New Alltrax PDS 400 but "still" low performance

[PuttPutt]

Kinda like us old guys that take a nap after lunch to recharge. Some of use just don’t have the endurance (capacity)we used to.

[Jwinter]

So I just ran about a mile down the road with my dog and topped at 19 mph. Much faster than with my stock Curtis controller. NO doubt the Alltrax controller is producing more speed than the stock. I initially got excited but after about a mile the cart gave out again. I slowly made it back home to charge again.
As suggested I will contact my Golf Cart battery house here locally and see if they will warranty me. I did report and have them come pick up the cart in November (within my 1 yr Battery warranty) for the same issue. At the time returning my cart they said the batteries came back fully chargeable to above acceptable range. No issues. Just like I have found as well until you drive the cart for a mile or so then it dies. So they found no issues and they at that time would not replace the batteries.
I feel like I am getting screwed here but really don't know what else to do except spend another $1,200 on new batteries. Any suggestions would be appreciated, especially regarding warranty claims and how to pursue a successful claim with batteries. Thanks for everyone's help.

[PuttPutt]

I had a set of batteries that did not last nearly as long as I thought they would.
The reason was the way we used the golf cart short runs then charge, on top of not breaking the battery pack in properly to get the best performance out of them. Go to the link below and read about battery care. There is more to battery care than I ever imagined. The school of hard knocks taught me.

https://www.cartsunlimited.net/battery-break-in-.html

[JohnnieB]

Originally Posted by Jwinter

So I just ran about a mile down the road with my dog and topped at 19 mph. Much faster than with my stock Curtis controller. NO doubt the Alltrax controller is producing more speed than the stock. I initially got excited but after about a mile the cart gave out again. I slowly made it back home to charge again.
As suggested I will contact my Golf Cart battery house here locally and see if they will warranty me. I did report and have them come pick up the cart in November (within my 1 yr Battery warranty) for the same issue. At the time returning my cart they said the batteries came back fully chargeable to above acceptable range. No issues. Just like I have found as well until you drive the cart for a mile or so then it dies. So they found no issues and they at that time would not replace the batteries.
I feel like I am getting screwed here but really don't know what else to do except spend another $1,200 on new batteries. Any suggestions would be appreciated, especially regarding warranty claims and how to pursue a successful claim with batteries. Thanks for everyone's help.

The fact a battery will charge fully voltage-wise doesn't mean it has any storage capacity and lack of storage capacity is why your cart turns into a pumpkin after about a mile. Your batteries need to be load tested at a 75A discharge rate and the runtime minutes down to 1.75VPC (Volts per Cell) measured. It ought to be over half of the battery's runtime @ 75A rating.

What is the make/model of your batteries.

[mgray70]

What kinda of batteries are you paying $1200 for? I'd say your getting screwed. I sell Crown CR 235 for under $800. I know the area has a lot to do with it, but I'd go lithium before I would pay that for lead acid batteries.

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[Jwinter]

Thanks for all your response and help guys. I have Interstate GC2 Deep Cycle Batteries right now. Supposedly as per my GC shop just as good as Trojans but cheaper. Bingo, They got me, I swallowed Hook, Line and Sinker! My local GC shop put these batteries in just over a year ago. With the pick up charge and return charge the cost was just under $1,200. I could have installed them myself to save a buck but I was swamped with work and chose the easy route.

I got swamped today with my wifes business errands and didn't call the Golf Cart shop that sold me the batteries. I will call them tomorrow and plead my case which is of now just, "out of warranty". I am betting no help there, so what batteries do you guys recommend I saddle my new EZGO speed demon with if they offer me deal?
As expensive as these batteries are to replace, I will follow to the tee the article PuttPutt sent me.

[Jwinter]

Originally Posted by JohnnieB

The fact a battery will charge fully voltage-wise doesn't mean it has any storage capacity and lack of storage capacity is why your cart turns into a pumpkin after about a mile. Your batteries need to be load tested at a 75A discharge rate and the runtime minutes down to 1.75VPC (Volts per Cell) measured. It ought to be over half of the battery's runtime @ 75A rating.

What is the make/model of your batteries.

JohnnieB, Thank you for your response. You obviously know these batteries and how they tic on a different level than I understand. How can I test my batteries like you recommend? Do you think they are recoverable or should I just replace them. I have Interstate GC2 Deep Cycle Batteries, 14 months old.

[Jwinter]

Originally Posted by mgray70

What kinda of batteries are you paying $1200 for? I'd say your getting screwed. I sell Crown CR 235 for under $800. I know the area has a lot to do with it, but I'd go lithium before I would pay that for lead acid batteries.

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MrGray70, I am cruising around the neighborhood with this cart 3-4 times a week. What batteries do you reccomend, would Lithium be the best choice. I am looking for dependable and durable batteries and no more that crap out after a year.

[mgray70]

Originally Posted by Jwinter

MrGray70, I am cruising around the neighborhood with this cart 3-4 times a week. What batteries do you reccomend, would Lithium be the best choice. I am looking for dependable and durable batteries and no more that crap out after a year.

I honestly couldn't tell you which better battery is "Best"! Many brands are the same, just relabeled. As a rule of thumb, the higher the Ah rating the better off you'll be.
I currently sell Crown batteries mainly because that's where I can get the best deal, and really like dealing with my distributor. In the 6 volt line they offer the CR205, CR220, and the CR235. The main difference between them are the storage capacity. The higher the capacity the better they will perform, which in turn will usually increase longevity of the batteries. I sell more of the CR220 than any of them. All battery manufactures offer different Ah ratings. My guess is you have some small ones.

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[JohnnieB]

Originally Posted by Jwinter

JohnnieB, Thank you for your response. You obviously know these batteries and how they tic on a different level than I understand. How can I test my batteries like you recommend? Do you think they are recoverable or should I just replace them. I have Interstate GC2 Deep Cycle Batteries, 14 months old.

Interstate sells five grades of 6V lead-acid, deep-cycle, wet-cell, GC2 sized (BCI group size) batteries and three of them have GC2 in the model or part number.

BCI (Battery Council International) group size GC2 only defines the size of the box the three 2V cells that make up the 6V battery are in, not storage capacity. Interstate uses a RD, HD or XHD suffix after the GC2 to indicate a 208AH, 216AH or 232AH storage capacity. $200 for any of those sounds more than a bit steep to say the least.

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The load test for deep cycle (golf cart) batteries is measuring how long it takes to discharge a fully charged battery down to 1.75VPC (5.25V for a 6V battery) at a constant 75A discharge rate. An expensive piece of specialized test equipment is needed to do true load tests on deep-cycle batteries and those devices are typically only found at battery vendors that specialize in deep-cycle battery applications or the better golf cart repair shops.

However, the golf cart itself is a pretty good load tester.

Charge batteries overnight and measure & record pack and individual battery voltages about 12 hours after charger shuts off. Drive cart moderately for about 12 miles (roughly 36 holes of golf), or until it starts to loose performance. Wait 30 minutes and measure/record pack and individual voltages again. Pack voltage ought to be above 36V and individual battery voltages ought to be above 6V. Also all six battery voltages ought to be within 0.1V of each other.