If you've ever driven a go-kart, and you should, you know that go-karts are a hell of a lot of fun They don't necessarily go super fast, but they are so low to the ground that you feel as if you are Max Verstappen on the last lap of the Monaco Grand Prix, Dale Earnhardt at Daytona, or Mario on the Yoshi's circuit

There is one problem, however During the winter, that go-kart just sits in the garage gathering dust If you live in an area where it's cold five months out of the year, a $2,000 investment in a go-cart seems like a pretty poor investment

Segway's new Go-Kart Pro 2 solves the bad weather problem in a clever way It turns the entire go-kart into a game console controller I had the opportunity to drive the GoKart Pro 2 at CES 2024, both on the track and at the wheel for racing games Here are my impressions

On Best Buy's website, the Segway GoKart Pro 2 is available for pre-order for $2,299 with an estimated ship date of March 8, 2024

According to the listing, the GoKart Pro 2 weighs 106 pounds and measures 559 x 335 x 236 inches

Outwardly, the Go-Kart Pro 2 is very similar to its predecessor, the Go-Kart Pro It has the same gray finish, but this time with neon blue accents instead of green throughout

The most obvious difference is the steering wheel, which has controls in the center of the wheel similar to those found on the best PC game controllers, with a D-pad on the left and a traditional four-button layout on the right In the center is a small display that shows the go-kart's speed, battery level, and other data On the back side are two paddle shifters, which can be used both in-game and to "shift up" and "shift down" gears on the go-kart

For me, at 6'5" tall, the GoKart Pro 2 was a bit cramped and I had to fold myself down to fit in the seat

The top speed of the Pro 2 is 267 mph, 4 mph faster than the original There are three driving modes that limit the maximum speed: Eco (5 mph), Sport (11 mph), and Race (267 mph), but the maximum speed can be increased or decreased on the fly by using the paddle shifters in manual mode

The Pro 2 is powered by a 4,800-watt air-cooled motor and a 432 Wh battery, which Segway claims can travel up to 155 miles before needing a charge

Even in sport mode, even in a parking lot, the Pro 2 felt very fun to drive Like Segway's other go-karts, the Pro 2 has a handbrake on the right side that allows you to power slide or drift into turns I really didn't want to get out of the car

Then I went inside and found the GoKart Pro 2 hooked up to a gaming console Segway has not yet officially announced the partnership, so I can't tell you which gaming console it is (Segway has not yet officially announced the partnership, so I cannot say which console) Once I started the game, I used the Pro 2's controls just as I would on the track: accelerate to move the car, brake to stop, and steer to turn I accelerated to move the car, braked to stop, and steered to turn In no time at all, I was roaring down the road

But there was another layer of realism added by the Segway: the Pro 2's seat had tactile feedback built into it, so every time I ran over a tree or a fence or hit another car, I could feel it with my entire body I am a poor gamer, so for all the work Haptics does, I essentially got a lower back massage

At $2,000, the Segway GoKart Pro 2 is not a cheap investment As much as I enjoyed driving it, it would be hard to find a reason to buy it Others would have made the same calculation But now that go-karts can be used off the road as well as on it, gamers may want to give it a try

Check out all the top gadgets presented at the show in our Best of CES 2024 awards You can also check out Tom's Guide's TikTok channel for the latest videos from CES