G14 Stalls Up Hill

[pjbadding]

I have what I believe to be a Yamaha G14 that recently started not making it up hills of any sort unless I have a "running" start up them and even then it may not make it. When it stalls out, there is a loud "slipping" type noise and it just won't go. I have a 20 sec video that lets you see/hear what is happening, but I can't attach the file here. I'm pretty sure someone would know exactly what is happening if I could post the video.

Does anyone have a feel for what this issue may be? Is there a way to share video's with members?

[tom4416]

Check that both clutches are operating as intended, badly worn belt or engine not producing power.

[pjbadding]

It runs fine on fairly level ground and it appears that both clutches are working as intended. The belt appears to be fine, but I'm not sure what a worn belt looks like. There is quite a bit of play in the belt while its stopped.

[tom4416]

A new belt is 31mm wide, service limit is 27mm wide (1.2 and 1.06 inches respectively). The belt hangs loose when everything is off so it can be removed by hand versus needing to remove clutches. Also, is it a Yamaha branded belt or aftermarket as some people just put on whatever seems to fit and they are actually longer than necessary.

You can run with a belt narrower than the service limit but will not get the proper performance especially under load.

[pjbadding]

It's right at 27mm so I've ordered a new Yamaha belt. I'll give that a try and hopefully that fixes it. Thanks for the assistance thus far.

[pjbadding]

I received the new belt and installed, but that did not resolve the issue. Does this most likely point to the clutch being bad?

[tom4416]

It's kind of hard to do this while driving since it involves sitting on a board or something so you can watch the clutches. They should adjust according to load - flat and level and the primary should be fully closed (belt at the top) and the secondary fully open (belt at the bottom). As the load increases, the clutches will "shift" to favor torque over speed to the point if you're trying to pull a trailer up a steep hill, the clutches will reverse themselves to provide minimal speed but maximum torque which is why golf carts are so versatile.

Have you greased the clutches? Both have a zerk fitting into which you should put no m ore than two shots of grease and then run it for a while and see if the ratios are more favorable.

You might also jack up the rear, put the transmission in neutral and make sure your rear wheels turn freely (they won't spin but they won't bind either). The only other issue would be engine output itself - check compression. I think your cart should be around 140psi. Maybe try to borrow a small engine tachometer to make sure you're getting somewhere around 3200-3400 rpms at full throttle.

But, if your gps in your phone tells me the cart is doing 13-15mph on flat and level, suspect the engine is fine, it's somewhere else in the drivetrain (assuming your governer is stock).

[pjbadding]

I believe the engine output is fine as I can get up to 16 MPH on level group. I greased the clutches and still have the same issue. I have a video of what it's doing while trying to go up a hill including the noise it is making and figured out I could upload the video to YouTube and share the link. I was just going to purchase a new "power" clutch for it as it appears to me that it is the problem, but I figured I'd see if anyone agrees with that assessment based on the video. Thanks for the assistance!

https://youtube.com/shorts/S37K0NoqTLg?feature=share

[tom4416]

Have you looked at the back of the driven clutch? Seems like there is no spring exerting any force on the sheaves so it never "gears" down when increasing the load. Is that video in neutral or with a braking load on it? Hopefully it is the driven clutch and not something more complex like the input shaft or the differential binding.

[pjbadding]

There is a spring in the driven clutch but maybe it's worn out. In the video, I had the cart on a slight incline with the back wheels chocked and the cart is in forward. I was thinking the next thing to try is to replace the driven clutch with an upgraded clutch. I've been wanting to do this anyway as the cart has the stock drive system with oversized wheels and was low on torque to begin with. Thoughts?