Golf Carts

[BOFF]

Ok.

Looking at getting a golf cart for our personal property. I don't need 4x4 as most all our roads are able to be driven on by a car. We have steep hills, a few water crossings with rock bottoms, but good roads. I like the lifted carts with 22" tires or smaller. Not sure if with 22" tires, I need a larger motor, and controller, etc. I don't really think I want anything like a BadBoy buggy, Stealth, etc. but open to suggestions of why, why not.

School me on carts, show me your pics, tell me about your experiences. Thanks in advance.



God Bless,
David B.

[X-Tennessean]

Good post as I am in the market as well  ! From the one's I have talked to that HAD BBbuggy's and gone to golf carts say they like golf carts better and the others are waste of money. I have not found one person to speak highly of BadBoy Buggies.

[JELLYHEAD]

BOFF, IMHO your best off with a club car ds model IQ. I think '05 & up are IQ cars. Buggies Unlimited has all the stuff you need to make it go. Jakes long arm lift kit, finder flares ect. One this old will prolly need new batteries. Most people use Trojan, crown batteries are better. They weigh more which means more lead, more lead the longer they will last & longer distance between charges. There is a club car distributor in B'ham by the airport, they can also hook you up with accesories if you want. They have a cool gunmount, get the one thats a few $ more. I'm not finished with mine, I have 48v '06 w/8v batteries, I plan to go with 6v batteries and add 2 more to get back to 48v (there is room for this) You just have to change the controller to make the charger work with the 6v batteries. You will need a new controler anyway with higher HP motor. These things are like anything else, the sky is the limit. Rattle can camo to a rap, cheep steel wheels, (spend more on tires). Just seems to me you can get more aftermarket support on club car. Mine came from dothan int. craigs list has pleanty. Shop around & you will have a really nice cart w/ 1/3 the money and that leaves more for turkey stuff!!!! Cartaholics is a good forum w/a club car section. Hope this helps, sorry no pics till i'm done.

[PureGold]

This is a EZ Go Golf Cart that a friend of mine bought from south carolina. This cart has been lifted, camo kit, nobby tires, gun racks, winshield, roof rack, onboard battery charger(like a boat), and has been upgraded with more torque. This is a 2 wheel drive machine and we had to cross two creek that were higher than average and go up some steep inclines. It was very muddy on the property the day we duck hunted and what totally surprised me was from a dead stop, up a steep muddy hill, it climbed right on out with no slippage. This Machine cost him about $5500. I can get the name of the guy in SC that is building them if you would like.

PG

[PureGold]

Another thing that I remember talking about with the owner of this cart was making sure that you get EZ Go! They make most of the golf carts that you will see at the golf courses. Plenty of parts around and most guys that work at powersports shops have typically worked on EZ Go because of their popularity.

JMO

[handcannon]

I have an 03 club car IQ DS that has a 6" lift kit with 22" offroad tires. The "IQ" means it has a regenerative braking system built in. When you are coasting down a hill or being towed, it puts a little bit of a charge back into the batteries. Not something that is really necessary or very beneficial either. A "DS" system just refers to the drive system which is basically the body style. These references only apply to club car carts.

I am still running the stock motor and controller on mine and I've been hunting with it for nearly 5 years. Running around in hilly areas really isnt a problem. Now trying to crawl up a steep bank like a ditch may be a problem, especially if your loaded down with an extra person and gear or mud. You may have to get a running start but its usually not a problem. About the only modification I have done is changing the battery cables from 6 ga. to 4 ga. It helps the juices flow and doesnt cause excessive heat which also drains the batteries faster.

If you are looking for a cart, I suggest finding one that has a 48 volt system. Look for how old the batteries are. A new set of good Trojans can cost up in the neighborhood of $700 but can last you 5 years or so if you take care of them. You can find procedures to recondition batteries and save you a good bit of money by making them last longer too. On the lead pad on top of the battery near the lead post that the cable connects to, most of the time a year is stamped into it. It will tell you how old the batteries are. If you see an "07" stamped, it's a 2007 battery. If your buying a lifted cart that has already been used offroad, check out the frame underneath. These frames are aluminum and can have stress cracks which can be a problem later.

A lift kit is not something that takes a rocket scientist to install. You can usually take off what you have and install the lift kit in a couple hours with a helper. No cutting and welding. A spindle lift kit is great and gives you a lot of front end clearance but it's not the most comfortable lift kit. I just replaced mine with a Super Sport  lift kit from All Sports Lifts. It was $350 from an ebay store brand new. It's a great lift kit that has all the necessary adjustments to set the tow end and camber on the front end. Jakes makes a great lift kit as well. Probably one of the better spindle lift kits available if that is the route you wish to take. Make sure the battery charger is in good condition and has not been subjected to weather. They can be temperamental and are usually a little pricey if you have to buy another one. Some can be repaired though without dumping a bunch of money. If you cant charge, you cant drive.

You really dont have to sink a lot of money into these carts to make a good turkey/deer hunting buggy. Your not gonna drag a set of disc to make a food plot or pull a heavy trailer behind like you can with a gas engine. But, with a change of wiring, fender flares (they will cover you with mud without them), gun rack, split / hinged windshield, lift kit and tires, you can have a fun cart to put the Mohican  sneak on them critters.

[BOFF]

WOOHOO!!

Great information guys!! Keep it up!!

I might actually make an intelligent decision on golf carts now!! 


God Bless,
David B.

[pullit]

I posted several pictures and a link to some great info in this thread.

http://oldgobbler.com/Forum/index.php/topic,17356.0.html

[Flydown]

David, I agree on Clubcar Being the way to go! Call David at Plaza Golf Cart in Demopolis. He will build you a cart for about the same price as you can order the stuff from Buggies Unlimited and do it yourself. He is part owner of the place and knows his stuff. He will also beat any price you get from any other dealer.

Chris.

 

Plaza Golf Cart Sales
       334-289-5891

[handcannon]

BTW, a really good forum to get just about any answers to questions you may have is at www.buggiesgonewild.com . There are like 53,000 members on there and there are a lot of different categories such as cart manufacturers, lifted and non lifted carts and such. There are a lot of wiring diagrams and parts breakdowns as well as maintenance techniques for all makes of golf carts. If you have a problem or a question, you can find your answer there. It has helped me several times. Plus, you can just view a ton of pictures of other peoples rigs they have built. Cool stuff.

[X-Tennessean]

This is a EZ Go Golf Cart that a friend of mine bought from south carolina. This cart has been lifted, camo kit, nobby tires, gun racks, winshield, roof rack, onboard battery charger(like a boat), and has been upgraded with more torque. This is a 2 wheel drive machine and we had to cross two creek that were higher than average and go up some steep inclines. It was very muddy on the property the day we duck hunted and what totally surprised me was from a dead stop, up a steep muddy hill, it climbed right on out with no slippage. This Machine cost him about $5500. I can get the name of the guy in SC that is building them if you would like.

PG

Good looking cart !!

[fountain2]

Boff ...im gonna be different and say gas.  I've had the electric and now a gas.  I had a club car with 10" lift,  26" tires, 48 volt beast motor and controller ...well u name it and it had it.  It was nice and had the power.  I would outrun all other carts in my neighborhood and then some......BUT...it did have a certain noise and the charging got aggregating.   Id always get on it and start riding and would be in constant worry about running low on battery later. 

Where I live a lot of people have carts and we ride a good bit.  I never went far with them in fear of getting stranded.  The gas carts do have a motor and will produce noise naturally...but its not all that bad to me.  I would much rather be able to jump on it and go and not worry about battery power.  I filled my cart up july 4th and ran it out over 5 months later...and I generally drive mine every day to work and then some on the weekends around the block and dirt roads.

[BOFF]

Boff ...im gonna be different and say gas.  I've had the electric and now a gas.  I had a club car with 10" lift,  26" tires, 48 volt beast motor and controller ...well u name it and it had it.  It was nice and had the power.  I would outrun all other carts in my neighborhood and then some......BUT...it did have a certain noise and the charging got aggregating.   Id always get on it and start riding and would be in constant worry about running low on battery later.  

Where I live a lot of people have carts and we ride a good bit.  I never went far with them in fear of getting stranded.  The gas carts do have a motor and will produce noise naturally...but its not all that bad to me.  I would much rather be able to jump on it and go and not worry about battery power.  I filled my cart up july 4th and ran it out over 5 months later...and I generally drive mine every day to work and then some on the weekends around the block and dirt roads.

Thanks for the input. I already have a Polaris Ranger crew, and four wheelers. I want something quiet. It's amazing the noise the  motors make and the way they scare the deer, even when your not accelerating and putting along.

God Bless,
David B.