While some things can be pretty pricy like the bingos, as someone who's been playing a lot, I can tell you that you don't need the best karts to win speed games. The item mode is kind of p2w, but the game still offers you some good item karts in certain events or the free part of the passes. As an example, the best kart for me on solo item was a free event one, better than the ones I paid for. The bigger clubs are very organized, so you can also make some very good friends to chat and play with.