The Best Kart, Tire, and Glider Setups in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe

We all have our favorite characters in Mario Kart 8, but they aren’t all created equal. Who you choose and the equipment they use will all factor into your overall performance.

Some setups are better than others. Here is our recommendation of the best kart, tire, and glider combo choices in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe.

Related: All Shortcut Locations in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe’s Booster Course Pass

Best Choices for Kart, Tires, and Glider in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe

Before we begin looking at the best karts, tires, and gliders, keep in mind that your character selection will also alter your overall performance. The “best” choice for all of these options comes down to personal preference and how you want to play.

If you go with a heavier character like Bowser, Donkey Kong, or Wario, you will have lower acceleration, but higher top speed. Lighter characters like any of the babies or Toad are the opposite with high acceleration, but a lower top speed. If you are looking for purely the best performance, we recommend sticking with middle and heavyweight drivers but play around with your build to find something you like.

Biddybuggy, Roller Tires, Cloud Glider

This combination gives you high acceleration with pretty standard rates for all other stats. Use this with a heavy character to get them moving quickly. The character we recommend with this build would be Roy, as his stats synergize well with the higher acceleration.

GLA, Slick Tires, Wario Wing

If all you are looking for is top speed, this combo gives you that while also giving you a heavier build to be harder to knock around. You are trading off acceleration and traction with this so beware if you go off track or are hit by opponents. Make sure you use Wario with this, as he could benefit from the high speed.

Blue Falcon, Azure Roller Tires, MKTV Parafoil

For this build, you are giving yourself significant acceleration boosts with pretty good speed. The Azure Rollers also help give your handling and traction a nice boost. We recommend you use the character Dry Bones with this loadout, as many players often go with him for this.

Tanooki Kart, Retro Off-Road Tires, Super Glider

This set is great for anyone who loves taking shortcuts and going off-road. Your traction is really high with respectable speed and acceleration here. Expect pretty good handling as well. A lot of MK8 players say that Waluigi goes pretty well with this loadout.

Circuit Special, Slick Tires, Plane Glider

This build is for players who value top speed above all else, as stats like traction and acceleration are going to suffer immensely. Because of its difficulty, this build is more advanced than the others, so we don’t recommend it to new players. The character Morton pairs very well with this build, though any heavy character should fare well.

Look, we all know that Mario Kart 8 is a pretty difficult game. Figuring out the right builds and character pairings is a struggle in of itself. You’ll also need to know how to change custom items in Mario Kart 8 as well to excel in this racing game. Check out our Gamepur guides for more info.