A golf cart is a vehicle just like your car and requires care and service. Unlike a car, golf carts are a relatively simple item to care for. With the many advantages of technology, it is extremely easy for anyone to care for their golf cart. Here are a few ways you can keep your cart running at its peak performance for years.
Most people have a smartphone, tablet, or digital assistant. They are a lifesaver for someone like. I always have a hard time remembering dates and appointments. What is great now is you don’t even have to type reminders anymore. Smart assistants like Alexa, Google Home, and Siri simply need you to speak your command and they will set your reminder for you. You do however have to remember to set a reminder (I cannot help you there). What I have done for my own golf cart maintenance needs is set a recurring reminder in my phone. Every two months on the first Saturday of the month I get a reminder to check the golf cart for battery water levels, tire pressure, bushings, steering, and a quick scan. It shouldn’t take more than 15-20 minutes, but your cart and your wallet will thank you.
Items to Check
Like most cart owners, I do not currently have a battery watering system, yet! Battery water levels are the lifeblood of the electric golf cart. Too much and they will boil over ruining your garage floor, too little and they will cook, and the battery will be shot, you need that goldilocks zone. If you have ever tried to fill your batteries with a gallon of distilled water you know that it goes everywhere and makes a mess. Battery fill bottles are great but again you still need to open every port and fill every battery individually. With a fill system, you have interconnected tubes that run to each battery with float switches to make sure every battery is filled properly. You can opt for either the hand pump and siphon water out of a jug or go with a gravity feed tank. Either way will work and give you the same result.
Tire pressure is something that people with golf carts tend to forget about. Low pressure will affect your speed, battery life, and ride comfort. Just like checking the pressure on your car be sure to read the tire for the correct PSI (pounds per square inch) of pressure to put into the tire before inflating. DO NOT OVER INFLATE. Most electric or battery-powered tire pumps have a gauge so you can set the intended max pressure and the pump will automatically turn off once this pressure is met.
Check your wear items
Finally, you need to check your bushings. Bushings are wear items that are designed to fail and be replaced because they are usually attached to moving parts such as leaf springs, shackles, steering, etc. Just check these spots and see if there is a large amount of movement in the cart (beyond what is normal) if this is the case you may want to consider replacing them. Bushings are cheap but if you continue to drive the cart with damaged or missing bushings the repair costs will add up quickly.
