1984 club car DS is weak

[Barrysuperhawk]

I had posted this in the CC gas section, but I was advised to come here because yall are the experts. I will edit my wrong assumptions from the OP in the other thread.

Okay I have a 1984 club car DS that as far as I can tell it's entirely stock, and very tired. I need more power, well technically I need more torque because where I drive it has a lot of hills and among other things I'm fat 😁 and I'm always hauling a bunch of stuff. Right now going up a lot of the hills it ends up grinding to a halt and then bucking like a rodeo horse. One shop told me my compression was "only" 100psi (trying to tell me I was better off buying new), and the cart has new plugs, filter, and fresh non ethanol gas.
< snip >

< \snip > The only real requirements I have are:
I can't really use or switch to electric, I have to be able to dump some more gas in it and keep going because where I drive it at I literally don't have any place to charge. Well, technically, I suppose I would not be adverse to a hybrid with an onboard inverter genny to charge up batteries...

It was suggested in the other thread that I go with a vanguard and that seemed promising until I saw that it REQUIRED a lift (per Vegas carts website). Since one of my uses for this is driving my soon-to-be 80 year old mother around at events I cant really change the ride height, because that would make it more difficult for her to get in/out. As a secondary concern, I only have like 2" of clearance between the top of my cart and the roof of the trailer. So, the short answer is no lift. The good news is I am not wanting speed or wheelies, I just want to putter up a steep hill fully (over) loaded.

They also mention that my '84 might be in for problems with the rear end with their kit.

Unfortunately I have exactly two places that are anywhere near me that do any work on golf carts, and neither one of them wants anything to do with my old piece of junk - because it is so old. So ask me any questions and tell me what you think...

So, I need knowledge, because I cannot confidently go anywhere and just order the proper parts and the other threads are just the teensiest bit different meaning their solution is either not available for me to purchase, or wouldnt work.

Last, if there are any talented folks in Central Illinois that were willing to help me, I would be sincerely grateful.

[slonomo]

A big block swap is not for the inexperienced when it comes to mechanical work. If you know how to work on stuff, if you've rebuilt an engine, if you do tune ups, if you can adjust a carburetor, if you've done your own brakes on your car/truck....then you might be able to do it yourself. If you have any fabrication/welding experience it will help. If you have access to tools and a way to lift your cart off the ground, even better.

Let's assume you have the mechanical ability. You'll need:
1. Clone engine
2. Primary clutch with starter/gen pulley
3. New belt
4. Engine mount
5. Accelerator cable

If you can find a "bolt in kit" that will be the easiest and quickest way to success, also the most expensive. If not, you are looking at fabricating an engine mount and using your mechanical abilities to get everything lined up and hooked up. Lots of us have done it.

Without a lift kit, you will only be able to use a clone engine. That's not bad since they usually have 16-18 hp and double the torque of a stock engine. I have seen a few people on here use a Briggs Vanguard 479cc Vtwin without a lift kit, but it's tight. I don't believe I've seen that done in a Club Car.

Also, which way does your current engine spin if you are looking at the crank? If it spins CCW then you are in luck. If it spins CW then you will be using reverse for forward gear, that means the cart will be very slow going forward (using reverse).

[raydhd]

Your 1984 used the CCW engine so that makes the swap an easy bolt in without using the gears reversed or a PTO kit. IF you use a kit it should be a simple bolt in all the way around

[Barrysuperhawk]

Ok, I consider myself mechanically adept and I can weld Stick and Mig steel fairly well although TBH I suck at welding aluminum and realistically, my welder is insufficient to the task (no tig). I have made aluminum sorta work through my mig for parts for my bike, but its ugly and very much a pita.

I have been told in the other thread my 1984 KF82 spins clockwise the same as the aftermarket engines. So, I need the parts:

1. Clone engine <==What, exactly am I looking for? Is this the GX390? Can I find a pressure washer on craigslist or something similar? There seem to be alot of variations listed and quite a variety of prices that seem to indicate the variations are significant.

It seems like these things are what would come in a kit, but searching Vegas carts but the closest I find is this for the HF motor:
https://vegascarts.com/collections/c...32223556632665
2. Primary clutch with starter/gen pulley
3. New belt
4. Engine mount
5. Accelerator cable

Otherwise it looks like I am buying parts a-la-cart (pun indended) from here https://vegascarts.com/collections/club-car/GX390 but that increases the chance that I will buy the wrong thing/forget parts/find something OOS. Is Vegas carts the best/only vendor for this stuff?

[raydhd]

Because of the variations in the single cylinder clones VC stopped offering complete kits, BUT the individual parts are listed. The issues really were in exhaust port placement so header and muffler combo need thought. My personal favorite currently available is the wildcat 460 from ECcarbs with its 92 mm bore and 69 mm stroke.

[slonomo]

Originally Posted by Barrysuperhawk

Ok, I consider myself mechanically adept and I can weld Stick and Mig steel fairly well although TBH I suck at welding aluminum and realistically, my welder is insufficient to the task (no tig). I have made aluminum sorta work through my mig for parts for my bike, but its ugly and very much a pita.

I have been told in the other thread my 1984 KF82 spins clockwise the same as the aftermarket engines. So, I need the parts:

1. Clone engine <==What, exactly am I looking for? Is this the GX390? Can I find a pressure washer on craigslist or something similar? There seem to be alot of variations listed and quite a variety of prices that seem to indicate the variations are significant.

It seems like these things are what would come in a kit, but searching Vegas carts but the closest I find is this for the HF motor:
https://vegascarts.com/collections/c...32223556632665
2. Primary clutch with starter/gen pulley
3. New belt
4. Engine mount
5. Accelerator cable

Otherwise it looks like I am buying parts a-la-cart (pun indended) from here https://vegascarts.com/collections/club-car/GX390 but that increases the chance that I will buy the wrong thing/forget parts/find something OOS. Is Vegas carts the best/only vendor for this stuff?

A "clone" is a copy of a GX390 Honda, most likely made in China. The Harbor Freight Predator 420 is a clone. It will come with electric start, muffler, and air filter, pretty much ready to run. Make an engine mount for it, get a Comet 780 primary clutch, a key switch, and you can run it like a car. Usually these engines run pretty decent out of the box. The benefit of going this route is you don't have to run an exhaust or intake and you can keep the warranty from HF. It will be about twice as much power as most stock golf cart engines. There are other "clones" available, but none as readily available nor as low cost as the Predator. The others are not much better, a few have a couple more cc and a little more power. One thing you will likely need is a way to charge the battery. If you use a v belt pulley behind the primary clutch, you can rig up your golf cart starter/gen to work just like stock. There's a little wiring you'll need to do for the pedal start/stop to work, but not difficult.

If you want to get "crazy", you can install a cam, rev kit, do some light port work, make an exhaust and upgrade the carb, you can make 20-25 hp easily. There is a downside, mostly cost, and the engine will get louder lol.

[slonomo]

Read this

https://www.buggiesgonewild.com/showthread.php?t=172255

[Barrysuperhawk]

Woo hoo now we are cookin with Gas. I will read the referenced threads, but as the advice was given - I have started my own thread to keep my questions (and more importantly, the answers) here...

HF seems to be raising their prices the search result says" ‎$336 (typically $387) · ‎In stock" but the link says $419... https://www.harborfreight.com/13-hp-...arb-69736.html

So, for $10 more, is this the exact duromax motor (not to mention 5 more equines)? DuroMax XP18HPE 440cc Recoil/Electric Start Gas Powered 50 State Approved, Multi-Use Engine, XP18HPE, Blue

For that Pricing, the Dmax seems a no brainer, and I have plenty of Amazon cards, are there any gotchas for this motor?

[raydhd]

SOME of the duromaxes used a cylinder head where the exhaust port exited the head at a 45 degree angle causing the exhaust fitment issue with the VC exhaust header. Again SOME of the duromaxes have a larger wrist pin in the piston so if a billet rod is used it must be honed. If you are keeping it all stock these issues don't come into play.

[Barrysuperhawk]

Originally Posted by raydhd

SOME of the duromaxes used a cylinder head where the exhaust port exited the head at a 45 degree angle causing the exhaust fitment issue with the VC exhaust header. Again SOME of the duromaxes have a larger wrist pin in the piston so if a billet rod is used it must be honed. If you are keeping it all stock these issues don't come into play.

Ok, I am planning on all stock, install it and forget it (cept for oil changes, etc). Looking at the link above, I zoomed in to the 5th? picture and it seems to show the header mounting surface being parallel to the cyl wall, with the header performing the bend up to the muffler, but its a straight on shot so it's hard to tell. Worst case, if I do get a 45 degree exit, I have access to a tube bender and a welder, and a buddy that can TIG so it doesent seem like modifying would be that big of a problem, or am I missing something?


ALSO, do I want to spend the extra $50 on the electric start version? Since the normal operation of this motor will be spin-start (right?) the electric start might only be to start it in neutral to warm it up, right?