The speed transition remains fair but the engine just doesn’t seem to pull well, especially uphill. When one of the flyweights breaks it has a pronounced effect on the pulling power of the cart.
HARLEY DAVIDSON GOLF CART PARTS INNER CLUTCH PULLEY CRACK
Sometimes one can observeĪ crack in the cover, or one that has been welded over (not a good idea). Sometimes the broken flyweight flings outward and cracks the side of the metal cover used to protect them from dirt & water contamination. Yamaha used to employ three articulating flyweights, which were subject to break over time. With a bad drive clutch, unless you have a Yamaha, your goose is pretty well cooked. Let’s move on to clutches.Īs mentioned before, parts just start to wear out…some you can repair, some you cannot. And besides, I will write more about good engines/bad engines at another time. The brakes must not be dragging due to a kinked cable or frozen shoe, and the tires should have about 20psi. This means crankcase seals and gaskets must maintain sufficient integrity. The piston and piston rings must create enough compression in the cylinder to efficiently burn the air/fuel mix and to create enough vacuum in the bottom end to power the fuel pump. The carburetor mixes droplets of gasoline into a very precise amount of air, which the engine can effectively burn. Fuel supply lines, the fuel pump, actuator cables and the carburetor all must be clean and properly adjusted to correctly meter the fuel to the engine. The spark to the plug(s) must be strong and applied at a very precise moment.
The battery, electrical & ignition system must be reasonably maintained and in good condition. A strong engine requires regular tune-ups including oil & filter changes & spark plugs. Take that same cart to a steep hill and the tale will be told if performance declines to an unacceptable level, you must determine if the clutches or the engine is at fault. When used primarily on level terrain either system, or both, can be in marginal condition and yet still be acceptable for the intended use. Power, especially during hill climbs, and/or carrying four passengers, requires a strong engine and a good clutch system. The fact is that gas golf cars are tremendously durable & long lived, usually with few major problems, assuming reasonable care. You expect some repair will be needed down the road but hopefully the dealer found & repaired most of the trouble before he sold you the cart. Both you and the dealer (if he stands behind the product) are gambling nothing goes wrong for an acceptable period of time. Not every used golf cart is poorly maintained, in fact many courses take excellent care of their carts, but gas engines & their clutches take a beating, especially at busy courses. Clutch & engine wear and lease termination eventually send the cart to be recycled. As time and maintenance slip away, the rounds of golf take their toll. A golf cart is designed by the manufacturer to carry 800 lbs of passengers & golf bags around a fairly steep golf course and when they are new they do a very good job for several years. Does any of this sound familiar?Ī common question asked of our techies and addressed in our forum has to do with the hill pulling capability of gas golf carts. They should not jump, jerk, vibrate, wobble or cause the belt to bark upon startup. The clutches should gradually transition, or ‘shift gears’, during start up and acceleration, remain steady while cruising at top speed and smoothly downshift when beginning a hill climb or coming to a stop. This doesn’t mean you cannot extend the life of the clutch system you now have.ĭon’t blame the clutch system for engine problems (garbage in, garbage out) and don’t overlook their effect on a smooth ride. Driven units are more commonly rebuilt depending on the brand of golf cart and the failure. Rebuilding drive clutches used to be a common practice but the time & parts invested and the poor serviceability after all the effort proved to be unacceptable. Some of the problem areas you can visually check & lubricate or repair as needed but over time, especially with severe use & little maintenance the parts just start wearing out.