duromax, Lifan, or stock rebuild???

clubcar26

hey all. fairly new to the site, long story short I got two club car golf carts for next to nothing, one is a 89 and one is a 93, the 89 has the engine and most everything else intact, the 93 is basically just a rolling chassis with a body. I wanted these carts cause I would like to build a side by side hunting rig without spending 10k or more on a new one. I got the 89 CC to run and drive but it seemed very weak, so i did a compression test and the best i could get was 60 psi with the pedal to the floor. I dont mind if it smokes a little but from what i read on here that is very low and prolly wont last to long. Now my problem is deciding what i should do, Do a complete rebuild on stock motor or but a big block in, I have the skill set and tools to complete the BB conversion but im just wondering if that would be my best bet for a reliable hunting rig? and if so what inexpensive clone is the best and which one are most people using for these swaps? the two engines i have seen people discussing are the duromax and the lifan. I dont need alot of horsepower just enough torque to putz down trails and up hills and maybe haul my 110lb chocolate lab around in. Do these clones rotate the right way for my stock 89 CC rearend?? sorry for all the questions right away but just cant wait to get this thing in the woods... thanks in advance, any comments/thoughts welcome

BGW

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stinger5

A Duromax or Lifan engine will work out pretty much the same. I have no direct experience with the Lifan so I'll let others chime in on that but the Duromax thus far has been very dependable and hauls around 600lbs of golfers and equipment easily. The rotation will be correct for 89 rear end (gas I assume ?) so the retention of forward and reverse will remain the same. Obviously it won't be a direct replacement and some fabrication will be required but if you read the posts here and do some research it really isn't that difficult. With the right tools and knowledge you and the Labrador will be tooling around in no time and at a fraction of the cost of a new replacement Kawasaki engine.

wooly15

Don't be fooled by the Lifan if you order from Home Depot. They advertise that the 15 hp has an 18 amp charging system...it doesn't. I didn't realize it until after I installed mine. I will say after looking at all the the duromax build pics, the Lifan seems more user friendly. Mine came with attachment points for throttle and choke cables. I didn't have to fab anything, just hooked my stock cable right up. I've loaded my carryall 6 (heavy as hell empty) with 4 adults and a load of wood on the back and it pulled hills like a champ. I was very impressed. I got the electric start model which is a bit more expensive....works out nicely because a cold lifan is not a happy lifan. It allows me to start it and let it warm up.

clubcar26

What's the cheapest clone to stick in these? Duromax runs about 270$ for recoil start and lifans 15hp recoil start runs about 250$. For 20$ more I can get electric start on the duromax. What else do I need to buy if im gonna run the stock clutches? How much is the crankshaft adapter? And for you guys who have the duromax. How does it run when its cold? What seems to be the best way to start the motor? Using the electric starter that comes with the engine or make a bracket for the charger/starter from the cc motor. And if I use the starter/alternator from the cc can I still set the engine to be key start instead of pedal start?

wooly15

From all my research the cheapest seems to be duromax. From what I've seen, they're all clones of the the honda GX390 and are built pretty much the same. The clutch adapter is around $45 from cart parts plus...and really that should be all you would need other that some metal for fabbing a new mount. All I used was a 1/8 " steel plate I found and re-used the stock mounting bolts. If you have a knack for fabbing, making a bracket for the stock starter/gen shouldn't be that bad...I didn't go that route. I extended the starter to the dash...but now I have shifting problems. Have to kill the motor to shift. If I had done the stock route...it wouldn't be an issue. This build was/is a b****, but was worth it in the end. If I had to do it again, it would take me 1/2 the time.

jwhranger

Wooly is right, the second time around the build would be soooo much easier. But thats because you are changing up the way the cart was made.

The power is awesome, completely worth it. Have you pulled the head on the 89 and seen whats underneath? Maybe just a new head gasket and you're back on the road?

Havent messed with club car gas yet, but I think the only thing you left out of what is needed is the fuel pump set up, which if you search this forum you will see the best ways to do it.

Really was a good project, and I know for sure I will do another one one day when I find a project cart for cheap with a bad motor.

clubcar26

Yeah I think In gonna do the duomax swap. The stock motor in the cart is prolly shot. I got the cart from a industrial place that maintence used 24/7 to get around on. I bet that motor/cart has 100k miles. Does anybody know how the starter /generator works on these C's? When you step on the pedal the starter gets power to crank the motor over but what tells the starter to stop when the motor starts? Im just thinking about fabing up a bracket to utilize the stock alt/starter because from what I have been reading the clones don't have the best charging systems. And I need to tear into my stop drive clutch. When you give the cart gas and the clutch starts to squeeze the belt it starts to make some terrible clunking noises. Any idea what this could be and what parts do I need to buy to fix it... thanks for all the help btw

clubcar26

Stock drive clutch*

stinger5

Technically the starter doesn't stop since the solenoid is constant duty but once a certain RPM's are reached the output voltage of the S/G is fed back to the battery via the voltage regulator. Hence its term, S/G. Depending on what you use the cart for you can fab up some brackets to run the motor on pedal start using the S/G or use the key switch supplied with the Duromax to have a switched on/off system via the engines own starter. I have both systems wired up. Since my cart is 99% 0n the golf course I prefer the pedal start but by having the key switch as well I have a back up in case I should throw the S/G belt. Of course, with the recoil system I have an additional means of starting should the battery die on me. I have my bases covered
Clutch rebuild kits are available all over the place but you should talk to Tom at CPP for some of the best advice available anywhere.
http://www.cartpartsplus.com/golf-ca...ches-ezgo.html

Syd Barrett

Take a look at Gilby's thread. He's done a Dmax conversion & I'm following a lot of his action as I'm in the middle of a very similar project (Dmax into a 88 Club car). It's been a bit of a challenge but I'm determined to do it right.

I think you may have an easier go of it if you go with a new clutch & use the electric starter on the Dmax. I'm not sure, but if you get a new clutch you may not have to worry about cutting the shaft & buying an adapter........& you don't have to worry about fixing up an adapter for the S/G. The down side is the clutch will cost as much as the engine.........& you have no charger for the battery.

Others here can give you more info as they have more experience.