Aftermarket Battery Gauge Wiring

Rootman

Currently I’m restoring a fleet of 2013 CC 48v Precedents for rental purposes. They’re being prepared for street legal use.

I hate the Club Car’s low-battery light. It’s hard to see in direct sunlight & only comes on 5 minutes before the cart dies.

I’m installing bright backlit voltage meters so a renter can estimate the cart’s range. I found continuous 48v power behind the dash which works great, but it won’t turn off with the ignition key.

If I wire it through my keyed voltage reducer, (Volt-0017) then it will only read 12 volts. Do you have any creative ideas on how to wire this so it turns on & off with the ignition?

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NoleFan4Ever

You can come off the cold side of the key switch which is where the Blue wire is now (just install a wire tap in line). The Green wire is on the Hot side.

Most just leave it on as it is a very, very low draw on your 48v pack.

Rootman

Well that seems pretty straight forward. 48 volts to the ignition switch? Of course there is because the factory doesn’t install any voltage reducers. I guess I need a voltage meter now.

Thanks for the help NoleFan.

PS: I admire your DS build; looks great!

NoleFan4Ever

Thanks, shes a site to see and fun to ride. All show, I do not put that one in the woods or off road, it is strictly for cruising and having fun. All the other ones catch heck though... Lol

Rootman

So my opinion previously was that leaving the battery gauge ‘on’ all the time was just a lazy way to install it. Now I’m on the fence whether it’s better or not to switch the gauge on/off with the ignition.

Advantage to wiring it ‘on’ all the time is that you can always glance at the dashboard to see if your in run or tow mode... nice advantage when you’re towing carts around an island all the time.

Disadvantage: rental customers will see the backlit gauge ‘on’ when they park and it’ll confuse them into thinking they didn’t shut the golf car down properly.

Hmmm... don’t know which way I like better...?

gefflong

I don't have a problem leaving them on all the time.

I figure if my 1980's solar powered calculator can run off of my desk lamp... it's not drawing enough power to even worry about.

Plus, I like seeing the battery level at any time with a glance.

NoleFan4Ever

I like all mine "hot" all the time. Then I know what I have anytime I want. It is a minuscule draw...

Bobbob

In my opinion you want to keep it as simple as you can. I would hook it up to blue wire to only turn on when key is switch on. You will always have a few people that did not see that the meter was live when they rented the cart. This will prevent call backs from those people that didn’t realize the meter was hot. Also with the meter on all the time it attracts attention to cart. Which may attract the wrong crowd.



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Rootman

Good point - I hadn’t thought about attracting unwanted attention especially at night when all the tourists are piss drunk.

On a disappointing note the demo meter I purchased is a POS. It’s all over the map with its voltage meter readings while you drive. It shows 40% when the cart is dead, and then reads 70% if you let it sit there for an hour w/o charging. I bought it cuz it’s bright and easy to read, all of which is meaningless due to the garbage it spews.

Recommendations?

handtools

I have had good luck with these.

https://www.cartsunlimited.net/battery-meters.html