moving controller location on G29

[thetoddjohnson]

Hi all,

I’ve got a 2007 G29 that needs batteries. The cart is 150 miles away from me so I can’t physically look at it to vet an idea so I want to throw this idea out to the BGW brain trust.

Some facts:

The cart currently has eight 6V batteries all under the seat. I plan on converting to six 8Vs.

The cart is exclusively used on paved, flat roads with virtually no hills, and although it has a rear seat there are rarely more than 2 people on the cart at the same time. So I think the stock controller and motor could handle taller tires without a problem.

My idea: I’m assuming that without installing a lift the limitation on rear tire size would be the fender wells, so I’ll remove the fender wells. To keep the controller (and its cable connections) from getting all slimy and gritty I would relocate it to be under the seat. (Since there will be 2 fewer batteries under the seat there is plenty of room to do so. Also, I plan to upgrade all the cables anyway and since ScottyB doesn’t have an off-the-shelf kit for the G29 I need to supply him with all the required lengths.) Then I could use a thin piece of King Starboard (sometimes called “plastic marine plywood”) to make a vertical wall flush with the back of the battery bank to keep the compartment under the seat dry.

So my questions are as follows:

1 - Are the fender wells the limiting factor on a non-lifted G29?

2 - Is there any reason why I shouldn’t move the controller from its stock location?

3 - If I'm wrong and the stock drive train cannot handle the taller tires, what is most likely to fail? i.e. How expensive a mistake am I risking?

4 - Have I overlooked an obvious obstacle?

Thanks in advance,

TJ

[sportcoupe]

I didn't see the tire size you plan on using. Stock tire height is about 17.5" tall. Depending on what height tire you want depends on how much body and rocker panel you must cut away.

Are you willing to totally cut up the body for the tire upgrade? There are 3" lift kits out there. Simple to install too and allow for 23" tires with very minor trimming.

The inner fender wells are not the limiting factor. Removing them will gain you zero clearance. I would most certainly keep them and not use your marine plywood idea.

I also wouldn't relocate the g29 controller either, it is in a great location stock.

Upgrading the cables is an excellent idea though.

You got pics of eight 6v under the seat of a g29?

[CCFanatic]

Yamaha makes it a factory option

FB_Electric_A_Variety_of_Battery_Configurations_LARGE1.jpg

[cgtech]

#2 & #3 are wrong. Moving the controller will do no good, if you remove the inner fenders, what do you suppose is going to keep the mud out of the underseat area (hint: its gonna be a mess there too).
Also the big tires will likely kill the controller in 4 years or less (that is what HS gears did for me, and tall tires and HS gears are the same thing to a motor controller). You will end up cutting the body fenders and the "kick panel" at the bottom, this will make the kick panel "floppy".

[thetoddjohnson]

I’d gladly snap a photo if I weren’t 150 miles from the cart. I searched through old photos and did find this one. Although it isn’t of the batteries themselves, you can sorta see that there are 8 batteries tucked under the seat. In 2009 I converted this cart to be a LSV, turn signals, DOT tires, DOT windshield, the whole bit. I went so far as to have a VIN issued. Legally it is no longer a 2007 golf cart. It is legally a 2009 LSV, it just so happens that one of the “sub assemblies" that was used was a 2007 Yamaha golf cart. The purpose of the conversion was so I could register the cart, put a license plate on it, and take advantage of the LSV tax credit. The amount of the credit was dependent upon a few different variables—battery capacity being one of them. So my goal was to put as large a bank as possible, hence the 8 batteries.

My reasoning of moving the controller was not to gain space but rather to keep it from getting all nasty. If I’d found this photo before making the original post in this thread I probably wouldn’t have started the thread at all. I spend a lot more time tinkering with my Club Car DS than I do with my YDREs so I was thinking that as long as I moved the controller then there wouldn’t really be anything other than the motor back there to get mucky. Now that I see this photo I realize that my “plastic plywood” shield wouldn’t be nearly as easy to do on a YDRE as it would be to do on a DS.

The tires that are on the cart in the photo are 12” trailer tires. OD is 20.7” It is hard to tell from the photo, but it looks like I should be able to go a little taller without having to cut anything. I’m gonna swing by my local pick-and-pull and get a pair of 115-70-15 donut spares. Diameter = 21.34

Stay tuned.

TJ

[sportcoupe]

Trailer tires change everything! OMG that is a good idea.

I didn't know there was a tray for 8 batteries available. That is pretty cool too but I'd go lithium myself if cost wasn't a factor.

I will be watching this thread.

[thetoddjohnson]

Originally Posted by sportcoupe

Trailer tires change everything! OMG that is a good idea.

I didn't know there was a tray for 8 batteries available. That is pretty cool too but I'd go lithium myself if cost wasn't a factor.

I will be watching this thread.

There wasn't a tray available. The project required some welding.

I like the trailer tires because my usage is all paved roads and the skinnier wheels/tires are lighter and have less rolling friction. The downside to the trailer tires is that they get flat spots if you leave the cart in the same place for too long. Typically this cart will sit from Labor Day until Thanksgiving (sometimes even Christmas or spring break) without moving. For the first mile or 2 the dang cart hops so much it feels like your teeth will rattle out of your head. But they return to round pretty quickly.

I've found that donut spares are a way cheaper alternative. If you poke around in a pick-n-pull for half an hour you can quickly find donuts that have zero miles on them. $20 each for tires that still have pips on them is hard to beat. The downside to the donut spares is that hubcaps don't fit on them so you are stuck with ugly steel wheels.

TJ

[sportcoupe]

Post #3 has a picture of factory 8 battery tray. I've never seen one though.

It's too bad I'm not building another cart for a while, I like where you're going with this.

[cgtech]

As far as i know, the 6 battery tray is just the 8 battery tray with 2 less batts.

[sportcoupe]

My yamaha g29 had a 4 battery tray. No way that tray could hold 6 or 8 batteries easily. There had to be a different tray for 6 or 8 batteries.