2002 EZ GO gas Workhorse no Mid range power

[Mike STK]

Thank you for any thoughts or directions to pursue. I am performing a compression check this evening and will adjust the valves. I have read .006 for the adjustment in many places but I will try the .004.

On the subject of the throttle I did notice a lack of movement on the carb when the ignition is off. The pedal moves very easily and smoothly. I did watch the carb when the engine is running and it seemed to travel farther. Is that even possible?

[CP241]

It may be .006, my mistake. Go by what the book says. I may have been mixing it up with my yamaha...

The carb throttle may not move much with ignition off. The pedal links to the governor, and the governor in turn controls the throttle. So that would be why the carb may travel further than what the pedal is trying to control.

[trig123]

Set to .004. I have tried .006 and it made too much noise

[Mike STK]

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Update: Performed compression test 125 on left cyl and 130 on right. Reset valves to .006 (they were all a touch too tight). After adjustment both cylinders show 130. It seems a little better climbing but no major improvement. I did notice the only way to eliminate any backfires at all was to have the adjustment screw backed all the way out. Does that mean anything to anyone? Spark plug picture is misleading as those plugs can't have 1 hour run time on them.

[CP241]

your power issue is the compression. 125/130 is low. It should be 160+

Question on the valve adjustment, looking at the threads above the adjuster nut on the intake valves, are there a lot more threads showing on intake vs. exhaust valves? IF so, then the intake valves need to be replaced. Simply adjusting them probably won't be enough if the valves are worn. The intake valves are known to be soft in these motors and wear out. it's quite common.

IF not... the low compression explains it pretty well. It's enough compression to run decently, but not up to potential as it should. It'll have fine top end, but take it a while to get there. I had a TXT with the 295 motor and when I got it, was around 125ish on both cylinders. However, when I adjusted the valves it bumped to 160-165 and made a huge difference. Even before the valve adjustment it would still run around 21-22mph on 22" tires... After the adjustment didn't gain any speed but it got there a LOT faster.

Good news is, you've still got decent compression. That means the cylinder walls aren't all chowed out and grooved (otherwise compression would be lower, and would probably smoke. You should be good to go with a basic rebuild... (meaning no machine shop work, cylinder boring, etc.). Get a set of std size rings, hone the cylinders just to deglaze them and allow the new rings to set in, bearings, etc.

Unless anyone else has a better idea, my experience with these engines is that if a valve adjustment doesn't restore compression (and in many cases it does) no choice but to dig into the motor.