Best upgrades for hills

capnmo54

Hey all i'm pretty new to the upgraded cart world. So i have a few questions. I have a 1997 ezgo medalist bone stock with brand new Trojan batteries. The kiddos love to ride around our property which has an abundance of very large steep hills. The problem is our cart struggles very hard to make it up these hills and sometimes even stops completely. What is the best way to upgrade my cart to achieve a good steady climb up these hills? I don't necessarily have to fly up the hills but i do want to make it up them without having to go up diagonally. Thanks in advance for the help.

BGW

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Olman

Is your wallet ready for this--
I have a 95 medalist that ran 12 mph and was really slow on hills. I first changed motors to an EMP 36 volt 2 speed motor. World of difference! Speed went to 24 mph and torque was much better but not really what I was looking for. I then changed all the cables to 2 ga., installed a 550 amp controller, HD f/r switch, 400 amp solenoid. Much better torque. Speed remained the same. I then upgraded to 48 volts. Speed went to 29/30 mph and the torque is where it should be. Hills are no problem. Went with 8 230 ah 6 volt batteries and the range has greatly improved.

If I were you, I would get ahold of ScottyB and discuss with him what you are wanting and he will set you up with an upgrade package. I would then consider upgrading your motor with PlumQuick, D&D, or EMP. They all have good products and great customer service.

Hope that helps. Dave

And welcome to BGW by the way

JohnnieB

Welcome to BGW!

Does it have a Series or a DCS drive. (If the controller cover has a Run/Tow switch on it, it is a DCS)

What model Trojan Batteries? (T-105 is standard, T-605 is economy grade, T-145 is Premium grade)

What size tires? (18" is standard height. Takes more torque to turn taller tires)

In general terms, without knowing what type drive system, you need a controller that allows the motor to draw more Amps along with cables and solenoid capable of delivering more amps from the battery pack. If it is a series drive, the F/R switch may also need upgrading.

It depends on how steep the hills are, but you also may need a high torque motor.
Max grade for a stock Medalist Electric is 25% Grade (or 14°). See attached chart for estimating your local hills.

Attached Images

	ezgoguide.jpg (78.0 KB, 0 views)
	Hill Grade Conversion Chart.JPG (71.3 KB, 0 views)

scottyb

I never suggest 30 mph for carts that kids, gramma, wives, etc. operate.
Use the chart Johnnie provided to determine your drive system, we can help you get up the hills provided your batteries are good.

Olman

I simply told the man what I did to overcome the torque issue he wants to solve. How far he wants to go with upgrades is up to him. I also advised him to discuss his wants and needs with you. Just trying to help. Should have kept my mouth shut I guess.

kellybell

Olman, its nice to see it happen to others! Its all good, see:

http://www.buggiesgonewild.com/elect...-question.html

capnmo54

Thanks guys for the suggestions. I have Trojan t-105 batteries and when I look under the seat I do not see a run/tow switch so I am guessing a series cart. The tires right now are 18". I should probably throw out there that I am also interested in lifting the cart and adding 20" to 23" tires on the cart, only if it does not effect the hill climb. Speed is really not my priority, because even when not on my property we like to take it to the lake, where we cant really go all that fast with cars and people coming and going. And there are some really steep hills around the campground to get to trails above and below the lake line. Nothing cooler than taking the kids up on top of the bluffs over looking the lake but also nothing lamer than getting stuck halfway up and explaining how cool it would have been to make it to the top.

JohnnieB

Olman & Kelly, I've done it too.
So has just about everybody that gives free advice on this forum.

That is the beauty of it, everybody is watching each others back.

JohnnieB

Going to a taller tire changes the final drive ratio, so you get more speed and have less torque.
Mathematically, a 20" tire will loose about 10% of the current torque while a 23" tire will loose about 22% of it.

To get more torque you have to allow the motor to draw more amps. A stock Series controller passes about 275A, so going to a 400A controller would increase torque by about 45%, which more than makes up for the lost torque caused by taller tires.

Lifting a cart raises the center of gravity and reduces lateral stability (Tips over easier), but adding spacers to increase track width offsets it to some degree.

If you stay below about 20" on tire height, you don't have to lift the cart for tire clearance.

If you are lifting for ground clearance, the differential pan is the lowest point and it stays the same no matter how much the body is lifted.
Taller tires increase the differential pan clearance by 1/2 the increase in tire height. (IE: Going from an 18" tire to a 20" tire increases the pan clearance by 1")

You mentioned speed wasn't a major concern, but for future reference. To increase the speed of a series drive cart, you have to change the final drive ratio (Tire height or gears in the differential) or increase the battery pack voltage; Or both.

Series drive carts, even the stock ones, have pretty decent low end torque, so they tend to run out of traction before the run out of torque going up steep hills, if everything else is working as it should. If your cart bogs down to a stop rather than losing traction going up a hill, chances are the the High current cables and or F/R switch have excessive resistance in them, so the motor isn't getting all the amps the battery pack is capable of producing.

As for tires, unless you plan on driving through swamps, avoid the low pressure tires. By low pressure I mean tires whose max inflation pressure is under 10PSI.

Sir Nuke

capnmo.....considering your situation, and what you are using your cart for, and the terrain you use it on.....

We now know you have a series cart. to get you where you want to go. the best thing you could do is to upgrade the controller to at least a 400A, a HD F&R Switch, HD Solenoid (or a SD Solenoid if you go to 500A), replace ALL of the high current cables with at least 4 ga. (2 ga. if you are going up to 500A)......you stock motor will work fine like it is.

Even if you go the extra mile and up grade to a 42v or 48v battery pack, the above equipment will work....you will also need to get a new charger.