Club Car DS Contactor Clicks but Low Voltage Across Primary

[brak]

Hello all, posting after having reviewed many of the thread on solenoid troubleshooting and finding none fit my problem, hoping someone can help.

Its a 2007 CC DS 48v, I have a few of them. This one is working 1 yr old Crown 12vs 1 brand new Trojan and one 3 yo US Battery. All read full voltage when disconnected (12.6-12.7). When connected in series pack voltage does drop a little to 48,9 or so.

So fired it up for the summer a few weeks ago after charging batteries with the 48v charger which of course needed some help from my 12v on each battery to bring an initial charge. After completing a charge cycle on the 48v (which strangely didn't seem to ever go much past 12 amps that ii noticed) I decided to drive it. It crept about 100 feet at a strange half speed (as if the batteries were very low) ... after a few initial lurches, then refused to budge.

After ten presses on the peddle or so, the solenoid stopped clicking. I figured, ok that's it, and bought a new one; installed, same problem. So I put the old one back in (it had a better mounting bracket).

At this point I figured well, maybe the batteries we just really drained, so I charged them all up fully individually. Same result. No drive. Solenoid always clicking.

So I checked the solenoid and found the ohms test pulled .4 across the secondaries under load, but the primaries voltage was reading 22-24 under load. On my other CC DS the primaries read 48 under load. So clearly that is a starting point, but to what it points at I have no idea.

So while I started out thinking that it was probably something to do with the batteries being drained over the winter and by one older battery, I swapped some batteries (not new ones) from another car that did run under those batteries (though not well, they are 4+ yeas old) and of course obtained the exact same result, I now suspect that even though I might have something of an imperfect battery pack, that that can not be the main problem causing this.

Anyone can help? What would cause a pack voltage to be fine across the terminals but drop to half voltage across the primary terminals (which visually looks fine).

Thanks in advance.

[brak]

Correction, in it are now 2 12v Crowns both only 1 year old (the one Brand new Trojan and 2 older US Batteries) Thanks

[Swan]

confused on batteries ?????

2 - 12 volt crowns
1 - brand new Trojan ( 12 volt or 8 volt)
2 - older US Batts ( 12 volt or 8 volt)

that would be 60 volts if all 12's or is it 3-8 volts and two 12's

[brak]

Jees typing on old cell. Twice mistaken.

Just 48. One Trojan. 2 crown. One us.

[NoleFan4Ever]

You lose me a little with your terminology, but i am going to assume by primaries and secondaries you mean the large posts and the small posts/tabs.

On the small posts (blue wire and blue/white wire) you should get pack voltage when closed in (Key On, Fwd selected, Run/Tow in Run and Go Pedal depressed). If you are getting that, then that is that and is working correctly.

Now on the large posts, you should have pack voltage on the red cable coming in and terminating at that large posts. After you hear the solenoid "click" you should have full pack voltage on the other side of the solenoid as it has closed in now. If you are not getting pack voltage coming into the solenoid, you will not have it passing through it after it closes in. If you have anything less than pack voltage coming into the solenoid large post from the red battery cable, then there is a problem with one of the cables or battery. You need to troubleshoot it all and identify the reason.

Jack the cart up when testing so it does not run off on you....

[brak]

Thanks for youre reply.

Yes you read my terminology correctly. Large post = primary, small = secondary.

Per your second paragraph: Run, On Fwd Pedal depressed for load yield solenoid clicks however tests less than pack voltage on small posts: roughly 22-24.

Here's where our situations diverge: testing large terminal on the problem cart yields a 24 volt on positive primary when grounded to frame. testing to negative yields exactly the same. Both under no load.

My good working very fast CC DS (Same year, almost identical serial numbers) displays only 15 volts coming into solenoid under no load. It also shows same on negative. When reading voltage across small posts under load, it displays the expected pack voltage. (now i dont want to complicate things, but arent these electric carts not grounded to frame, shouldnt i have to take it back to the negative battery post to get an accurate reading?, when i do BTW i get 49 volts on the bad cart)

So what the heck is up with that? Are they wired differently or perhaps the solenoid work differently, how could they they are simple contactors right.

I could perhaps see why we should see 48 coming into the large + post on the solenoid, but why only 24? Its only one 2 foot red cable (terminal on battery ok condition). Furthermore when reading pack voltage across the pack we get the expected 49.

Its all very strange. Not what I would have expected, though I'm not an electrical engineer obviously.

I hope its not the computer, but looking suspiciously so.

Shed any light?

[Fairtax4me]

If you have less than pack voltage reaching the solenoid on the primary terminals (the large ones), then you have a bad connection at the batteries or battery cables are damaged/corroded internally.

Also, these carts are not frame grounded, so you can not ground your meter to the frame. Meter negative HAS to be on the PACK negative terminal.