ST350 potential issues (slipping, low top speed, bad vibes)

[mr_udy]

I bought this thing sight-unseen (delivered today from NH) and overall happy with what I got but there are a couple potential issues maybe some of you can shed some light on:

1) 1st think I noticed was: it having a tough time getting up the ramp on my utility trailer...engine would rev and eventually get up but maybe something is slipping or is this normal?

2) Power seems impressive at take-off...then seems to actually slow down...hoping this can be taken car of with a govenor adjustment???

3) On smooth surface, severe out of round rear tire feeling but the moderate all terrain style tires are brand new. Wonder if one is not seated correctly on the rim? Bent rim? Something worse?

[DOOmsman]

1 and 2 seem contradictionary tell us more.

[mr_udy]

after looking at "today's posts" I see another "Gas EZGO" guy is explaining what I'm experiencing in #1 and i'm suspecting the clutches are bad. I'll follow some of the avice there about looking for stair-step or worn grooves in the clutches. Essentially, it seemed like the motor was struggling under the load of climing the ramps of my trailer... I guess if something was slipping, it'd tend to rev more freely. So....what kind of job and $ am I up against to replace the clutches? Might as well upgrade a bit while i'm at it?

In #2, I was trying to describe feeling the cart was "peppy" during general smooth ground acceleration....but then seemed to just slow down despite me holding the "pedal to the metal". No slipping or anything...just like power is cut...so supecting govenor. Just surprised that the engine apears to rev up nicely during acceleration then cut back, maybe even loose some speed once steady state.

[mr_udy]

MikesMotorToys responded to a similar issue in November (?): "You have a stripped rear brake hub.................Run the cart in gear and look down at the rear tires - I'll bet you see one with a slight "wobble", that will be to one with the bad hub. Don't run it too long, as you can damage the axle."

I wonder if this would explain my "out of round tire like symptom" and explain why the prior owner just replaced the rear axle? Could they have not addressed what caused the axle failure and simply replaced it?

Would the stripped brake hub result in what I describe in #1 (potential clutch slippage)?

Any help is greatly apreciated...I got an upset wife and not gonna get any better if I start throwing serious money at the source (the cart).

[ruredy]

1, measure the width of your belt, could be wore and slipping. stripped hub? naw, I doubt it. clutches? again I kinda doubt it. sounds like a wore belt to me
2, yes, it needs a governor adjustment, I have a thread about it in the tech section
3, check the tires and wheels while the carts running on jack stands or jacked up with the wheels off the ground. it's pretty easy to spot a bent rim,(most likely thing I can think of since you said they changed the axle) an out of round tire or not seated properly could also be the cause. a little harder to tell but it happens all the time. swapping rims around and checking it while you have it jacked up can tell you if it's an axle problem.

[mikesmotortoys]

Doubtful you have a stripped hub - if you did, the the cart wouldn't run.

My bet is bad clutches, worn belt. stretched throttle cable, over adjusted govenor and bad tire...

We've got all that when you're ready...

[Radicalgolfcarts]

Yeah I agree.... not a stripped hub, Espically if he said the take-off is good!! It sounds like a clutch issue!

[mr_udy]

awesome guys...really apprieciate your help... Sounds like I can rule out hub...and possibly the belt cause supposedly the drive belt is new (replaced at dealer prior to sale).

I'll check the clutch for wear grooves (gotta thumb through old posts to find what and where to look). Anything else to try?

I'll get her up on jacks over the weekend and run it...see if there is runout on the tire and/or wheel.

Thanks again...my biggest challenge now is hiding the fact that there may be a problem from the wifey...she's not happy with the purchase and would flip if she knew something may be wrong...

[ruredy]

Originally Posted by mr_udy

awesome guys...really apprieciate your help... Sounds like I can rule out hub...and possibly the belt cause supposedly the drive belt is new (replaced at dealer prior to sale).

I'll check the clutch for wear grooves (gotta thumb through old posts to find what and where to look). Anything else to try?

I'll get her up on jacks over the weekend and run it...see if there is runout on the tire and/or wheel.

Thanks again...my biggest challenge now is hiding the fact that there may be a problem from the wifey...she's not happy with the purchase and would flip if she knew something may be wrong...

You can always point out the fact that the new ones are around $7000
what year is it?
If you do have a new belt i'd check and see if the carb is going wide open, the stretch cable will effect this and cause you to have limited performance. Adjust the gov. to make it stop the slowing down stuff, that's a factory setting and they run like a 3 legged dog when set that way. since they where just working on the cart they may have got some oil/grease on the belt. i'd run it a little to see before I went and bought $500 worth of clutches.

[mr_udy]

The cart is a 2000 with 570hrs on it. The bed floor is worn/rusted pretty good indicating it probably hauled alot over the years. Overall, its looks pretty good...not too abused and no chassis rust.

I'll certainly use it a while before upgrading but really wanna identify anything major/catastrophic (not gonna sweat small stuff) so I can attempt to take it up with the selling dealer ASAP...unfortunately i'm 7hrs away so not sure how things will turn out.