36V Club Car DS Slow on Hills

[hansenbr]

Hey guys --

I bought a 36V Club Car DS V-glide for cheap, and I'm having trouble on hills in the neighborhood.

The hills around my house aren't any different in grade from what you would see on a golf course, so I would expect that the cart should not be having the trouble it's having.

Some background. When I first got the cart, I had electrical issues, which I fixed by changing the solenoid and the wiper on the V glide (the problem was with the wiper, but I didn't know it at the time, so I changed the solenoid too). When I got the cart running, it was fine on flat ground (at least 12 mph), but it would die on hills. So I changed the gear ratio. I went from the stock gear to 15:1 gears.

Now the cart makes it up the hills with a full load (4 people), but it slows down to about walking speed (and we look silly). Even though the cart is 36V, I think it should be moving faster on hills (maybe 2x walking speed?).

I need some help with where to look next. Could the problem be in:

- resistor coils? (not sure how to check this)
- Cables -- connections all seem tight...
- F/R switch (seems to be working fine)
- motor (it's 15 years old -- maybe the brushes need to be replaced)?
- batteries? - voltage and specific gravity seems fine. These batteries are 2012 vintage -- I don't want to replace them unless I have to because they're so expensive :)

Or is it just unreasonable to expect this cart to go faster than walking speed on the hills?

Anyone got any advice? Any troubleshooting tips?

[Volt_Ampere]

Check your battery voltage under load. I bet they are sagging a lot. They are near or at end of life if they are 2012 vintage.

[hansenbr]

What should be the voltage under load?

[scottyb]

I don't like to see a pack drop more than the value of one battery under load. So that number for a 36v pack is 30v... considering a full charge is 38.3-4 that is a significant drop large enough to indicate a battery problem. Also the at rest reading is important taken 12-24 hours after the pack has fully charged and settled 12 hours min. This starting point represents the general capacity of the pack as in 90% or ? see chart

[hansenbr]

Here is what I have.

Do you think this is enough droop to slow it down so much? It's not a full charge, but probably close.

No Load Loaded
Total 37.59V 29.8V
Batt 1 6.3V 4.9 V
Batt 2 6.3 V 5.1 V
Batt 3 6,3 V 4.8 V
Batt 4 6.3 V 5.3 V
Batt 5 6.2 V 5.0 V
Batt 6 6.2 V 5.1 V

[hansenbr]

And what do you think about the Epsom salt refurbishment thing (cheap guy :))

[theboss20]

It's really messy...no matter how you try to do it...be sure to neutralize any acid you take out with baking soda and try to be safe!

[HarryT]

You really need to know the accurate speed before you try to fix it. Use a GPS to get the real speed on level ground and on hills. Even our new carts seem real slow on hills but they are going at normal speed of around 7 MPH.
Harry

[scottyb]

Originally Posted by hansenbr

Here is what I have.

Do you think this is enough droop to slow it down so much? It's not a full charge, but probably close.

No Load Loaded
Total 37.59V 29.8V
Batt 1 6.3V 4.9 V
Batt 2 6.3 V 5.1 V
Batt 3 6,3 V 4.8 V
Batt 4 6.3 V 5.3 V
Batt 5 6.2 V 5.0 V
Batt 6 6.2 V 5.1 V

The drop is great enough to indicate battery condition is poor. Battery salt treatment is not a permanent fix. You may get some temporary improvement but you will still need new batts.

[Volt_Ampere]

Don't waste your time on snake oil battery treatment. Treat yourself to a new set.