G-16a Clutch Problems

[Riverrat59]

Hello,
I have a Yamaha G-16a cart. I just recently purchased a replacement clutch from CCP (Comet). Not having a clutch puller, I had a local cart shop replace the clutch. They also installed a new belt I had ordered, Yamaha 1985-UP Golf Cart Car Premium Drive Belt 1339.

The cart now jerks on acceleration, it seems as if the belt is slipping. There is a faint hot rubber smell and the belt and clutch are warmer than I would expect. The cart does not climb hills as well as it did in the past.

The clutch was replaced due to flat rollers, worn sheaves. Our God-daughter got the cart stuck on a stump and trashed out a brand new belt and the original clutch. The cart was making a terrible noise before clutch replacement, but still makes a growling noise with the new clutch & belt.

The cart has a 6” Jakes lift kit, 22”wheels, and a Jake’s power kit installed. The engine is stock. Before the stump incident, the cart ran like a champ. Any thoughts or suggestions?

[FIXEROFCARTS]

Flat rollers take time to kill, so it wasnt the stump incident that took that out. Did the shop check the secondary clutch? Your problem could lie there.

[Riverrat59]

Good question. I will be calling tomorrow. I should have taken it on a more aggressive test ride before leaving.

[sho305]

The comet clutch may engage harsher, it has a spring in it. It will rev some before it takes off, but after that it should run smooth. Make sure the belt is at the bottom of the clutch when it engages, that you don't have a broken mount or something allowing it to engage part way up the clutch, the belt should be at top of secondary....the cart place should have checked all that. Also a new belt will be sticky and grab, it should wear in soon with a little dust/hours use and be smoother. It should not smell that makes me think it is not setup right, or you are trying to inch along they don't like that. You can rebuild most of the yami clutches they might have just sold you a new one because they wanted to, though if you tune them up you can get a harder takeoff for performance use, lifted carts, etc, but its not going to be super smooth. It might just be the new sticky belt.

[Riverrat59]

Thanks, sho305. I'll put the old belt on and see how it acts. No, I don't ease the cart around. Usually it's floored all the time. I'm starting to suspect driven clutch issues. Since the replacement clutch was supposed to be high performance, I expected it to let the engine spin up some before engaging. It doesn't. It just eases off like it did with the stock clutch.

[sho305]

You should be able to clean it and squirt some lube inside the secondary spring, but it should have a grease fitting on the back side too. If the ramps/pads are ok it should work. Otherwise pull that new clutch apart and shim the spring longer, that will fix you if you want some takeoff. Make sure the engine mounts are good, if it pulls towards the trans under torque it will bog bad.

[jadawg27]

Do you still have the old clutch? If so I'll buy it from you.

[sho305]

The cart replacement clutches are made to engage slow similar to stock, you have to set it up the way you want it. The secondary really has little to do with engagement, it controls how much the rpm changes from load to unloaded (more rpm up a hill, less when near coasting) it also helps control belt pinch or how much pressure is clamping the belt. Too much and it takes more energy than needed, too little it can slip. The ramps do most of that by clamping under engine torque and forcing the belt back up higher. If you wind up the spring more inside the secondary, it will keep higher rpm at part throttle but not change full throttle rpm....but all that does not happen until the clutch starts to shift at 5mph or so, after engagement of the primary is done. A cut secondary sheave will also help it get into shifting/higher rpm faster. Pop that clutch apart and shim the spring about 1/8 to 1/4" and see what you get, with washers or piece of pipe/etc if you can't buy shims. If it has multiple springs you have to buy different ones or try lighter weights. Note if you crank it up too far it might jerk on takeoff. Some you can change the weights to make it work different, such as rev more at low rpm but shift to lower rpm as you gain speed, that often works better in a cart in my experience. Its all a balancing act you kind of have to play with it.

[Riverrat59]

jadawg27 - Sorry, I still have the original clutch, but plan on rebuilding it for a spare.

sho305 - Thanks for all your time in posting a reply & the good information. The jerking problem is getting better. The noise is coming from the driven clutch. The noise starts as the sheave near the full open position.

[sho305]

Most of them do make a humming noise at full shift out. That is the inside cogs of the belt running at the bottom of the secondary. Not sure why, but most CVT do that on sleds/carts. It always reminded me of the Enterprise at warp 10, lol.