Burning through G2 Voltage regulators

[jackhandy]

I am a newbie to posting on this forum even though I have used it a lot to research for my golf cart.

I have bought two G2 voltage regulators and it seems as though I am burning through them quickly. My original hitachi one broke so I replaced it with these which I found on ebay. I'm pretty sure the new ones cant be adjusted from the inside like the Hitachi.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/New-Voltage-...xVg0EH&vxp=mtr

The first replacement quit working completely after a short time so I bought a second one and it is currently regulating at 13V after about a week of use. When I checked them right after installing them my voltage fluctuates around the 14.5ish area which is what I want. It seems that after a short time of use they crap out and drop the voltage. Is there something that is making them malfunction or are they just really cheap and I need to find something more reliable (and what would that be if so). I also increased my governor so the cart goes faster and I didn't know if this would be part of the problem? Thanks for the help!

[smallblock450sl]

Most likley just crap knock off voltage regulators. Find an OEM Hitatchi new or used and be done with it.

[Shepard]

Increasing the engine rpm shouldn't influence your voltage regulator in any way. The regulator feeds the field coil in the generator enough power that the output voltage is regulated to 13.5-14.5. The field coil produces only enough magnetism to do the job and if there is a short in this coil it could burn up the regulator. I would have the starter/generator checked out before installing a new regulator -- there's a reason its dying -- not just a low grade regulator.
Also these regulators are mechanical not transistorized. It's really hard to destroy one -- age or a problem. If there is no adjustment screw -- its tweaked by bending the little leaf spring.

[sformal]

No, these regulators cannot be adjusted from the inside...

The only one I was able to find was at http://www.golfcartcare.com/ and yes, it is adjustable!

[Shepard]

Old school regulator - old school adjustment -- most likely done on the workbench.

[sformal]

Originally Posted by Shepard

Old school regulator - old school adjustment -- most likely done on the workbench.

Not really... It is more a back-and-forth process as when reinstalling the closing, the value changes.

I preferred to install an "old version" (adjustable) instead of replacing my electronic one. The main reason is that it is a bit too high (+15/16V); I understand that because a normal use of a golf cart is heavy on the battery: start then a very short ride to go to the golf ball.

Now I use mine more as a normal vehicle and make quite long rides betwen starts, so I prefer to be under 14V.

[jackhandy]

Replaced the Starter\Generator with a new one. I have 17V to the battery when grounding the green from starter/generator to the battery so I know the starter/generator is good but it seems the voltage regulators are shoddy and will burn up if used on longer rides. I also drive my cart like a vehicle at times and don't start/stop like you would while golfing. I manually adjust voltage regulator so it is between 14/15v but over time the value changes and won't stay in that range. It drops off and won't produce any charge until adjusted again. Eventually no adjustment will work and the voltage regulator is deemed useless. Any other solutions besides having the old school voltage regulators for the g2?

[jackhandy]

any suggestions on this?

[Golf cart guy]

Forget the old school one and put the electronic one on.

[sformal]

Originally Posted by Golf cart guy

Forget the old school one and put the electronic one on.

The thing is that the electronic version is regulating in the 15.5V range.

I always suspected it is due to how Golf carts are used on greens: a lot of starts/stops with little running time to compensate... which is not my use and reason why I preferred to install the adjustable old version!

This being said, it is not easy to adjust as the value is different when it is in place and the cover is back, requiring a lot of tries! I made a system to continuously record and I am between 13.6 and 14.2 (extremely rarely 15.3) which is OK for me. It takes a little time to react ;)