Stealth NightHawk Amps Diving on Acceleration

cjs127

Hello everyone. I am new to the forums because for the first time, i have an issue with my Stealth NightHawk Hybrid cart.

For those that don't recognize the name, Stealth was a US electric cart manufacturer of off road/hunting carts. they went out of business in 2013.

My NightHawk is a 72 V (6 12 V batteries) system with an onboard gas generator that will charge the batteries on the fly.

I replaced the OEM water system batteries with AGM sealed maintenance free batteries last summer. I don't use the cart over the winter so i probably have barely 20 hours on these new batteries.

I have verified my batteries and charger are good through a series of testing with both the battery and charger manufacturers.

My issue with the cart is as soon as i push down on the accelerator, my amps are diving to almost zero and the motor starts jerking or lurching the vehicle back and and forth and will hardly move.

With my cart manufacturer out of business, i have no support and no local dealers that work on these vehicles.

Can anyone point me in a direction to start trying to figure out where to go? I'm convinced the problem is within the cart somewhere and not a battery issue.

Thanks in advance and please let me know if there is any other invformation i can supply that would help.

BGW

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sunoco

[QUOTE=cjs127;1433723]

My NightHawk is a 72 V (6 12 V batteries) system with an onboard gas generator that will charge the batteries on the fly.

I replaced the OEM water system batteries with AGM sealed maintenance free batteries last summer. I don't use the cart over the winter so i probably have barely 20 hours on these new batteries. The original batteries should have been Trojan t-1275s. If you changed them to AGM did you also change the setting on your charger from flooded lead acid to agm?


My issue with the cart is as soon as i push down on the accelerator, my amps are diving to almost zero and the motor starts jerking or lurching the vehicle back and and forth and will hardly move.

With my cart manufacturer out of business, i have no support and no local dealers that work on these vehicles. I offer supportparts and am in the process of getting production back going.

Can anyone point me in a direction to start trying to figure out where to go? I'm convinced the problem is within the cart somewhere and not a battery issue. I would check the throttle. It's a black box located on the inside of the passenger rail on the frame, attached to an aluminum bracket. Please see the attached testing procedures for the electrical components.
[QUOTE]

Attached Files

Stealth Controller testing.pdf (1.14 MB, 0 views)

cjs127

[quote=sunoco;1433734][QUOTE=cjs127;1433723]
SUNOCO, thank you so much for your quick reply, you have definitely given me a place to start looking. Much appreciated! Some feedback below.

My NightHawk is a 72 V (6 12 V batteries) system with an onboard gas generator that will charge the batteries on the fly.

I replaced the OEM water system batteries with AGM sealed maintenance free batteries last summer. I don't use the cart over the winter so i probably have barely 20 hours on these new batteries. The original batteries should have been Trojan t-1275s. If you changed them to AGM did you also change the setting on your charger from flooded lead acid to agm?I have an Eagle Performance Series Model 7212 charger. I believe it autosenses the type of battery. From what i see in the manual, the only time you need to change the settings is when moving from Wet/AGM To Gel Cell type batteries, but not when moving from Wet to AGM.
Is this your understanding as well?


My issue with the cart is as soon as i push down on the accelerator, my amps are diving to almost zero and the motor starts jerking or lurching the vehicle back and and forth and will hardly move.

With my cart manufacturer out of business, i have no support and no local dealers that work on these vehicles. I offer supportparts and am in the process of getting production back going. Awesome, I may need parts depending on what i find. Also might need more support LOL

Can anyone point me in a direction to start trying to figure out where to go? I'm convinced the problem is within the cart somewhere and not a battery issue. I would check the throttle. Will do so for sure. It's a black box located on the inside of the passenger rail on the frame, attached to an aluminum bracket. Please see the attached testing procedures for the electrical components.
Thanks for the PDF, will definitely follow these steps.

sunoco

Did you get a chance to go through this yet?

cjs127

I haven't gone through the electrical testing PDF yet. i haven't had time to remove the outer body to get to the components.

However, i did crawl under last night and check out the black throttle box you mentioned. I couldn't see anything apparent (cut wiring, loose connections etc). Anything special i should be looking for?

thanks

sunoco

No, you need to do the testing procedure. You should be able to remove the access panel under the rear bed/seat to access the electrical components to do the testing.

brennon24

SUNCO you seem to be well informed on these stealth vehicles and I am new to them. I have a 2012 Stealth Nighthawk 72V and the plug on the end of the on board charger keeps arcing/burning and I am having trouble figuring out if the actual charger is bad or there is another problem. Do you have any insight or know of any other sites that might have ideas? Also, I live in MS and I thought you had listed a guy that might have parts but I could not locate him? THANKS!!!

sunoco

When you say the plug end are you talking about the AC plug left of the steering wheel or the end of the extension cord when you plug it into the wall?

brennon24

Left of the steering wheel coming from the onboard charger. Pro Charging said to send charger back and that is what I did so I guess I will see when it returns. Thanks anyway!