1977 harley 36 volt cart

[xrracer321]

i am new to carts and i got a 1977 harley 36 volt cart de40 i am wondering if i can hook it up to 48 volt and if so will it give me more torque and speed and will it hurt anything. any advice would be helpfull

[V H PL]

I am also new to carting and pickup a Columbia which I believe is in the same catagory as Harley D. I too have thought about adding an addition battery if it wouldn't burn out anything . Im anxious to hear is it can be done .
Richard

[scottyb]

Welcome.......These older carts are the perfect candidates for 48 volts. If you can find a place to put em...you can add 2 used batteries to your pack. Better yet change the pack to six 8v batteries and they will bolt right in to the original trays. The solenoid needs to be upgraded to 48v and the cables should be changed to 4 gauge. Have fun

[xrracer321]

well i didnt wait for some one to post anything i grabed the optima battery out of my race car and put it in series and away i went it added a lot of torque and a few miles an hour once i change the solenoids to 48 volt and go buy a bunch of welding wire to re wire all the batteries and motor it should do ok i'm going to order some tires to fit the stock rims and put caps on the rims i found some 24*10*8 that should fit with alittle lifting i will post now i'm wondering if 60 volts will blow the motor up LOL i know i can get solenoids to hold up to 72 volts hMMMMM

[scottyb]

Since you grabbed only 1 battery to boost the cart to 48....I assume you grabbed a 12v....It may be okay as you have to charge them separately.
Typically it is not recommended to mix em. 60 volts is the most i have heard of on a resistor cart.......be careful of prolonged low speed even at 48 try to drive WOT or nothing. Excessive heat is a problem at the resistor coils.....of course, that should be easy for you considering your user name.