Charger stopped charging

[DALESATTER]

My cart is an 09' Precedent DS. I put a new set of batteries in 5 months ago. My charger that I have been using for the past 6 years is a 48 volt Power Drive2 with a date code 33/06. Have not had any issues until now. I drove it a couple miles then plugged it in, after a few seconds the charger clicks, the volt meter does a quick jump to the negative below zero then comes right back to zero. It's not charging or going to the positive side at all. Is it time for a new charger?

[Mooncarter]

Check and make sure your connections are clean and snug. If it has been working that long I would check that first.

[yawood]

Originally Posted by Mooncarter

Check and make sure your connections are clean and snug. If it has been working that long I would check that first.

x2

[DALESATTER]

Thanks for the reply! I found this post below and went through all four of the steps checking and cleaning all the connections. Still no change, charger relay is clicking and the big transformer inside charger gets warm but the meter on the charger still sits on zero. My battery pack is down to about 44.5 volts. My charger receptacle is in good shape. My fuses are all good and connections clean. When I checked the charger in step four with my multimeter, the on-board computer is communicating with the charger and the relay clicks, but the voltage meter on the charger still reads zero and its not charging the batteries. Am I missing something?


Originally Posted by TahoeDawgZ71
Charging System Troubleshooting: (Charger Won't Turn On)

*Use this troubleshooting guide to diagnose charging problems with 48 Volt Club Car vehicles.

*********** 1. The first step would be to make sure the vehicle has enough voltage to trigger the charger turn-on signal from the on-board computer.
Check the battery voltage of the entire battery pack with a digital volt meter.
Put the positive lead on the MAIN positive battery post and the negative lead on the MAIN negative battery post.
Total voltage should be at least 36-38 Volts. If it's not, you must boost the batteries individually. Contact me for further instructions on how to do so.
If you do not have a digital volt meter you can perform this test by attempting to run the vehicle.
If the vehicle has enough energy to make the solenoid switch "click" and attempt to run, it also has enough energy to engage the charger relay. This step may be skipped.

*

*********** 2. The next step is to check all wiring, Locate the charger receptacle of the vehicle.
On the back of the charger receptacle you will see three wires. Red is the positive. Black is the negative. Grey is the On-Board computer control wire.
Make sure that the red wire is in good shape and follow it all the way to the MAIN positive battery post. Make sure there is a good connection on the battery and ensure that the wire isn't corroded or broken.
If it is, clean it and re-attempt to charge the vehicle. The black wire is not at risk of corrosion because it is wired directly into the on-board computer.
As for the grey wire, give it a light pull outward and ensure that isn't broken inside the charger receptacle.
The grey wire will often break inside the receptacle and will easily pull out the back. If this happens, you must replace the receptacle.
*

*********** 3. If you have a Club Car DS or Carryall vehicle you will have two fuses to check near the charger receptacle.
One is an inline fuse located on the grey control wire mentioned in step two. It is located inside a yellow rubber fuse holder. Pull the fuse holder apart and check the fuse with your meter to ensure that there is continuity. If the fuse is bad, replace it with a 3/8 amp fuse. anything else will damage the charging system.
There is also a larger fuse bolted to the back of the charger receptacle. You'll see that there are two black wires bolted to the back of the receptacle. This is where you'll find the fuse.
On the opposite side you'll see a fuse element inside a plastic window. Check this fuse with a multimeter as well.
On the continuity setting, place each lead of your multimeter on each of the nuts where the black wires are bolted to the back of the receptacle. If you have continuity, the fuse is good. If you don't, replace the fuse.

*

*********** 4. Check the charger relay. Pull the cover off of the charger and locate the relay.
On PowerDrive 17930 models you'll find the relay on the bottom floor of the charger at the front.
On PowerDrive2 22110 models you'll find it bolted to the front wall of the charger above the circuit breaker. Make sure both power cords are unplugged from the charger and pull the blue wire and red wire off of the charger relay.
If you look closely at the relay you'll notice that there are four posts. Two large posts, and two small posts. These red and blue wires are plugged into the smaller two posts of the relay.
Once you've gotten them unplugged, set your multimeter to check for DC voltage and insert the leads of the multimeter into the ends of these two wires that you unplugged from the relay.
Plug the cord into the golf cart. It is not necessary to plug the other cord into the wall. Within 2-10 seconds of plugging the cord into the cart, you should see full battery voltage on the screen of your meter.
If so, this is an indication that the on-board computer is communicating with the charger and commanding the relay to turn on. If your charger hasn't been "clicking" on, replace the relay.
If you don't see a change in voltage on your screen when this test is performed, this is an indication that the on-board computer has failed and is no longer able to communicate with the charger. The on-board computer must be replaced.

[TahoeDawgZ71]

Is it popping the circuit breaker on the front of the charger and turning off? If so, you need a rectifier. Part number 103517601 or 103517601HD. I recommend the heavy duty one. It'll last longer. Wouldn't hurt to replace the circuit breaker at the same time. Record a video of the charger and send it to me via text. I'll tell you what's wrong with it. 706-431-3917.

[DALESATTER]

It's not popping the circuit breaker on the front of the charger, but the GFCI outlet that the power strip was plugged into popped a few times. Thanks for the part number. I'll change the parts you recommend next weekend when I see my cart again and take a video if it's still not working. I appreciate the help!

[Fairtax4me]

I wouldn't go replacing parts until you've opened up the charger and checked the wiring inside, and actually tested the various parts. It sounds like the charger itself is working, but you have no output (thus no movement of the ammeter), which generally means a broken wire, or poor connection somewhere. I'm not so familiar with the powerdrive 2 units. Is there a fuse on the face of the charger? If not there will be a fuse inside. That fuse is on the output side of the charger. Blown fuse = no output

I would first try running a wire from the fuse on the charge receptacle straight to the pack main negative to rule out an issue on the cart such as a broke or corroded wire, or failed OBC.
If the charger still does not charge, then the problem is inside the charger, or could be due to a damaged charge cord or plug.

[DALESATTER]

Opening up the charger was the first thing I did. The internal fuse was good, I checked and cleaned all the connections and followed step 4 of TahoeDawgZ71 guide to confirm the on-board computer is communicating with the charger and commanding the relay to turn on. Seems to me, following this procedure, should rule out damaged charge cord or plug and there is no visible signs of damage.

I found a Traktronix CLUB CAR Golf Cart POWERDRIVE 2 Charger Repair Kit MODEL # 22110 SUPERCHARGE KIT on Amazon for $42 that includes 40 AMP Relay - An upgrade from the std 30 amp version in the original charger, 50 AMP rectifier - Another upgrade, OEM std is 35 amps, VOLTAGE SUPPRESSOR WIRE HARNESS. This wire harness includes logic components that works in conjuction with the cart's onboard computer to check the batteries. If the harness is bad, the charger will not start a normal charging cycle, 15 amp circuit breaker, and Fuse - For DS models.

I went ahead and ordered the kit because it was so cheap as a kit versus individual part prices. I'm trying to have it up and running before Labor Day weekend, just around the corner.

[DALESATTER]

That seemed like a long week getting here, but I have made it back to my cart and installed the rebuild kit. I installed the rectifier first and tested it, still didn't work. Next was the relay and the wire harness, success, working again, but not sure which one of those was the real problem. I'll put the new breaker in today to complete the job.

I charged it over night. When I first plugged it in, volts were at 44.5 and the charger amp meter was all the way over to 15 amps, about an hour later it was down to 13 amps, by morning, 12 hours later, it was at 7 amps and my volt meter on the cart was reading 55.9 volts! I have never seen volts that high before, never over 50.5 volts before. Each individual battery is reading 9.1 volts.

Does that sound normal? Can I take it for a drive before its completed the charge and shuts off, or will that shorten my battery life?

[NoleFan4Ever]

Originally Posted by DALESATTER

-snip-
Does that sound normal? Can I take it for a drive before its completed the charge and shuts off, or will that shorten my battery life?

Completely normal. It will get to ~61-63vdc at the end of the charge but that will be very low amperage.

It will time out around 16 hours so I'm pretty sure you are >90%, go ride and then when you plug it back in it can run until done as the timer will be reset.