ABOUT US
Founded in 1978, Simon Wright Racing Developments ltd is an English company manufacturing and racing the highest quality racing kart chassis.
Wright Karts:
Unique amongst UK based Teams/Manufacturers, SWRD have contested the ultra-competitive Junior/ICA/Formula A/Formula Super A/KF1/KF2/KF3/KZ1/KZ2 and Formula Super ICC in World and European championships for over four decades. Building on this international experience an unrivalled 30 year run of British Championship titles have been obtained in spread across various classes and age groups.
S.W.R.D. Racing Engines: A subsidiary of SWRD, specialising in high end tuning of kart racing engines. SWRD Racing Engines have specialised in Iame motors for over 30 years (the longest in the UK). We also rebuild and repair a multitude of other makes and models of motors. S.W.R.D. also possess a vast array of knowledge and technical ability in the rebuilding and servicing of retro/historic kart racing engines for the resurgent historic kart classes.
Ex Drivers:
Formula One star and 2009 World champion Jenson Button spent much of his karting career with Simon Wright Racing Developments/Team Wright Karts who helped him to attain his only two British Championship titles (1991–Cadet and 1992– Junior TKM).
Dan Wheldon, IRL (Indy Race League) champion 2005 and two time Indy 500 winner, also spent the vast majority of his karting career with Simon Wright Racing winning multiple British Championships along the way.
Other ex-drivers include:
- Callum Ilott – 2021 Ferrari F1 test driver, 2020 FIA F2 Vice Champion
- Dan Ticktum – 2021 Williams F1 development driver, 5th 2020 FIA F2 Championships
- Alex Sims – 2021 Mahindra Formula E – Lead driver
- David Coulthard – Formula 1 (7th position in all time point scorers)
- Richard Bradley – Le Mans 24hrs (Winner) /European Le Mans Series Championships LMP2
- Mike Conway – IndyCar Series/Le Mans 24hrs/World Endurance Championship (Winner)
- Jack Doohan – FIA Formula 3
- Oliver Jarvis – McLaren Autosport Young Driver of The Year, Le Mans (Winner)/World Endurance Championships LMP1/LMP2
- Dario Franchitti – CART/2007 IndyCar Series Champion/NASCAR/American Le Mans Series/2007 BBC Scotland Sports Personality of the year
- Allan McNish – Formula 1(Renault)/American Le Mans Series Champion/Twice 24 Hours of Le Mans Champion
- Tom Ferrier – British Touring Car/FIA European Touring Car/British GT Championship
- Jason Plato – 2001 BTCC champion
- Mika Salo – Formula 1/GT2 class 24 Hours Le Mans Winner 2008
- Justin Wilson – IndyCar Series/Champ Car/Formula One
OUR DNA
Retail:
S.W.R.D. stocks a comprehensive range of products to meet all of your karting requirements:
- Complete Karts
- Chassis Components
- Motors & Carburettors (Iame, Rotax, Comer, Honda, TKM)
- Wheels & Tyres
- Data Logging Equipment (Alfano, Mychron, Unipro)
- Race Wear & Team Wear
- Consumables (Sprockets, Chains, Spark Plugs, Oils, Lubricants, Cleaners, Tapes)
- Tooling
Repair & Race Preparation:
S.W.R.D. provides a complete race preparation service for your kart and motors. Services range from a simple race check to a full kart strip down, re-jig and rebuild to guarantee your kart is in optimal racing condition.
S.W.R.D. also provides a full kart repair service should your kart sustain a heavy impact or breakage. Utilising the in-house workshop (where all of our chassis are produced) we are able to repair/rejig a vast majority of damaged chassis, returning them back to their original state.
Engine Servicing & Tuning:
S.W.R.D. provide a full dynometer (dyno) facility. We utilise the state of the art “Sport Devices” data acquisition unit coupled with a 100% built for purpose kart dyno. The dyno has been specifically designed to replicate the drag-run of a kart engine on an international standard kart circuit straight, thus giving realistic run times and output figures.
The facility has the ability to accurately measure and record in real time the engine:
- Horsepower
- Torque
- RPM
- Engine Temperature
- Exhaust Temperature
The Official Wright Karts Factory Team have benefited greatly from this facility which is located on the factory premises. The ability of the dyno to give a measurable quantitative result gives hard evidence on the premium set-up of your materials, whether it be a carburettor, engine or exhaust. The best balance between a number of engines, carburettors and exhausts can also be found to give you the “Ultimate” power unit available to you.
The real time recorded traces can be overlapped with any number of previous tests, effectively allowing the optimum engine set-up to be found off track. Allowing you to hit the ground running on your next race/test day.
Race Team:
The official race team of S.W.R.D, Team Wright Karts has one of the longest and most successful histories in British Karting amassing British Championship titles spanning from 1978 to the present day.
Team Wright Karts caters for drivers of all levels. All drivers ranging from the Bambino class to the Senior X30 categories are welcome, with participation in races ranging from winter club meetings to International Championships possible.
Having spent a number of years competing at the highest level of karting, Simon Wright started his own racing team in 1978, winning the British Championships with Steve Murphy in the Junior Britain category. Simon then made the bold decision to develop and produce his own kart. Along with his brother Paul, they designed and developed a kart capable of competing in the highest echelons of kart racing. The Wright kart went on to win the British Championships just one year later.
The company “Simon Wright Racing Developments” (S.W.R.D.) was founded in 1978 and produced “Wright Karts” for the domestic (UK) market from 1980. The success that followed soon led to the popularity of the brand growing and S.W.R.D. began exporting Wright Karts to Europe and the Far-East markets.
S.W.R.D./Wright Karts have contested the ultra-competitive Junior/ICA/Formula A/Formula SuperA/KF1/KF2/KF3/KZ1/KZ2 and Formula Super ICC World and European Championships for over four decades.
S.W.R.D. Racing Engines is subsidiary a of Simon Wright Racing Developments for the tuning of kart racing engines. S.W.R.D. Racing Engines and have specialised in Italian motor giants Iame for over 20 years (the longest serving in the UK).
Throughout the years S.W.R.D. have amassed a number of drivers whom they have helped propel into a successful motor racing career.
Formula One star and 2009 World champion Jenson Button spent much of his karting career with Simon Wright Racing Developments/Team Wright Karts:
Jenson joined Wright Karts in 1990 after finishing 3rd the previous year in the National Cadet Championships. In his first year with the Team (1990) Jenson came second in the Cadet Championship with a total of five major race wins that year. The winner of the Championships that year was Daniel Wheldon (Ex-Indy car champion), a driver who would later also go on to join Wright Karts.
In 1991 Jenson had a year that has never been repeated at that level of competition, 34 races unbeaten. Jenson went on to win the British Championship that year. After his phenomenal year in Cadets, Jenson moved into Junior UK (now known as Junior TKM). Within his first year in the class, Jenson took both the Championship and “O” Plate (British Open) titles. Jenson continued his partnership with Wright Karts in 1993 winning the Junior UK (TKM) “O” plate once more.
In 1994 Jenson progressed into Junior ICA (JICA) which is the pinnacle of domestic junior karting. He came a superb 4th in his first year. Jenson then moved to Europe to concentrate on European karting. In 1997 he became the youngest driver ever to win the European Super A Championship
Dan Wheldon, IRL (Indy Race League) Champion 2005 and two time Indy 500 winner, also spent the vast majority of his karting career with Simon Wright Racing winning multiple British Championships along the way. Wheldon started his title sequence with Wright Karts winning the British Junior Championship in 1993.
Other ex-drivers include:
- Callum Ilott – 2021 Ferrari F1 test driver, 2020 FIA F2 Vice Champion
- Dan Ticktum – 2021 Williams F1 development driver, 5th 2020 FIA F2 Championships
- Alex Sims – 2021 Mahindra Formula E – Lead driver
- David Coulthard – Formula 1 (7th position in all time point scorers)
- Richard Bradley – Le Mans 24hrs (Winner) /European Le Mans Series Championships LMP2
- Mike Conway – IndyCar Series/Le Mans 24hrs/World Endurance Championship (Winner)
- Jack Doohan – FIA Formula 3
- Oliver Jarvis – McLaren Autosport Young Driver of The Year, Le Mans (Winner)/World Endurance Championships LMP1/LMP2
- Dario Franchitti – CART/2007 IndyCar Series Champion/NASCAR/American Le Mans Series/2007 BBC Scotland Sports Personality of the year
- Allan McNish – Formula 1(Renault)/American Le Mans Series Champion/Twice 24 Hours of Le Mans Champion
- Tom Ferrier – British Touring Car/FIA European Touring Car/British GT Championship
- Jason Plato – 2001 BTCC champion
- Mika Salo – Formula 1/GT2 class 24 Hours Le Mans Winner 2008
- Justin Wilson – IndyCar Series/Champ Car/Formula One
Simon Wright Racing Developments (S.W.R.D.) was founded in 1978. Within their first year, S.W.R.D. won the British Championships in Junior Britain class, with driver Steve Murphy. From 1980 onward S.W.R.D. produced and raced their own karts, again winning a major National Championship in it’s first year of existence.
The Following 30 years produced at least one National title each year for Wright Karts. The highlight of which was the near dominance of the domestic Championships in the early 1990’s where Wright Karts produced more than 10 National Champions, most notably of whom were F1 World Champion Jenson Button (undefeated during the entire 1991 calendar year) and IRL Champion and double Indianapolis 500 winner Daniel Wheldon.
More recently Wright karts have been seeing success at home and abroad with national titles in, Australia, Mexico and Taiwan. As well the foreign success Wright karts have a string of national titles here in the UK, most notably a five year streak with various drivers in the MSUK Bambino Championships, most recently in 2020 with Edward Haynes.
Since their conception in 1979, Wright Karts have always focused on creating karts, specifically chassis, to the highest possible standards. To this day, Wright Karts still adopt an ethos of traditional processes and hand built manufacture utilising the highest possible quality materials. The resultant of which is a chassis unparalleled in build quality, finishing and durability.
All chassis and component parts are fully manufactured by fabricators with a background in motorsport/karting. This knowledge provides the essential insight required to create a purpose built racing kart. Manufacture Manager James Wright has been involved with S.W.R.D. since it was formed. Competing in karts between 1988-2002, James raced at the highest level of karting possible, the Formula Super A World Championships. Combining this karting background with a BSc degree in Engineering and 20 years of metal fabrication experience Wright Karts are able to produce products of the very highest quality.
In the search for a superior product Wright Karts utilise manufacturing processes that other companies forgo due to their high complexity, labour intensiveness and cost.
- Chassis are constructed from highly tested and carefully selected high grade imported Italian Chromoloy material.
- Chassis tubing is not “V” cut (as practised by many other chassis manufacturers), but carefully sculpted to the precise diameter of the adjoining tube to provide a stronger, more durable joint.
- Welding wire compounds are perfectly paired with parent material to provide perfect material cohesion, aesthetic finish and to maximise performance.
- Pre-loaded jig areas allow chassis to be produced straight and true upon removal from the welding jig, thus not creating any material tension within the finished product.
- Minimal dimensional tolerance give assurances of performance and quality each and every time
All Wright chassis are built in-house here in the UK to maintain our strict quality control and product assurance. This enables us to achieve our aim of Wright Karts producing the very best all round kart for a unique market.