2009 Drive Decision

[Wazzey]

Howdy gentlemen. Have a question for all you Yamaha experts if you have a minute. A little background on me. I run a 9 hole golf course and currently have 20 2002 Club Car DS's. I'm getting ready to upgrade a little and one of the local Yamaha Dealers has several of the 2009 Yamaha Drive Carts.
He has a lot of the 12V carts and 6 of the 8V carts. I might take all his 8v models as I'm scared of any 12V system. I've heard that even with good maintenance any 12v system might only make it 3 seasons.

I guess I'm asking what you like and don't like about the 2009 Drive model and if they have any issues that I need to be concerned about. One of the other local courses just went from the older drive gas models to the newer model and his only issue with the layout was the enclosed Brake Assembly got lots of junk clogged up in it. Other than that he like them just fine.

The course I run doesn't have large hills but I'd like them to be able to keep their speed on grass as they run uphill with two 250 lb men and 2 golf bags. :)

Thanks ahead for any input
Waz

[cmar143]

I love the Drive myself and actually sold my own Precedent to get one. I have been a golf course mechanic for 15 years and have a lot of experience with different carts. They all have there pros and cons but the pros of the Drive outweigh the cons to me. The Drive hands down has the best and beefiest front end of the top three manufacturers and needs no maintenance on it since the entire thing is sealed. The entire front ends on the club cars have to be redone every 2 years because the bushings and everything else starts to fall apart but the yamaha stays tight for a long time. The 12V system is not as bad as people make it out to be. Yes 8V might last longer and will give you a little more run time but I have seen Precedents with 12V that are going on 6 years and still test decent with a hydrometer. With that being said if you have the choice I would still take the 8V.

[Wazzey]

Appreciate the input... much appreciated