Cushman GT-1 Predator swap

[CMillet86]

So I acquired this GT-1 for basically nothing, the Kohler 8 horse was toast and the cart itself was pretty rough. I was able to swap a predator in about 3 hours, but the factory clutch had broken springs so I ordered a 780 from CPP. Also put a filter and exhaust on the engine, runs very well. It's actually scary fast in my opinion. Still needs lots of work but I have so little money in it, totally worth it.

[distilledjon]

Did you add a fuel pump? Isn’t that engine gravity fed? If so how?

[slonomo]

Cool little project! Sometimes the "free" carts are the best ones, well, because....why not? Looks like you might need a new belt. You think it has good torque now, wait until you put a HD Kevlar ribbed belt in that beast!

[distilledjon]

Did you have any restrictions on speed from the cart? Did you have to do something special to get it going "scary fast"?
I put a honda gx630 in with a commet 780 clutch and its almost as though a governor or something is slowing it down. When I go down hills something is restricting it. cant get more than 10mph.

[slonomo]

Originally Posted by distilledjon

Did you have any restrictions on speed from the cart? Did you have to do something special to get it going "scary fast"?
I put a honda gx630 in with a commet 780 clutch and its almost as though a governor or something is slowing it down. When I go down hills something is restricting it. cant get more than 10mph.

What rpm are you running at? What size tires? These are essential details to determine if your setup is working correctly.

Most stock carts have ground speed governors attached to the transaxle. This limits how fast the cart will go on the top end. Most of these can be adjusted for more top end speed, or disabled altogether.

Most small engines come with some type of governor that limit the rpm of the engine. I believe the Honda uses an electronic style that can't be bypassed. Most are governed to around 3600-4000 rpm max.

Tire size is one of the things that will change your top speed. Stock sized 18" golf cart tires will usually allow a stock cart, with the governor adjusted, to go about 15 mph or so. Larger tires like 20" will get you up to 19 mph. 22" tires about 23 mph. All this is assuming you are able to rev the engine to 4000 rpm.