Hunting Buggie - need to know if worthy project

[Hunting Cart Rookie]

I am brand new to the Buggie/cart world. I traded in my truck for sedan...work reasons. So now I need a vehicle for hunting and land management. The terrain is small hills and mainly asphalt and dirt roads. I won't be going "off roading" but I will be traveling 10+ miles. For this reason I think I need gas. My max budget is $3K.

I found this 1998 EZ GO gas cart for $900. It runs and I drove it...but I was told there's some blue smoke....oil leak. Based on you guys previous experience am I getting involved in a money pit or is it worth a try for the price?

I feel like I can do minor work myself. Paint, cushion replacement, replacing rusted parts, etc.

Your help is greatly appreciated.

[Hunting Cart Rookie]

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[Hunting Cart Rookie]

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[sccowboy]

I wouldn't be put off with the price. If there is blue smoke then the rings are probably shot. A rebuild kit is less than 300 bucks. So you may be looking at 3-5 hundred to get the motor up to snuff. It isn't overly complex to rebuild one either. Now if there is a ton of rust, you may be looking at a money pit. Basically, if you can see the diamond in the ruff.... go for it. You will find all the help you need right here!

[BrewCityMusic]

Rings, possibly. Valve Guides, more likely. WHICH makes the $300 rebuild even a little more tricky and You'll need access to some specialized tools, press, etc - the best bet (and luckily inexpensive in perspective) would be to spend $525 and have CT Rebuilds swap that motor for a brand new total rebuild, or if you're adventurous add $100 and swap up to a built 373cc with an additional 5.5hp over the stock 295cc You have in there. All told You'd be well under $1500, and you'd have a real nice cart for your needs

[kgsc]

Could just be a little too much oil in it also.

[sccowboy]

That would truly be the easiest thing to do with your budget, and you still have plenty left over to customize the cart to your liking. That aside, at one point, we could not post referrals to vendors who were not site sponsors. If CT isn't one, and someone has a contact there, can we see about getting them listed on the sponsor page?