Golf Cart Help
 

I have a 2005 36 volt EZ-Go golf cart that has been jacked up about 5" and mud tires have been installed and I have purchased 6 new Interstate batteries about 3 months ago.

I am having a hell of a time keeping a charge on the batteries when I go hunting or just driving around the yard for extended periods of time. Does anybody have any experience with these carts that can point me in a direction of things to test?? My Dad has a Bad Boy buggie and he runs circles around me in terms of distance and speed. I know they are 48 volt carts, but I have ridden in 36 volt carts that are much faster and powerful than mine.

Thanks.

How long of run time are you seeing? On flat land or hilly? First thing to do is check the pack voltage right after the charger turns off and then again 30 min later. Posts those and i can help you futher. Have you done any mods to the electrical system/wires?

call my brother at interstate batteries in Alexandria he will help you 3184430354 ask for shane tell him i told you to call he is very knowledge able about these and will help you as much as possible over the phone unless you are close and can bring it to him

Did You lift it or bought it this way because there is a module of some sort that has to be changed for the extra draw on the batteries it will also cause the motor to get hot fast. i had a freind tell me this whenhe was going to lift his cart he didnt do it because the module was 500 dollars itself. check into it.

That is just for pds carts and would not cause these issues. If the pds controller was straining and it would heat up and go out. He either has wiring/conection problems or battery/charger issues.

Your cart is not good anymore, it is broken beyond repair. Tell me where you live and I will come pick it up, just to get it out of your yard. lol

Seriously, have the batteries tested. Just because they are new does not mean one or more don't have a bad cell in them.

check the batteries. and check to make sure they are all wired in series........or parrallel

whichever it is suppose to be

one backwards or loose wire could cause you to overdraw

Might can get one of those solar chargers... i think there it a battery maintainer you can get also..

It could be the charger, connections or a bad battery. Always put distilled water in your battery's

where do you switch forward and reverse? on the dash or between your legs?

Sounds like one of the older carts Probably by the leg

Cart
 

Between my legs. It's a TXT cart.

then it shouldnt be the controller. Do you charge your batteries every night? How long do you charge them for and does the charger turn off?

I only charge my batteries when they are drained. I leave them hooked up to the charger over night and the charger does turn off.

One thing I haven't mentioned yet is when I'm driving the cart, the motor makes a little ticking noise. I don't hear that noise on other 36 volt carts I drive.

You may have a grounding issue. You may want to remove you ground and slightly grind the grounding point. I know this will cause a battery to discharge and actually permanently fail on hydraulic systems. A cart should be no different. Check your ground and then, have each of your batteries tested. This problem will typically burn a cell in at least one battery. If it is bad, you may be able to pull off a free replacement if they are new enough and you don't disclose EVERY detail.:smokin:

well for future reference you should charge them every time you use the cart. Can wait a day or so but never anylonger. the worste thing you can do to the batteries besides overchargeing them is to run them down constantly. Did you check connections? if not take every connection off and clean and replace and check every month or so. also check water levels then to. even more if you ride on hilly/ bumpy terrain. next step is to check the pack voltage right after charge and a half hour or so afterward.

is the ticking noise coming from the motor or the controller? also is the ticking constant or just when you press and depress the pedal. how loud is it?

Thanks for the help. I will try all those suggestions this weekend.

So what about the tick?

I only notice the ticking noise when the cart is rolling. I don't know exactly where it is coming from, but I suspect it is coming from the motor area behind the seat.

the controller is right under the seat so it could be either one. But the noise shouldnt be the issue. Also tis weekend check each battery seperatly after the half hour. they should be right at 6.6 volts each and not vary than more than .1 volts from each other. the pack voltage should read around 38.4 after the half hour.

Thanks for all your help Cabwiz2!!

no problem i went through alot of this last year. I really learned alot fixing up a few of them. I didnt hunt last winter and that was my project for the winter. i bought a few broken carts and fixed them and jacked them up and sold them. didnt make any money but i paid for all of the parts for my projects so i think i came out good on the deal to not have spent any money on a hobby.