99 gas club car chugs but won't move

[Rsjs]

Was running fine, but I had to go up a gravel hill to get to my girl friends garage and it stopped working afterward. Checked the gas, it was low so I refilled the tank (90 octane non-ethanol), but no change. When the gas pedal is depressed in both forward and reverse, it will do the chugging noise typical of when the cart was running fine, but never gets to the next step of hearing the motor running. The throttle cable (?) above thr motor depresses when the pedal is pushed. The smaller belt toward the inside of the motor rotates. I noticed there was a little "tag" coming off the belt, like it was starting to peel. The other fatter belt isn't moving. They all appear to be in place.

Any suggestions?

[Scott quail]

The outer belt wont move until the clutch engages or if the cart is rolling. As for the chugging, how is your spark plug? Is the cart firing or is it just turning over trying to start? Can you check for spark?

[Rsjs]

So I pulled the spark plug and it looks fine. The guy who serviced this cart said he changed it recently and it looks new. I went to napa to get a new spark plug anyway and they gave me an autolite 65. Is this a compatible spark plug? Also, when I looked online, they said to use a NGK BP4ES. I noticed the spark plug I pulled is a NGK BPR2ES. Maybe an issue there? It worked fine for a while.

[Scott quail]

The 2ES is a hotter plug. 4ES is what should be in there but that wont keep the cart from running completely. Have you checked to make sure the cart is actually firing? The cart can turn over but not actually fire if there is an issue with the rev limiter or the coil. First thing id check is to make sure it is firing.

[Rsjs]

Is there any chance that the wrong spark plug could be the problem or caused another one? I'm kinda irritated with the guy who serviced the golf cart the last time, which is why I'm attempting to learn how to troubleshoot issues with this thing myself.

I dont want to hassle you with every facet of troubleshooting this, I've been trying to answer questions myself and have been looking at other sources. I'm going to print an owners manual later today, and if you have any other good walk-through sources, I'd happily check them out.

What does "making sure its firing" mean exactly? It appears the engine is trying to start, it does more than just the solenoid click. It just never gets to the next step. I'm sorry, I'm a complete novice with engines, I'm just trying to help my girl friend out and learn something.

Getting a multimeter from my house, tools and printing the manual.

[Scott quail]

They sell a tool that you can clip on your spark plug and the other side plugs into the plug wire. It has a little light bulb in it and if its firing, the bulb will light up every time the plug wire gets a signal. If you check that and its not firing the light will not light up. The different spark plug shouldnt have hurt anything. The lower the number the hotter the plug fires. So a 2ES would just be a hotter firing plug than a 4ES but i dont think that would have caused your issue. It would just run a little rough but would still run.

[crash12888]

Just remove your spark plug, put it back in the plug boot, lay the plug base on a bare metal part of the engine, push the gas pedal and see if you can see a little spark at the electrode end of the plug when the engine spins!!

That's checking for spark or firing.

[Scott quail]

or you could do it that way. I give up on this forum. lol. Good luck with your cart.

[Scott quail]

Just be careful to not be touching any metal on the cart when you hit the pedal. Just a heads up. It will give you a little shock if you are. Good luck sir.

[lockman1]

Originally Posted by Scott quail

or you could do it that way. I give up on this forum. lol. Good luck with your cart.

I'm sorry to hear that... you actually have some pretty good advice!

Unfortunately, the NGK spark plug for the Club Car FE290's and FE350's have been NGK BPR 5 ES from 1992 to 2012
The 5ES plugs are a little harder to find then the 4ES and the 2ES,
BUT... it really won't make enough difference with the OP's situation.

After the first spark plug shock, pretty much anyone would know to use an insulated pliers holding the spark plug while testing!
(Mostly because it's senseless to buy something your only going to use once!)

Don't get me wrong, still good advice, but sometimes in a pinch? you gotta do, what you gotta do!