1988 Marathon 2 cycle issues

[93yellowclubcar]

I'm working on this for a friend, and it is giving me fits as I am out of my element with it. When you go to take off the engine will start to run perfectly, then no matter if you floor it or pump the pedal or what, it will just kind of idle and not pick up. If you lightly choke it and then shove the choke back in it'll pick up, but top end is still sort of slow and something growls.

I have: drained and cleaned the tank and put in 128:1 fresh mix, cleaned spark plug and gapped it at .030 (perfect blue spark), installed new battery (it needed one), and installed new drive belt. I don't have a compression gauge to check that, but the crankcase seals don't seem to be leaking because I checked them with the spray carb cleaner method and there's no RPM change. It has a new carb and fuel pump on it that was put there prior to me by someone else trying to fix it.

Questions: What are the right adjustments for the carb screws?
Could the driven clutch be suspect?
I ask about the driven clutch because it doesn't seem to act right and the growl noise is coming from it, I'm going to try to get a video shortly.

[cart around]

If you are going to make a video, I would like you to put it up on jacks, take off the seat, and video everything around the carburetor area while it is running.

[93yellowclubcar]

Still working on the video, but I have a drive belt question in addition to my others.

I have a 10977 drive belt to put on, the worn one being replaced is 10978. Do I have the right drive belt for the cart? I see online that 1988 is a one off year for drive belts, but I don't know what the right belt number is.

IMG_20140412_150800_338.jpg

I can wiggle the spring side of the driven clutch around and push it apart easily by hand as well, is that normal?

Any help would be appreciated greatly, I'm new to this particular setup but I'd like to learn!

[cart around]

I googled that part number and came up with this.

"Drive belt. E-Z-GO 1976-87. Also replaces belt on Jake's Big Block conversion kits on Yamaha gas 1996-05-1/2 G16-G22".

The 10978 says this, "EZGO Drive Belt for EZGO 1988 golf carts only."

I guess it's time to do some research to see what the real difference is.

EDIT: Found it.
E-Z-Go Golf Cart Car Drive Belt For Model Marathons & Prior 1976 To 1987. This Belt Measures 1-3/16" X 45" O.D. # 10977

E-Z-Go Golf Cart Car Drive Belt For Model Marathons 1988 Only. This Belt Measures 1-3/16" X 45-1/2" O.D. # 10978

[Dave Box]

Providing that you have the correct carburetor (BV-24) there is nothing to adjust. The only screw is the low speed running jet which enables the engine to idle and your engine does not idle when you release the throttle.

I suspect that your driven clutch is defective as you should not be able to easily move the sheaves. I think that as soon as it spins it is snapping to wide open which is rather like starting a car in 4th gear. To test this you could remove the panel behind the seat and get someone to drive the cart whilst you look at the operation of the two clutches. The drive clutch should smoothly close as the engine revs up and the driven should smoothly open. You could try this with the back end raised but under load would be a better test.

Dave

[93yellowclubcar]

Thanks for the replies guys! I'll have to order the right belt this evening, my friend had the new belt lying on the cart for me to put on, looks like he ordered the wrong one.

Here's the video I shot last night. It's up on stands and with the drive belt that is 1/2 inch short on, but you can hear the hesitation after the engine starts (it only picks up because I choked it) and you can also hear the noise the driven clutch is making when it falls all the way open. It also appears to shake, I think maybe because it opens too far??

1988 EZGO clutches - YouTube

1988 EZGO clutches - YouTube

[cart around]

You have a stand up muffler. I thought an 88 had the muffler on it's side.

That clutch sounds terrible, but at least we know that the engine starts right up, and runs.

[93yellowclubcar]

Originally Posted by cart around

You have a stand up muffler. I thought an 88 had the muffler on it's side.

That clutch sounds terrible, but at least we know that the engine starts right up, and runs.

I'm pretty sure the numbers on the tag say 88, but I'll post up a pic of the serial and model tag in a few hours to be sure. I'm more accustomed to Club Car serial number reading than EZGO


EDIT: Here's the serial tag. Am I correct in assuming I have an 88 model?

IMG_20140412_220958_080.jpg

[Morgan44]

88 muffler stands up with the inlet on the top. The year looks correct. Something is definitely up with the secondary. Pull it and see what you see. Motor sounds like a leak maybe, you do a compression check yet?

[93yellowclubcar]

Should a compression test be done hot or cold, and what sort of numbers would be the low end of acceptable?