2000 EZGO TXT 36V Solenoid Clicks

[kuebcookies]

Hi All,

I have a 2000 EZGO TXT 36V. Series motor cart. 2 year old Trojan batteries all test good 38.2 pack voltage. Having issue with it just clicking but no voltage reaching the motor. A couple months ago, I replaced all the battery top cables and the main cables from + to solenoid and - to B- on the controller. Was very careful to make sure everything was replaced to same spot but when I put it all back together I just got a solenoid click. Thought dang I got something mixed up, tried moving stuff around based on diagrams from online with no luck. Let it sit a couple days and put it back how I knew it was supposed to be based on how it was when I took them off and it worked fine up until now. I chalked it up to must have been a lose connection somewhere but drove me crazy not knowing what the problem actually was. Well a couple days ago I was just driving the cart up an average hill at the house and it just stopped going forward and started rolling backwards. Pushed it back home and started checking it out.

Just getting the solenoid click. I tested the controller based on how I read from a different thread here. Positive meter on M- and negative meter on B+. Should read 0 volts and when pedal depressed should go up to pack voltage. That is not happening. Just stays at 0 when pedal depressed. Is this a sure sign of bad controller or could it be a problem before the controller? If the solenoid was bad would the controller test bad?

I've checked every connection and nothing is lose, corroded or burned. I'm going to check the solenoid based on another thread here. Remove wires from 2 large terminals and measure resistance, if great than .04 the solenoid is bad. Can anyone confirm this is the best and only way to test?

Anything else I should be looking for. Not sure if this is the same issue I was having the first time and it just happened to be a coincidence that I was messing with the battery cables.

If it helps diagnose, the cart has "cut out" a couple times but for the most part it always runs great and has plenty of power.

[kuebcookies]

Solenoid tested good. I followed a few other similar posts and found some testing for the ITS. B- to pin 2 (black) resulted in 14.4v which was correct but from B- to pin 1 (white) showed no voltage. What does that mean? Where do I go from here? The other post did not specify as the original poster had good reading there so that avenue wasn’t explored further.

[JohnnieB]

The Black and white wire go to an ITS sensor in the pedal box under the floor mat. There is a gray cable coming out of the pedal box that connects four wires to the carts control wiring harness. The 4 pin in line connector is a high failure item and should be eliminated. Either individual butt splices or solder joints made waterproof by marine grade (adhesive filled) shrink tubing.

[kuebcookies]

JohnnieB thanks for the reply. I see you post a lot on here and sounds like you know your stuff. Happy to have an expert on the case. Could I eliminate the connector as the issue by doing the same test b- to white not at the plug itself but further down the wire on the ITS side? I don’t have the connectors or heat shrink on hand and trying to dig in deep this evening.

[kuebcookies]

Maybe I didn’t get a good read on pin 1. Just tried it again. B- to pin 1 (white). With pedal pushed just enough for solenoid to click, I got .4v. Slowly pressing pedal down I got 1.6v. Is that normal? What would be next if so?

[kuebcookies]

I keep coming back to the controller test M- to B+. What I read said it should be 0 and then increase to pack voltage as the pedal is depressed. Is that accurate?

[silversc1981]

Following this post as I have similar symptoms you have, except mine didn’t stop moving, just limped home. I tested all the same things you did. Between B+ and M- the best I’ve gotten is 13v. I believe the troubleshooting procedures say it should go up to pack voltage. Looking forward to what you find as the solution.

[JohnnieB]

Originally Posted by kuebcookies

Maybe I didn’t get a good read on pin 1. Just tried it again. B- to pin 1 (white). With pedal pushed just enough for solenoid to click, I got .4v. Slowly pressing pedal down I got 1.6v. Is that normal? What would be next if so?

Attached is the ITS Voltage tests for a stock (Curtis 1206) series drive controller.

Looks like your ITS voltages are within specs

Originally Posted by kuebcookies

I keep coming back to the controller test M- to B+. What I read said it should be 0 and then increase to pack voltage as the pedal is depressed. Is that accurate?

That is correct.

In your first post in this thread, you mentioned voltage not getting to the motor and measuring the voltage between M- to B+ isn't very helpful for troubleshooting those symptoms.

A better test is between B- and M-. The speed control "valve" is between those two points and when pedal is pushed just far enough to make solenoid click, you get full battery pack voltage and as pedal is pushed the voltage decreases until it drops to 0V when pedal is on floor.

Jumper B+ to the solenoid's small terminal with the red wires on it and you ought to read pack voltage without having to press pedal. If there is a bad connection you won't get the pack voltage and if you don't use the red test lead off M- to find the missing voltage.

[kuebcookies]

I will check this when I get home from work and let you know the results. If either one of these tests fail, would that determine the exact issue or would I move to a next troubleshooting step? Just don't want to get home and check and not know where to go from there.

[sthreatt]

From all the checks you've done and the results you've gotten I'd be looking at the forward reverse switch.