Intellibrake adjustment

[jbeaman]

I have a 2011 EZGO RXV with intellibrake. I was wondering if there was some way to adjust that brake. I believe this brake also charges the batteries. My cart seems to roll a long way before stopping and I have found that the batteries do not stay charged as long. I was thinking maybe the brake had to be adjusted to give a better charge. Can anyone help?

[orangeman6]

I don't know a thing about the rxv, but there's a bunch of posts about the motor brake. Search that , or look for posts from bob Boyce. Also, no idea how applicable it is in this particular case, but usually the first thing guys want to know is the status of the batteries. Each battery, as well as the total pack. It seems like reading here you come across a lot of issues that, sometimes surprisingly, are caused by even one bad battery.

Good luck

[BobBoyce]

Originally Posted by jbeaman

I have a 2011 EZGO RXV with intellibrake. I was wondering if there was some way to adjust that brake. I believe this brake also charges the batteries. My cart seems to roll a long way before stopping and I have found that the batteries do not stay charged as long. I was thinking maybe the brake had to be adjusted to give a better charge. Can anyone help?

The 2011 RXV uses a Danaher controller with an external Brake Resistor module. The regenerative (motor) braking is what applies regen braking charge to the batteries. If the external resistor control module sticks on, it will discharge your battery when the battery voltage is not above the resistor apply voltage. The easiest way to determine if this is happening, drive the cart for a few minutes, then use a voltmeter to measure the voltage across the resistor by touching the meter leads of the resistor. You must leave the key on the entire time from driving to measuring. Let us know what you find before we move on to the next thing on the list.

[cgtech]

OK, let's clear up one thing first. The mechanical motor brake itself has nothing to do with regen braking (aka- slowing the cart down), or putting power back into the batteries. The motor brake is the mechanical brake device on the drivers side end of the motor. All vehicle braking while moving is done by turning the motor into a generator, that's how energy is put back into the batteries. The mechanical brake on the end of the motor has only one job under normal conditions, that job is to hold the cart stopped after it has come to a full stop. The carts braking characteristics are manipulated by the motor controller. If the drive train has been modified for more speed, that affects braking characteristics. Does your cart have modifications that make it go 25 mph or faster? If so, that would indicate that high speed gears were likely installed to allow it to reach those speeds. High speed gears have a negative effect on braking feel & effectiveness (not to mention controller load/heat, motor heat & battery life).

[BobBoyce]

Originally Posted by cgtech

OK, let's clear up one thing first. The mechanical motor brake itself has nothing to do with regen braking (aka- slowing the cart down), or putting power back into the batteries. The motor brake is the mechanical brake device on the drivers side end of the motor. All vehicle braking while moving is done by turning the motor into a generator, that's how energy is put back into the batteries. The mechanical brake on the end of the motor has only one job under normal conditions, that job is to hold the cart stopped after it has come to a full stop. The carts braking characteristics are manipulated by the motor controller. If the drive train has been modified for more speed, that affects braking characteristics. Does your cart have modifications that make it go 25 mph or faster? If so, that would indicate that high speed gears were likely installed to allow it to reach those speeds. High speed gears have a negative effect on braking feel & effectiveness (not to mention controller load/heat, motor heat & battery life).

Very well put. More indepth than what I said.

[jbeaman]

There are several items named Controller or resistor. Not quite sure of what the item is or what it looks like

[jbeaman]

Cart does not go 25mph or higher. It is around 20mph

[jbeaman]

Do the batteries need to be disconnected to be tested and what should they read?

[BobBoyce]

Originally Posted by jbeaman

There are several items named Controller or resistor. Not quite sure of what the item is or what it looks like

Here is a photo of the RXV controller assembly with the locations of the resistor, solenoid, and controller marked.

Bob

[BobBoyce]

Originally Posted by jbeaman

Do the batteries need to be disconnected to be tested and what should they read?

They can stay connected, you just read from the + and - terminals on each battery instead of the entire pack.

There are subtle differences amongst different brands of batteries. On average...

11.51 = 10% charge
11.66 = 20% charge
11.81 = 30% charge
11.96 = 40% charge
12.10 = 50% charge
12.24 = 60% charge
12.37 = 70% charge
12.50 = 80% charge
12.62 = 90% charge
12.73 = 100% charge

These SOC numbers are from http://www.cartsunlimited.net , an excellent source of golf cart parts and information.

Bob