Best for the $$ - Buy Custom or Build Custom?

[swerve77]

Hi All!

New member here and I could really use some opinions. I am torn if I am going to get the best use of my money by just buying a custom cart or building my own.

For starters, I do have a cart to do a build with, based on entering the serial number into EZGO's website it is a 1996 36V TXT DCS.

The thing is I need new batteries, a new charger and charger port in the cart. To keep it short when I bought it about 5 years ago with a charger that was not good to begin with and rigged to charge a different way (to put it nicely). I didn't buy the top line batteries last time so I only got about 4 years out of them.

With all of that said it got me thinking do I really want to spend over a grand just to have the same old cart?

Looking at cart prices in my area buying is going to likely set me back $3,500-$5,000+. Not sure what kind of trade value I could get for my current cart. OR I can put $3,000-$5,000 into my current cart.

I must say I am not the most savvy when it comes to working on mechanical things but when I look at the stuff it doesn't seem like it can be too overly difficult. Plus, I do have two neighbors that love to work/build things and the both know their way around things with motors.

I understand that doing one thing may require another to be done.

Things that I want:

Lifted (Duh)
Sound
Light Kit - don't have one currently (Probably LED?)
Torque and some speed (Probably a new motor?)
Ability to beach (possibly a little dirt (why not if it can))
Convert to 48V I assume

So, if my budget was $3-5K what is going to be the best bang for my $$?? Or another way, is my time and effort going to give me something bigger, better, badder than buying a newer custom cart??

What recommendations would you have if building??

Sorry for the long first post but thanks for reading and any feedback.

[chloe]

Welcome to the frenzy. You asked for opinions, here's mine. Based upon what you say you have, you can look forward to a minimum of $3500.00 invested to get what you say you want. That includes the things you listed but not those that might show up.
You say you are not too savvy, mechanically. That $3500.00 price is if you or your friends do the work at no cost. The upside is, you will have the cart you wanted and the pride of building it yourself.
If you shop around, you can find one that suits your needs and desires and know the cost going in. The upside is, it's turn key. Not three to six months down the road. Additionally, if buying, you have the potential of negotiating a better price than is advertised. And, your current cart, as it sits, should bring about $500, depending upon your local market.
Your decision is, when do you want it?

[swerve77]

Good points. Luckily the labor is cheap (Beer). They love doing this type of stuff.

I guess one of the things I am struggling with is what is generally the set up on the carts you buy? You know, what kind of amperage and all those things I have been reading about. :)

[chloe]

That's the beauty of being able to shop for your cart. Somewhere someone has the cart you want. Most of the time, if you are talking with a business that builds the carts, they can put one together that meets your specs as long as you are realistic.

[cgtech]

If buying used, be suspicious of anyones claims. Check the date codes on every one of those "1 year old batteries", just because its in a blue & white box doesnt mean its the 500a controller they claim, is it really the "custom 20hp" motor, or a stock motor with a fresh coat of spray paint covering everything including the labels, read all the labels yourself, take a mirror for the labels you cannot easily see. Dont get duped by a CL scammer because you dont recognize what you are looking at. If you are not willing/able to crawl around on the ground to get this info, take someone with you who is.

[swerve77]

Originally Posted by cgtech

If buying used, be suspicious of anyones claims. Check the date codes on every one of those "1 year old batteries", just because its in a blue & white box doesnt mean its the 500a controller they claim, is it really the "custom 20hp" motor, or a stock motor with a fresh coat of spray paint covering everything including the labels, read all the labels yourself, take a mirror for the labels you cannot easily see. Dont get duped by a CL scammer because you dont recognize what you are looking at. If you are not willing/able to crawl around on the ground to get this info, take someone with you who is.

I would probably avoid CL. I think I would just prefer to pay a little more, there are 3-4 dealers within a comfortable distance for me to check out.

[meangreenmachine72]

I never bought already built newer carts and couldn't be happier. I could go out tomorrow and buy new custom cart but have no desire. I enjoy doing things myself and to me nothing's more rewarding then stepping back and looking at a cart I built.
You could always buy one with a setup of your liking and keep what you have and build that when time permits.
You are at the right place for help and ideas. Beer and cart building can be fun.

[Revolution]

3-5k can build a pretty nice cart! Part of the benefit of putting it together yourself is learning how it works. If you know how it works you have lot better chance of keeping it running well.

Most of the customized carts I see for sale in my area are 2,200 to 5,000 they are all looks and no go. Most have stock motors, cables, contactors and controllers living on borrowed time. They look really nice with a lift, big tires and shiny paint. I can only assume this is the case for most areas.

I prefer the "go" over the "show" so putting it together myself is the best way for me.

If you can use a multimeter, turn a wrench and follow directions the awesome members and sponsors here at BGW can and will help you out a LOT.

They will also help you buy something already built if you want to go that route.

[swerve77]

Originally Posted by Revolution

Most of the customized carts I see for sale in my area are 2,200 to 5,000 they are all looks and no go. Most have stock motors, cables, contactors and controllers living on borrowed time. They look really nice with a lift, big tires and shiny paint. I can only assume this is the case for most areas.

I

Even from "dealers"? If that tends to be the case then I am all about trying to do my own.

[JaycoGoGo]

FWIW...

I bought my 2008 CC DS last week for $1500. I got lucky and the lady that I bought it from had just installed new batteries in September. But my breakdown of my build looks like this so far.

$1500 - Cart
$460 - Lift, HD springs
$549 - Wheels, tires
$229 - Light kit
$120 - Carbon fiber dash w/ glove boxes
$62 - Custom seat covers
$20 - SMV sign
$30 - Rear view mirror

I'm all in at $2940 so far, and the only thing I need now is a paint job on the body.


For comparison, it would have cost me at least $2500 to buy a stock 2008 cart in my area (and that would be a lucky find). Add in the cost of batteries, and what I spent on parts, I would have been around $4700 for the same cart. I'm saving about $1800 building my own, and even more than that if I compare it to the custom prices of carts in my area.

ETA: (I've included shipping costs in my parts prices above.)