2014 TXT motor cuts out in regular intervals till rpm comes down then motor returns

[cfoxcvg1988]

2014 TXT, 13.5 Kawasaki (I believe this was repowered in 2018 when it was stretched) After about 5 min of continuous operation the motor will cut out (like you turned off the key), voltage also instantly drops from 14.6v and returns to battery voltage of 12.3v. Once motor reaches a lot rpm it instantly recovers. Also seems to happen on hills or under loads more often.
After the first occurrence the intervals are random. One thing that is consistent is the recovery rpm. It seems to recover at the same RPM every time. I have tried fluttering the peddle and keeping it pegged. Same outcome each time.
I highly doubt this is fuel related. Seems electrical because the motor instantly does and you start to glide.
I am surprised the voltage drops because the motor still has RPM. I would expect rpm to gradually drop but it goes from 14.6-12.3 the instant this happens.

[Cartmaster]

Pictures in the engine compartment would be good. Is it set up with a pedal switched starter generator like the older robin engine or is it started on the key with a magneto/stator style charger in the engine?

If it is just a replacement engine or OEM using the older style starter generator circuit, then i would suspect, either fuse, pedal switch, ignition switch or solenoid or even the wiring /connections in between. That is the only way i can see that the battery voltage would drop while the engine is turning because if the solenoid drops out it effectively isolates the battery from the charger and also power to the engine ignition system. I would check all of the above plus any related ground connections

So basically, if the solenoid drops out, the engine will stop running and the generator can not supply charge to the battery, as your symptoms are exactly this, you should be able to isolate the fault easily. Something is probably causing the solenoid to drop out.

The circuit follows the route of the things i first said to check, in that order.

Battery to fuse, fuse to reverse switch (just used as a connector so not your issue unless a bad connection ) then down to the pedal switch. from the pedal switch the circuit goes to the ignition switch and from the ign switch to the solenoid. there will only be power at the solenoid if the ign switch is on, the fuse is good and the pedal switch is operated. along with the wiring being in good condition. there will be a short wire from a solenoid small connector to ground. this may be your issue if there is corrosion where this wire connects to ground.

You could run a wire from this solenoid connection directly to the battery negative to test. If the problem goes away, then it is your ground connection failing. If i recall correctly the power wire to the solenoid on a 2014 may be red and the ground wire black, but i am not absolutely sure. On the older models i think power was blue and ground was black.

You say that it comes back to life at the same low rpm's every time, so my thinking here is that with no load on the circuit, the bad connection reinstates itself and fires the solenoid back up to run the engine.

This is as simple as i can make it for you i think.

Hope this helps.

EDIT.
One other thing that would cause the engine to suddenly cut out would be i believe (on a 2014 model) is possibly the relay that i think was added to the circuit to kill the engine when you take your foot off the pedal, If part of this circuit is playing up it would stop the engine but i don't think it would cause the generator to stop charging instantly! only when the revs drop low enough to convert the generator back to a starter. I could be wrong here?

[cfoxcvg1988]

Thanks for the info. See attached photos.
Corrosion does not seem to be any issue, every connection is very clean. I will run a dedicated ground and test it tomorrow as you suggested just in case. Fuse is good and terminals are clean. I considered the peddle as a possibility so I have tried multiple positions, fluttering it and always the same outcome. You just hold the peddle down no motion and it will recover at the same point every time. Just seemed an unlikely culprit.
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Originally Posted by Cartmaster

Pictures in the engine compartment would be good. Is it set up with a pedal switched starter generator like the older robin engine or is it started on the key with a magneto/stator style charger in the engine?

If it is just a replacement engine or OEM using the older style starter generator circuit, then i would suspect, either fuse, pedal switch, ignition switch or solenoid or even the wiring /connections in between. That is the only way i can see that the battery voltage would drop while the engine is turning because if the solenoid drops out it effectively isolates the battery from the charger and also power to the engine ignition system. I would check all of the above plus any related ground connections

So basically, if the solenoid drops out, the engine will stop running and the generator can not supply charge to the battery, as your symptoms are exactly this, you should be able to isolate the fault easily. Something is probably causing the solenoid to drop out.

The circuit follows the route of the things i first said to check, in that order.

Battery to fuse, fuse to reverse switch (just used as a connector so not your issue unless a bad connection ) then down to the pedal switch. from the pedal switch the circuit goes to the ignition switch and from the ign switch to the solenoid. there will only be power at the solenoid if the ign switch is on, the fuse is good and the pedal switch is operated. along with the wiring being in good condition. there will be a short wire from a solenoid small connector to ground. this may be your issue if there is corrosion where this wire connects to ground.

You could run a wire from this solenoid connection directly to the battery negative to test. If the problem goes away, then it is your ground connection failing. If i recall correctly the power wire to the solenoid on a 2014 may be red and the ground wire black, but i am not absolutely sure. On the older models i think power was blue and ground was black.

You say that it comes back to life at the same low rpm's every time, so my thinking here is that with no load on the circuit, the bad connection reinstates itself and fires the solenoid back up to run the engine.

This is as simple as i can make it for you i think.

Hope this helps.

EDIT.
One other thing that would cause the engine to suddenly cut out would be i believe (on a 2014 model) is possibly the relay that i think was added to the circuit to kill the engine when you take your foot off the pedal, If part of this circuit is playing up it would stop the engine but i don't think it would cause the generator to stop charging instantly! only when the revs drop low enough to convert the generator back to a starter. I could be wrong here?

[cfoxcvg1988]

Couple more photos.

[Cartmaster]

The part you have circled in the second picture is the voltage regulator for charging. Probably not relevant to your problem. The other part looks like a voltage rectifier but someone else may chime in to correct me. Sometimes used as diodes.

[JPonLKN]

That first one is a relay, looks to be attached to the incoming signal side of the solenoid. Would need to see the writing on the relay to tell what it does. If I were to guess, it is probably the gas pedal kill relay Cartmaster discussed above in his edit. Since I don't have a newer model cart here, and no wiring diagram for it, I can't say for sure, but I suspect it grounds the coil when the solenoid no longer receives 12v from the pedal/ign switch circuit. If anyone has a 2014 gas wiring diagram, please post it.

From the description in the original post, it sounds like a rev limiter is kicking in. Kills power to the coil at a certain RPM level, opens power back up to the coil as revs get lower. I think there were a couple typos in the original post that made it confusing at first. "lot" is likely "low" and "does" is "dies".

[meimk]

Check for power through the pedal switch & key switch. That same power path powers the control side of the solenoid AND the kill relay.

[cfoxcvg1988]

Originally Posted by JPonLKN

That first one is a relay, looks to be attached to the incoming signal side of the solenoid. Would need to see the writing on the relay to tell what it does. If I were to guess, it is probably the gas pedal kill relay Cartmaster discussed above in his edit. Since I don't have a newer model cart here, and no wiring diagram for it, I can't say for sure, but I suspect it grounds the coil when the solenoid no longer receives 12v from the pedal/ign switch circuit. If anyone has a 2014 gas wiring diagram, please post it.

From the description in the original post, it sounds like a rev limiter is kicking in. Kills power to the coil at a certain RPM level, opens power back up to the coil as revs get lower. I think there were a couple typos in the original post that made it confusing at first. "lot" is likely "low" and "does" is "dies".

Yes, those were typos and you had the correct revisions. By time I caught them I could not locate the edit and had replies on this thread.

As for the rev limiter, I do have the cart tuned up to reach 20-21mph but it has ran at that speed for several years with no issues. Nothing new was or has changed when this problem started.
I am not sure how to troubleshoot the governor. Maybe turn it down and drive it a while to see if this problem still happens? Is there a specific way to test or check the governor other than adjusting the jam nut on the cable?

I have tested the peddle switch and it works in the garage but I have no way that I can tell to test it while operating the cart. Maybe I should just replace it and see what happens?? thoughts? Should up upgrade it to a heavy duty switch able to handle more amps?

[cfoxcvg1988]

Originally Posted by meimk

Check for power through the pedal switch & key switch. That same power path powers the control side of the solenoid AND the kill relay.

In the garage this checks out. is there a reasonable way to meter this while operating the cart? Some way to catch it when the issue happens?

[JPonLKN]

Get some alligator clips on your volt meter leads, connect to the point you want to check and to ground...have the leads extend up to the driving area of the cart where you can see it, and watch it as you drive....If you loose voltage to the solenoid on the solenoid small terminal, the issue is in the incoming switch circuit. Ignition switch, pedal switch, etc. If not there, then move the positive lead to the output of the relay and do the same.