36/48v motor vs 36v motor killing batteries

[Spoonerman]

I have a 1999 36volt club car DS mostly stock. Only upgrades have been 20 inch tires and a heavy duty solenoid. It has v-glide and resistor coils. It has been a very durable and dependable cart until the motor burned out a couple weeks ago. I ordered a new motor from a golf cart king that was rated as 36/48v. When it arrived, the sticker on the motor says 48v. I contacted their customer service that I thought I received the wrong motor. However, they replied back that it was correct and just a label issue.
Here’s the problem. I installed it with no problem but on the 1st day of use, the batteries ran down in about 1/3rd the time as usual. All batteries are about 2 years old, fully hydrated, fully charged and test good.
Here are the questions. What’s the difference in a 36v vs a 36/48v motor and is there something I should do to make this work like it used to or do I just have an incompatible motor?

[Tom47]

to BGW!

If what they say is true, there should be no reason to drain the pack that much faster than the old motor. 36 volt motors can run on 48 volts but not vice versa.

Is it a higher HP than the original, and maybe a high torque or high speed motor?

If they will take that motor back, consider buying from a site sponsor, Buggies Unlimited. Scottyb will steer you in the right direction.

[CP241]

Originally Posted by Tom47

Is it a higher HP than the original, and maybe a high torque or high speed motor?

Generally speaking, A motor is a motor. It’s just coils and magnets. A 48v motor can run on 36v and a 36v motor can also work on 48v. Maybe not the most ideal due to efficiency differences but they will work.

A 48v motor will likely run slower on 36v but will still work fine.

However I think you’ve hit the nail on the head in the second part of your statement. A higher hp motor will drain the batteries considerably faster than a stock motor. They pull more current to work. On a solid state controller cart this would be regulated by the controller, only allowing so much current to go through. But on a resistor cart it’s pretty much wide open so however much that motor can pull, it will pull.

[Fairtax4me]

Originally Posted by Tom47

consider buying from a site sponsor, CARTSUnlimited.net https://www.cartsunlimited.net/

Scottyb will steer you in the right direction.

Scotty might ban you for that, Tom…



Spooner you’re in GA, Revolution golf cars is near Augusta, and David Hicks is a great guy to work with. You might be able to just go pick another motor up. Give him a call Monday and ask what he has.
https://www.revolutiongolfcars.com/

[CP241]

Originally Posted by Fairtax4me

Scotty might ban you for that, Tom…


]

I completely missed that

[Fairtax4me]

Scotty when he sees Tom’s post…

[dundeebarnbuggy]

Hey now! So Scotty bought out Buggies Unlimited?? Hadn't heard, but with all the corporate buyouts and mergers going on these days, not surprising.

[Spoonerman]

The motor describes as a 10% increase for the 48v so it appears to me that is why it’s draining the batteries so fast. I had a bad feeling about it being 48v. I will surely use Buggies in the future. I only used King because they popped up in my browser and the price was decent. Impulse purchase after towing the cart home with my lawn tractor.

Anyway, I’ve already installed the motor and I’m not sure if Cart King will be amiable to exchanging it even though I still have the box. If not, it sounds like I may be able to adapt it to solid state as a patch for my ordering mistake. I don’t want to upgrade the cart to a 48v since I would have to buy a new charger and mine is only 2years old.

Any advice on how difficult and expensive it is to upgrade the v-glide and resistors to a solid start controller? I assume the pedal linkage has to be modified also. Also, if I do it, will performance be compromised or will it still perform similar to the stock 36v it had. Down time returning the wrong motor and waiting for a replacement are an issue. My wife and I use the cart almost every day. It’s our property primary work vehicle.

Thanks for all the insight you are providing.

[CP241]

The 10% increase indicates it’s a higher hp motor that original. Again, It’s not the 48v part that’s killing batteries faster, it’s the bigger stronger motor drawing more “juice” than the original did. Think of it like a 4 cylinder mustang you swapped a v8 into. The v8 is gonna take more gas to go but will result in more power.

Your most cost effective solution is to find another STOCK 36v motor or have your old one rebuilt. Usually a new set of brushes is all you need as long as the commutator bars aren’t bad, and they usually aren’t. Call David hicks at revolution golf cars, he may have a good used motor floating around. Or he can definitely get you the correct parts you need to rebuild your old one. And then try and return the one you bought if you can, or worst case if they won’t return it just sell it on here or local on facebook

[Edscart]

Originally Posted by Spoonerman

I have a 1999 36volt club car DS mostly stock. Only upgrades have been 20 inch tires and a heavy duty solenoid. It has v-glide and resistor coils. It has been a very durable and dependable cart until the motor burned out a couple weeks ago. I ordered a new motor from a golf cart king that was rated as 36/48v. When it arrived, the sticker on the motor says 48v. I contacted their customer service that I thought I received the wrong motor. However, they replied back that it was correct and just a label issue.
Here’s the problem. I installed it with no problem but on the 1st day of use, the batteries ran down in about 1/3rd the time as usual. All batteries are about 2 years old, fully hydrated, fully charged and test good.
Here are the questions. What’s the difference in a 36v vs a 36/48v motor and is there something I should do to make this work like it used to or do I just have an incompatible motor?

Is it a series motor ?