Low Voltage, Jerky Throttle

[Sumner121]

Hey Guys,
I have a 94 DS. I have a 36 volt motor thats running on 48 volts, 400 amp alltrax controller, HD Solenoid, HD front/reverse switch. I did the upgrade around march of 2014 and the carts ran like a champ over the entire summer. However i recently was driving it and noticed that the voltages were reading quite low compared to normal. Usually if driving on flat terrain the voltages read around 48 for the pack and on this day it was running around 46. also the pack was not recovering as quickly as normal. I assumed it was due to colder weather and thought nothing of it. The batteries are only 5 months old and have been maintained well. However the next day the same voltage readings were occuring and also when accelerating the cart would drop bog down then proceed to drive normally. Thats definitely an issue. I only had the throttle up rate set to 6 and turned it down to 2 and the problem still occurred. The only main component on the cart that hasnt been replaced in the past year is the motor. Could that be the issue? or is there a small issue that can cause this? the golf cart is still charging to full charge and I really dont believe it is the batteries due to the fact they are less than a year old. Any advice helps and thanks in advance

[mrgolf]

You have really been putting that motor through the wringer with all that power. I would agree the motor likely needs reworking.

[Great white north]

If batts stay around 46 volts while running on flat terrain --- that is perfectly
Norma,l., do you have one of Scotty's SOC (digital ) type meter ? The voltage will rise to 51 or 49 volts (depending on how far you went) once you let cart sit for 10 min. Or so . If the reading after sitting for a little while drops below 48 that's not good -- problem with batts or need re-charge or connections note a 100% charged pack should be reading anywhere from 51-52 volts depending on what type of batts you have
Cheers!!

[Sumner121]

Great White North, Thanks for looking out for me. I do have scotty B's meter. The voltage dropping to around 46 isnt so much the problem as the recovery time. It's taking much longer to recover back to the actual charge then normal. and the biggest problem is the jerky throttle. It feels similiar to if I were towing something with a tow rope. The cart goes fine then just completely bogs down. then does fine again.

[Great white north]

Well if that is the original motor on your cart (94) , would be time to open it up and clean the brushes or consider replacing , although I do not like why your batt voltage is not recovering the way it should , fully charge the batts (take reading of each individual batt after charger has shut off and wait 8-10 hours ,
Then take reading ) run for 10 miles then take another reading of batts You could have a low or border line batt . Issue

[Sumner121]

Thanks for the help. All is well. It came down to a "I'm an idiot problem" as I was looking everything over I noticed the case around the v-glide had came off and was actually wedged under the arm. Since the arm wasn't coming all the way down the batteries werent recovering because they... Well I guess they were still being used would be the best way to explain it
Also the casing being wedged under the arm was causing it to stick then rapidly spring to the higher copper plates which was the "bog down" feeling. You are absolutely still right about the motor tho... I was thinking when it got a little colder I'd give plum quick a call and let them handle it for a week