New to me cart comes with problems, AGHH!

[Fatboy03]

I purchased an electric EZ-GO cart from a friend the manuf# is G0482 so I am assuming it is an 82. I bought it from him becuase he said it needed 2 new batteries. The posts on the on the old ones melted(nut not tight enough arced and melted while driving). So I bought 2 new batteries hooked them up and put the charger to them. I came home this morning and the cart would only make a clicking sound when the accelerator was pressed. I have checked the water levels. I have tried to charge it again today. When I go out to check, the charger will not be running, I pull the plug out of the cart and the charger starts humming and plug it back in and it starts charging again but after a couple of hours the charger stops humming. Any ideas of the mess I have gotten myself into. What started as only needing 2 batteries(200$) seems to be turning into more of a problem. I have 300$ in the cart plus 200$ in the new batteries. Is it worth fixing or should I cut my losses? Thanks! Pictures of the cart included.

[bhfear]

Shes an oldie thats for sure and yes thats an 82 last two of the man. code, check your pack voltage, 90% chance you have more than 2 bad batts, usually in golf carts you replace all or none in the battery pack, unless it is a fairly new battery pack, and you get a bad cell in one battery its okay to replace a single, Your cart probably blew the posts of a couple batts, then im sure it sat for a while, and then thats what wrecked the other 4 batts, but cant tell for sure untill you get us a pack voltage, then if we have a good pack voltage you need to move to specific gravity test on the 4 batts, and then if thats all good, we will move to testing the charger.

++ And also when you get back to us a pack voltage, get a individual reading and then look for a date stamp or sticker on the remaining 4 batts,

[Fatboy03]

I'll check it and get back to you. Thanks

[Fatboy03]

Ok I got some readings. The pack voltage reading=31.0v. The individual battery readings starting from left to right, driver to passenger, 1st under driver side=5.3v, 2nd under driver=6.1v. 3rd under passenger=6.1v, 4th passenger 5.9. The two batteries closest to the rear are the new ones. Hopefully this will help determine which (if not all) need to be replaced. If I had to make an educated guess I would say the 1st one with the lowest volts needs to be replaced. Thanks for the help!

[HDRyder]

None of those are a good reading for a charged battery. I have to go with Scottyb and say you should change them all, as a pack. See the attached chart for what your batteries should be...

Plus your total pack voltage doesn't add up. The four readings you gave total 23.4. If you throw in your two new batteries at 6.35 the total is 36.1, which albeit is junk for a complete pack, but not the 31.0 you stated. Do have a wiring issue also? Did you take the total pack reading correctly?

[scottyb]

You can try to rejuvenate them with a 12v charger put on 2 batteries at a time but, my bet is that you need to replace everything that is below 6.0 volts. Try the automotive charger on 2 at a time first. No need to disconnect any cables or remove the batteries from the cart....... follow the diagram below. Get then all up to 6 volts and try the cart charger from there. If the cart charger starts LET IT FINISH, if it takes all night!
6.1 volts is an empty battery. Fully charged they will read 6.3 or 6.4...... It is not reccommended to mix old and new batteries..... it turns the new batteries old quickly. For my $ ..... I would just bite the bullet and put all new batteries in it. You will be okay then.

[Fatboy03]

I could have goofed up the pack reading,Its my first cart. Like you all said,probably would be best to change out the whole pack. I dont think there is a wiring problem but could be possible. All I know is my buddy and his wife were driving and she smelled something burning, upon checking it out he found two of the batteries with melted post's. It sat for a month before i bought it. I guess my plan is to put new batteries in it and go from there.

[Fatboy03]

Alright!!! I bought another new battery and replaced the one that had the lowest voltage reading, bought some 4 guage cable and connecters and made new battery cables. I also noticed the positive wire coming out from the charge receptacle was frayed and corroded, replaced it. Cleaned all the post's and corrosion. Hooked everything back up and hit the accelarator and it started going forward. Put it on the charger and then later took my daughterfor a ride. She loved it! 300$ for the cart, 300$ for the batteries and about 20$ for wire and connectors. Not too bad!! Thanks for the help!

[scottyb]

Glad we could help....... here is a little info on the compromises of mixing old and new batteries. Enjoy the ride

It is generally not recommended to mix new and old batteries in a pack because they have very different charging needs. A new battery is quite active inside (high Specific Gravity) while an old one is not so much. (You can Google how a lead acid battery works) The new battery requires less charging than the old ones to come up to the required voltage for your cart. What happens when they are put in the same pack is the new ones are over charged while waiting for the old ones to come up... this over heats the new batteries essentially cooking them and results in a weakened condition and a shortened lifespan. Basically, the new ones come down to the level of the old ones eventually....

[Fatboy03]

Thanks for the info. Im getting ready to put an exhaust and some apes on my Harley so the cart will have to wait for awhile. Im just glad I got it running! Thanks again.