Accessories Wired To One 12V battery

[opelikamike]

Hello, I am a new owner of an EZGO 2015 RXV Fleet Electric. Batteries are 4 Trojan T-1275 Plus 12v batteries with March 2018 date code. This is my first golf cart so I wish to learn.

The horn, turn signals, headlights and brake lights (all LED type) are currently the only electrical accessories and they are all wired to ONE of the 12V batteries with a 20A fuse in the hot wire and can be operated with the key in the off position.

I have heard this is bad for that one battery and that I should look at getting and wiring in a 48V to 12 converter BUT I've also read where doing this can fry controllers if not done correctly.

The only accessory I am currently looking at adding are some LED turn signal mirrors for visibility purposes.

Should I just keep the current way these accessories are wired or get a 48 to 12v converter installed assuming this isn't something to do myselff.

thank you for any help you can offer.

[Chevota Guy]

Welcome to BGW. You'll find a number of topics here that describe why wiring accessories to one 12V battery is not optimal. While it will certainly work, it discharges one battery more than the others and the charger doesn't know that as it only charges the pack.

Wiring on an RXV as you have also read can be a problem if the wrong wires are tapped into. I recently installed a complete light package with Hi/Lo beams, turn signals, flasher brake lights and horn and used a 48V relay to wire the voltage reducer.

My cart has DRLs and I wanted them to be automatic hence the switched config.

It works fine, except the key must be on to power the reducer, so no lights with the key off which doesn't matter to me. I wired it like this after getting some helpful direction from several folks here:

[Biaviian]

I installed a 48v switch then I have a reducer to a fuse bank. It is pretty clean and this way I don't need the cart to be on for us to use Alexa. The fuse bank allows me to easily run a dedicated wire for each accessory. It is all under the driver's seat. I have USB ports with a light so I know if the switch is on just by looking at that light.

[downsouth864]

Bia - what switch did you use? I am wanting to do the same thing on my 16 RXV.

[magnmac]

@chevota guy, thanks for that schematic, absolutely awesome. Ordered the reducer and relay off Amazon, found some connectors, took the 2 wires powering the lights and usb charger from one of the Trojans into the reducer and now it is wired properly.

Should be a sticky somewhere: A picture is worth a thousand words. :)