Pre-Buy Checklist Thread

[Chilly]

Guys,

I feel like I got off fairly easy when I bought my cart. I knew nothing about them, and when I showed up I determined that what the seller advertised was indeed by all outward appearances a genuine golf cart. Beyond that I could have been taken full advantage of. Having read a lot on this forum I now realize how disastrously an uninformed buyer could be hosed. I'm thinking a discussion on what to look for and what tools to take along may be useful. I'll let you guys kick it off if you please.

Chilly

[mikeasis]

Id say clutches are a big one as they can be costly. Tires, brakes, suspension and steering.

Probably a good idea to take a compression gauge also.

[CP241]

First and most important, research what you are going to look at before you go to look at it. Message forums, service manuals, etc. The more info you can find to familiarize with the better. Message forums are great to give an idea of "common problems". EBay is also a great resource to get an idea of repair pricing for those common issues (clutches, starter, ignition, etc) so you can use this when negotiating. Information is key! This same information can be applied.to pretty much anything... car, ATV, motorcycle, etc.

When going to look at it, I would take a spark plug socket, compression tester, long q-tips (the long ones like.dr offices have that are like a foot long) and a good flashlight.

People love to pressure wash the crap out of things so first inspect visually. Use the flashlight. Look for signs of oil leaks, rust, rounded off bolts, bolts that are new and shiny when others around it are not, etc. This will give an indication of what has been worked on in the motor or trans.

Then pull the dipstick and put the q-tips in until it bottoms out. Swab it out a bit and then pull it out and look for any signs of tar, glitter, or anything shiny. This could be sludge if tar-like indicating oil changes were not maintained. If you see glitter it's generally signs of bearing or other damage. Some ATV's or dirt bikes with wet clutches some glitter is normal clutch material wear. But golf cart clutches are external so there should not be any glitter in the oil. They can change the oil just before they put it up for sale, but just changing the oil won't flush out any sludge or glitter.

Pull the plug and check compression. Reference the service manual for a normal reading.

Look at the spark plug. There's plenty of sites online to show how to read a spark plug, but the condition of a spark plug can write a book about how the engine is really running.

Then test drive. Make sure you are able to get the engine nice and hot. Listen for abnormal noises, rattles, ticking, etc. Check alignme t while you drive, is the steering wheel centered? Turn the wheel lock to lock is it smooth or notchy? Is acceleration smooth and strong or is there hesitation?

And add this to any normal visual inspection you would normally do. Body, alignment, tires, etc. Grab the wheels and pull to check for wobble and play (tie rods, wheel bearings, king pin, etc).