Think about the thrill the first time you drove a go-kart. Whether it was a pedal-powered Kettcar in the driveway or a gas-powered go-kart at the amusement park, that experience of riding in the open air—inches from the ground—ushered many a kid to the gearhead path.
When it comes to crazy go-karts, it’s hard to imagine one more extreme than the ScrapLife Garage Audi R8 GT, now on eBay’s “Parts of America” tour. This beastly build started with a totaled Underground Racing 2012 twin-turbo Audi R8 GT, plucked from a salvage auction in Oklahoma.
The front end of the car had to be scratch-built from the front suspension forward.
eBay Motors’s “Parts of America” launched on September 21. Over the next two months, the eBay Motors hauler will roll into a dozen US communities, explore regional car culture with the locals, and pick up unique modded vehicles along the way—each created in partnership with star builders.
To follow the tour and take a deep-drive into the builds along the way, visit eBay.com/PartsOfAmerica.
What Is ScrapLife?
LeeCParts, one of eBay Motors’s most successful specialty used auto parts stores, created the ScrapLife Garage YouTube presence. LeeCParts has sold more than 60,000 parts on eBay since 2013.
After working with top builders on YouTube—including RichRebuilds, Adam LZ, and TJ Hunt—the Stevensville, Maryland-based automotive dismantler launched the ScrapLife Garage YouTube channel in 2020. It’s an endless salvage-car treasure hunt, packed with Chevrolet Corvettes, Honda S2000s, Porsches, Detroit muscle, and the occasional smashed-up supercar.
The R8 is aluminum bodied, with a full frame. Structural integrity persists with the body panels removed.
When the crew saw the R8 GT pop up in a salvage listing, they knew what had to be done. The R8 rolled into their shop in April 2021, and the team got straight to work. First, parts not essential for the build—like the rare and expensive carbon-fiber factory rear wing—were posted on eBay Motors. The proceeds helped finance the project.
Austin Edwards, chief financial officer at LeeC Parts, said:
ere is not another platform as recognized for car parts as eBay. With everything we’ve done, eBay has been our best option to get our parts in the hands of the people that need them. For example, the R8’s wing went to an R8 GT owne
In turn, eBay supplied a slew of parts for the R8 Kart. The list includes a Honda S2000 APR carbon-fiber splitter and APR carbon-fiber mirrors. The side marker lights come from a 2020 Ford Mustang GT.
How Fast Is the R8 Kart? REAL FAST.
ScrapLife bought the R8 with the intent to build a wild, show-stopping kart.
The ScrapLife R8 is a potent car with a tunable twin-turbo kit.
Edwards said:
e car’s 93 octane base setting makes about 1,000 horsepower. Race fuel settings can take it up to the 2,100- to 2,200-horsepower rang
Underground Racing, a notorious high-end tuning shop, set up the R8 as a half-mile or full-mile race car. It was purpose-built for roll-racing by its previous owner and does not have launch control. Traditional drag racing from a standing start requires immense traction to deliver the all-important 60-foot time off the line. Starting from a roll reduces stress on the driveline.
Edwards said:
run a lot of racing events at Pocono Raceway. On the 1,400-horsepower setting, it will hit 185 miles per hour in a third of a mile. It’s an awesome experience to do that in as controlled an environment as possibl
Inspiration on Four Wheels
The R8 Kart is one of 333 R8 GTs built in 2012, with less than 100 sold in America.
ScrapLife Garage’s builds are all about inspiring people with something crazy. So Edwards drove the R8 from Maryland to the Gilmore Museum for the first “Parts of America” event, while LeeCParts CEO Lee Carter drove ScrapLife’s second entry, a Porsche 718 Cayman GT4.
Edwards said:
w often do you see a car like this just driving down the street, on the Pennsylvania or Ohio Turnpike, as we did on the way to the Gilmore Museum? For impressionable young people who are into mechanical things, the lasting effect is profoun
To follow the tour, visit eBay.com/PartsOfAmerica.
