"The Leopard has comparable performance to the Rotax"
There are many engines that have comparable performance to the rotax, even the TKM.
Normally people quote a class performance and attribute this to the engine, but the differences are more due to chassis performance or engine characteristic requiring a different driving style than any engine performance.
Thus the average Blue driver can catch all but the best TKM drivers because TKMs slide more but the average Rotax driver can often do the same to a Blue because of the 'kick' when the power valve cuts in and the grip going into a corner.
The 'fun' comes from handling the kart to the best of the driver's ability and that isn't just down to engine power. And of course, if you don't intend to race a class, then there is no reason why the class limitations would apply to any particular engine.
All the Tag engines (out of class) seem to be equally reliable. There are known problems that seem to affect each engine, some of which can be avoided if you can fit non-standard parts for 'mucking about on' (eg: the Rotax clutch discussed on a different thread).
If you don't want to race it, then Leopards (125)have enthusiastic followers. You could buy a Lynx (100)and run it without the restrictor, They seem to be very reliable except for the random starter failures caused by running at too high revs or the Lynx Maxi (117) which has extra grunt for the heavier driver but no higher top end or as suggested elsewhere, a ZF. Or even a TKM extreme (115).
They all seem to have similar reliability, a simplicity of maintenance and different driving characteristics from the Rotax. If you might want to race, even non MSA, then your choice might be coloured by what the people locally race.
They all have performance characteristics differen
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