2017 Hammerhead GTS 150 Platinum engine upgrade
 

I'm finding my new (to me) GTS150 to be a bit lacking in the propulsion department. I've gone through the general tuneup and valve adjustments. It runs smoother now, just not with any more force.

I'm looking at both the DX 184CC BRUTE MUSCLE ENGINE (with UNI Air Filter) and the 175 CC GY6 ENGINE sold by BuggyDepot.

There is a difference in cost but I don't mind stepping up if the end result is worth it. I won't sacrifice quality and reliability for price.

Does anyone here have any experience installing either of these two engines in a HH 150? If so, do you have any suggestions or recommendations for me?

I'm also okay with buying a big bore kit and stroker kit and building the engine myself if I can find the right one (Compatible, complete,good quality and reliability.

Thanks.

Why not build your engine?A good performance head ported and polished with one of the several cams available.

I agree...so much more rewarding. There won't be a question of compatibility and built to your needs.

X3 I've built my kinroad up to 155 (didn't have to mill the case), done my own headwork (I've drag raced all my life so I like to think I know how), an a11 cam, built an exhaust, bigger carb, uni, intake spacer, and 11 gram sliders. Mine will jump off the line and still bump 40 mph (gps verified). One of these days I'm gonna mill the case and bump it up to 180.

Even if you have never turned a wrench these little things are pretty simple and easy to learn on.

I decided to go the DIY build approach. It's been a bit of a pain so far with some various aftermarket part fitment issues but overall it's coming along nicely. With any luck at all it'll be up and running again in the next few weeks.

I finished building the 180CC engine and everything is back in place. I had a few wiring issues and other teething pains but nothing out of the ordinary. The new engine is definitely much stronger than stock. One immediate way I can tell is it can now propel itself up the ramp onto my workbench where before I had to take a good running start at the ramp to make it. Now that was a dicey proposition.

I have a ported head with larger valves, 63mm cylinder, A12 cam, Mikuni VM26 carb, 8 pole stator, performance CDI and coil, performance clutch and variator, heavy duty starter gear and performance exhaust. I went with a new oil pump cam and oil chains, belt, gaskets, etc. All the bearings were good so they stayed in place.

I'm still tuning the jetting and have worked my way up from a 160 to the current 180. I have a slight bog when I go from part throttle to full throttle but I'm not doing that much since I'm still taking it a bit easy during break-in.

The speedo does not work properly now but I've not had a chance to diagnose it yet.

I had already rebuilt the brakes and fixed a tweak in the front end. For a one year old buggy the previous owner definitely beat the hell out of it.

Nice work!!

I believe Hammerhead and Trailmaster use the same motor and I bought a complete HH motor for my build (thanks Jersey Devil!!) and can confirm that the Taida KDU stroker crank will work in it. I've put 16g sliders and a bigger output sprocket and it still pulls like a champ. I kind of wished I'd gotten a 63mm jug, but didn't want to go too crazy. I still get that part throttle bog too, but I think it's just moving the clip up/down a position. For the speedo, you might consider getting a trailtech vapor as you can get speed, head temp, high temp light, RPM, miles, etc. Now I just want a suspension that doesn't feel like it's going to kill me