrocarbon-resistant soles.
• Approved products appear on FIA Technical List 101, and approved test houses on List 102.

Older CIK-FIA suits

The changeover from the older CIK-FIA suits is reported by secondary sources, not by FIA text we read, and they describe it differently:

• Demon Tweeks (November 2023) says Grades replaced the old CIK-FIA Level 1 and Level 2 classes, with Grade 1 replacing Level 2 as the baseline. It says Level 2 production stopped on 31 December 2024, older overalls are accepted according to their label but not after 31 December 2029, and from 1 January 2030 only 8877-2022 overalls will be accepted in FIA-compliant competition.
• TKART (April 2026, a sponsored article) says 8877-2022 became mandatory from 1 January 2025 at races on the FIA International Sporting Calendar and coexists with CIK-FIA 2013-1 suits until 2029.

Read the label inside your suit and check your event's rules before relying on an older suit.

Rib and chest protection: FIA 8870-2018

FIA 8870-2018 is a combined chest and rib protector worn under the karting overall. The FIA says:

• The World Motor Sport Council approved the standard on 16 December 2020.
• It became mandatory in 2021 for FIA Karting championships, cups and trophies, and from January 2022 for all karting competitions on the FIA International Sporting Calendar.
• A protector must withstand 60 J to the chest and 100 J to the ribs while passing on no more than 1 kN.
• Rib injuries are the most common injury in karting.

Club and national rules on rib protection outside FIA competitions were not in our sources; check your event's rules. For choosing gear by category, see best karting gear.