2008 TXT PDS cart running HOT!

getawaycarts

I have a customers 2008 EZGO TXT. Mods include: 6 inch lift, 22 inch off road tires, 400 amp Alltrax controller, 2 gauge cables, and now a high torque motor from red hawk. the battery pack isn't unheard of, but not exactly usual either...it consists of 6 group 31 batteries ( 12 volt deep cycle's) batteries 1,2&3 are wired in series for a 36 volt pack, and batteries 4,5&6 are also wired in series for a 2nd 36 volt pack. then those 2 battery packs are wired together in parallel to make 1 big 36 volt pack. the customer doesn't own a car and live in St.Louis city, after a fairly long continuous run the stock motor burned up. in went the high torque motor. on a full charge I went for a non stop drive to test it while tracking speeds and distances on my phones GPS app. It was starting to Die at about 20 miles of driving with an average speed of 18 Mph with a top speed of 30mph. (no stops except for stop lights) so I pulled it in the shop and using a infrared thermometer the case temperature was 220*F. the controller wasn't overly hot nor were the battery cables.

so that's my story, here are my questions.

Is that a temperature I need to be concerned with?
Can I adjust(tune) the alltrax controller to help not create so much heat?

BGW

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kernal

"The max recommended operating temperature for the Class-H insulation of the Field and Armature windings of a stock PDS motor is 356°F, but there are no provisions for measuring the actual winding temperatures, so winding temperature is measured indirectly at the motor's case. When indirectly measured at the case, the max recommended temperature is 239°F." This is a quote from a well respected member of this forum. There are other references here that suggest keeping the case temp below 200°F. You might call the motor manufacturer for their recommendation.

Some low pressure off road type tires produce excessive drag reducing top speed and range but increasing heat. What is the tire pressure and if low try ~ 20psi.

Turning "turbo" off on the Alltrax may reduce motor heat and possibly top speed also. Since you are testing try that first (free).

I'm sure you know deep cycle batteries are not the same as golf cart batteries and not optimum for max range or service life though there may be some Optimas for an exception to that rule. I'd be curious to know the ah rating of the batteries in the cart.

High speed gears in this cart?

getawaycarts

According to what you are saying I am running on the ragged edge and I'm not real comfortable with that. Turning turbo off is a good idea. as far as performance goes, the customer isn't real concerned with top speed as he is with distance. ie: he wants to go far regardless of how long it takes him. I don't want to limit amps so it goes slow but then not be able to pull hilly streets...really this guy should have shorter tires I think. what about cooling these motors? do they (whoever they is!) sell heat sinks for applications like this? also if he i wired his cart where all six 12 volt batteries were in series giving me 72 volts how would this affect the set up? meaning will the motor run hotter or cooler, shorter or longer distances, faster or slower.

I guessing I could wire it for 72 volts and turn down the controller to somewhere in the 200 amp range effectively getting the same power but with less amps...but the range is really a big consideration with this guy and I'm not sure how this would affect the range.

(sorry I know this post is a bit of a ramble!)

kernal

I have no experience with a 72v conversion. At the least this would include a new controller, and charger. Here is a link: http://www.buggiesgonewild.com/extre...onversion.html

Its long but you can probably decide if it is something you want to pursue after a few pages.

I would still see if turbo is on and if it is try a test with it off. This may be all you need.

Street tires would be best probably, but might be hard to find ones that would look good with a 6" lift. 20" tall maybe

Max range would be attained with the most AH you can stuff in the cart. (more lead in the sled). Included chart is a little dated but you get the idea. Pretty much accepted that you need golf cart(traction) batteries for max performance, range per charge and service life. Running 48v with 8x6v batteries is probably best for max range. Would need a different charger also.

Attached Images

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