FWD Golf Cart?????

geb

It may seem crazy but here goes. Here in eastern North Carolina we have gotten about 2-7 inches of snow (depending on location) and everyone is slipping and sliding, as we only get this every few years. Thus watching these yo yos drive put me to thinking. We all know that a front wheel drive vehicle will go almost anywhere a four wheel drive will go. After reading the posts about reversing the rear end on Club Cars and having a result of reverse being faster than forward, I began thinking if anyone had ever tried to turn the body around on a cart and make it FWD (front wheel drive). I know there would be a lot of details to work out, but it could be done with some work and backyard engineering. Has it been done before and if so what were the results? I know it can be done but would it be worth it? One thing for sure is that everyone in the neighborhood wouldn't have one like it.
I put it in this section because if I do one it will be with a B&S 16HP Vanguard that I already have. Mr. Moderator, if it needs moving please do so and I certainly understand.
Looking forward to your replies folks.

BGW

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pachanga90

The biggest issue with this would be controlling it.Your steering will now be in the rear,very hard to control at moderate to high speed,ever drive a forklift or go 20 in reverse in a car and turn the wheel quickly?A better way would be to get a Bad Boy Buggy front axle or build your own with steering and make a true Fwd.It would be an interesting project.Hope this helps.

geb

What is a 'Bad Boy Buggy"?

93yellowclubcar

An electric 4 wheel drive cart, was based on an EZGO.

sho305

You would need CV joints in the spindles, but some small fwd car might be able to donate for a project like this or a front from a 4x4 quad. However I was passing fwd cars in the ice/snow this week one after the other in a 4x4 truck with new tires. My car with snow tires gets around better than most cars just because of the tires, though nothing works well on pure ice. What helps is the engine weight over the tires, a rwd only has that if the engine is in the rear such as a 911 or old VW bug, etc...but a golf cart is rear engined. I find with mine in the snow it does not steer that well, spinning or brake skidding helps it turn better. It goes good until it gets too deep, much like a car or truck. A 4x4 will go better but you still end up needing tracks to go on top of it (the snow) to distribute the weight. Plowing through it instead of going over it, takes a lot of energy.

pachanga90

You could build axle-shafts with u-joints,like a 4x4 truck fairly easily.The whole thing isn't impossible,just time consuming,and kinda pricey,especially if you don't have the machining equipment to make the parts yourself.An older 4x4 Polaris chain-driven front end would be the ticket if you wanted to skip the major fabrication and design,and just modify to fit.Hope this helps.

mcdave71

The reason front wheel drive works is because the weight of the motor and trans is on the tires. making something front wheel drive alone doesn't magically fix the problem.

ericmiyako

mcdave is absolutely correct... so just put all your batteries directly over the back tires and go for it! When I was a kid growing up in WV, pickup truck drivers used to load their beds with a bunch of weight for this very reason.

KLA

And when I was a kid growing up and driving (aircooled) VWs, we could beat any pickup truck driving up a hill in snow.

Beaner913

I was at the Golf industry Show today and there was a company that has come up with brushless motors that mount on the front spindles to make a n electric cart 4wd! The kit is about $1000.00. If I find the name of the company I will post it?