Workhorse suspension improvement

bigred-driver

All right, I've got the cart tore down to the frame and I'm going through making an inventory of parts that need replacing. The front and rear shocks are toast. I would like to go with coil overs but is that too much with the front leaf springs? Also how can you tell if the leaf springs (both front and rear) need to be replaced. Oh yea my BIG BLOCK arrived yesterday!!! It kills me to see it sitting in the box when the frame is not ready for the install yet.
One more question, does any one have pictures of how they placed their rear springs on top of the axle. It looks like you have to cut the top bumper plate off to mount the springs. I will post some pictures of the cart soon.
Thanks, Jimbo



2000 workhorse

ruredy

I cut the bottoming out mount and that center pin off then use a 2 3/8" spring perch. I place it in the center of where the pin was, and the angle will determine itself depending on how tall of perches or spacers you use. (ie:how much lift you want) The plate on top where the shock mounts is for a gas TXT then some threaded rod to hold it all together. I have done these using u-bolts and no plate and using shock extenders to make up the difference. It's pretty easy to do, also you can swap the drum brake plates to the opposite sides so your brakes come out on the bottom instead of the top. that helps with some clearance issues on the cables.
I only mess with the springs if the cart leans to one side or another, the workhorses have heavy duty spring in the rear so it should be pretty stiff back there. If your going to get a long travel for the front then I wouldn't be buying shocks for whats there now. I have a set of coils that go on shocks on the front of one of my carts, it helps. I have air shocks on the front of my avatar cart, (airbags on a stick) they also help a lot but I don't have much for air in them.

bigred-driver

Thanks Jon for the pictures and info. When you said you just use threaded rod, do you keep the bottom plate and run the rod through the top plate and bottom? Where can you get new spring perches and top plates from and do the spring perches need to be welded in? The cart does not lean to bad so I guess the rear springs are ok. The lift that I got is a Jakes 5". I had the same lift on my other cart. Any way thanks again for the info.
Jimbo

ruredy

You can get the perches for Northern or Tractor Supply. You don't have to do any welding unless you want to.


You can also use u-bolts instead of the plates and get shock extenders. I don't have the shocks on the back of this cart with the u-bolts. It doesn't really need them because the springs are so stiff.



The plate is an Ezgo part - (isomount base plate 72028-g01)
The ones in the pics are left overs from different kits I have used. so there not factory ones.

bigred-driver

Jon, thanks so much for the time you've taken to help me. I have noticed that you are one of the most helpful people on this site! Thats the info that I needed. I'm in the process of doing some frame repair to get this thing ready to paint. What ever golf course this cart was at made some shoddy repairs to this thing. They used a lawn mower blade to repair part of the front frame. I just cut it out and will replace it with some channel iron. Any way thanks again for your help!! I hope to get some photos up tonight after I'm done playing with the frame.
Jimbo

stuntrider1196

Hey ruredy Could you just remove all your axle housing bolts and spin them upside down and then your factory plate would then be on top? The bolt pattern looks like it is the same all around. Just a thought I didnt go look at mine yet.

bigred-driver

I thought about that too but I noticed that where it bolts up to the differential has a half moon shaped bolt pattern on it. I don't know if that would work or not.

ruredy

On those mounts you would need to cut them off the tube them weld them back on the top of the oppisite side to get it to work like that. Even if you could rotate the housing (I don't think it will) Just flipping it would put the shock mount hole in the wrong location and it would be at the wrong angle to the springs.

stuntrider1196

Hey it was worth a shot

todwil

when I lift the back of the ezgo gas '94 1/2 and newer, I cut the locating pins off till theres about 3/8" still left then grind a notch in the rubber part of the bird cage right at the split, this seems to keep the axle locked in place
then you can drill the centering hole on the shock plate, I put the shock plate under the leaf spring and above the bird cages with the u-bolts going
over the leaf springs, Oh and be care not over tighten the u-bolts since the
bird cages are cast aluminum..