how to hook up lights 98 club car

[lumpman]

hi i just purchased a 98 club car 48v
i want to hook up a 12v light to front and a 12v taillight to back
i tried hooking up light to the positive of batt#1 and the negative of battery#2 the light works like this but from what i understand this is 16v because of the 2 batterys will this harm the carts batterys and or will it harm the light because of it being 4v more then what it needs.
like i said the light works like this .the worse i can see happening is that i burn
the light bulb out quicker.

any input would be appreciated.

[Fishing Dude]

From what I hear or should say is read, The main problem stems to battery damage. Unless you only use them once and a while no biggy, alot then need to put a voltage reducer useing the whole battery pack. That would be a 48 volt to 12volt and read in a post here or the other site should be atleast a 20 amp reducer.
Mine are hooked up to 2 batteries but only use about 4 times a year for 5 minutes or less. 60 lot mobile home park 5 side roads, 1 main road about 600 ft from beach to marina. Only use if going to boat before sunrise or at one of my brother's homes, or my sister's (4 of parents 5 kids own in park), or another park members home after dark.

[scottyb]

You may experience some short lived light bulbs. On a fresh charge they could get 18v But i say the real danger is in forgetting to turn them off or kids leaving them on till two batteries are dead.....

[lumpman]

im thinking i might just buy a 12 volt battery and charge it with a 12 volt charger every couple of nights.
it might be to risky hooking it up to the carts batterys.
we dont drive the cart much at night and i charge it every night so i wonder if
it might be ok to hook the lights up to the carts batterys.
if 2 batterys drain more than the others can this be harmful.

[Buffs Place]

lumpman,
I just bought a 98 48v CC with head and tail lights, as soon as I figure out how to get access to the batteries I will take a few pics of how they hooked up the lights.

[Fishing Dude]

Buff have you tried lifting the seat? Mine are hooked pos #1 and neg #2. Works ok no more than use them, worried about put aligator clips on wires and switch every time you use them.

[rusty]

Welcome to the forum lumpman.......................

[blaynef13]

I have a 48V CC and my headlights are hooked to 2 batteries also. I have just pulled my burnt up bulbs out to match with some to replace them. They are 12V 55w and are gone after my first time to use them. I have a 20a fuse between the batteries and the switch and have been told this might also have a resistor built in to it to drop the voltage from 16v to 12v. I don't know if this is right or not. What can i do to get better bulb life?

Thank for any help,
BAF

[oxfordlawn]

never heard of a switch or fuse having a resistor to drop voltage..
At least...you need to put a voltage reducer in between the grounds and the negative side of the second battery in the 2 used for the lights. It lowers 16V signal down to 12V by resistance on the ground side Go to one of the sponsors above and search for voltage reducers, you will see.
The best is a voltage converter which uses the whole battery pack, and turns the 48V down to a 12v pos. signal which feed the power circuit, and the grounds are hooked straight to battery. 16V on a 12V bulb will burn them out prematurely.

[OLD MEC]

My 1996 Club Car came from the factory and or dealership with 2 resistors mounted and a junction panel on top of the shock mounts in front. They were wired so each one covered either the front or rear lights ( after ) the light switch. The voltage to these was a full 48 volts in my case.
I have since mounted a handicapped scooter battery ( deep cycle ) that can be mounted in any position because its sealed, in the glove compartment and charge it from a cheap 12 volt charger. It is small 7 1/2"X5 1/2"X 7 1/2" and in my case only needs charged 21 times a month. This setup was cheraper than a voltage reducer unit.