Battery charging

[RRRDAD]

I just put new batteries in my 96 ez go. We went for a drive the other night for the first time for maybe ten minutes. I could smell hot wires. The wires going to the motor were very hot along with the motor. Warm is one thing but they were very hot. A neighbor told me not to drive the cart at slow speeds and this would help. Also when charging the batteries, can i just leave it plugged in and leave it or do I need to monitor it and unplug it when the charge is complete? Thank you

[kab69440]

Sounds like your motor connections are dirty, or your motor is going bad. I suspect the former. Driving wide open as much as much as possible will help keep your controller cool, but won't do much for a high resistance connection. If you were driving slowly, you were providing a reduced quantity of volts and amps to the motor. If the wires were getting hot then, unloading the controller's full capacity on them won't help the situation. I'd advise buying or making new wires and cleaning the motor poles thoroughly before installation. I keep mine slathered in dielectric grease to help prevent oxidation.

I like to unplug my charger withhin a few hours of comlpletion. As long as you don't leave it plugged in and idle for weeks at a time(unless your charger happens to have a maintainer feature), you should be fine.

[scottyb]

A 1996 ezgo has a fully automatic charger. It will shut off when charging is complete, let it finish so your batteries get a complete charge. No harm or benefit in leaving it plugged in.

[simple man]

Originally Posted by RRRDAD

I just put new batteries in my 96 ez go. We went for a drive the other night for the first time for maybe ten minutes. I could smell hot wires. The wires going to the motor were very hot along with the motor. Warm is one thing but they were very hot. A neighbor told me not to drive the cart at slow speeds and this would help. Also when charging the batteries, can i just leave it plugged in and leave it or do I need to monitor it and unplug it when the charge is complete? Thank you

Is this the first time you have ever driven the cart, or the first time with the new batteries?
Double check your wiring for proper hookup! The wiring diagrams are in the stickys at the top of the Electric EZGO page. You may have wired it as you took it apart, but that doesn't mean it was correct when you got it!
Also, you should fully charge new batteries before use. Here's some good info on batteries. Read everything in the menu with the word " battery " in it!
http://www.cartsunlimited.net/

[simple man]

Originally Posted by scottyb

A 1996 ezgo has a fully automatic charger. It will shut off when charging is complete, let it finish so your batteries get a complete charge. No harm or benefit in leaving it plugged in.

The only thing I will add to Scott's post is that if you live in a lightning prone area, after your charge is finished, I would unplug the charger completely! These units don't take voltage surges well.

[RRRDAD]

ok thank you great info. The cart is new to me. It had been sitting for around 2 years. So yes this is the first I have driven it with new batteries. Thank you