Club Car Slow Start

[watters32]

I have a 1999 DS which has had a delay in starting for awhile. I push the pedal down, the solenoid clicks, and nothing happens for about 5 seconds before the cart fires up. Sometimes it fires up right away, so this is an intermittent problem. I thought maybe the starter belt was loose, so I tightened that up. Still the same problem. I started watching the starter when I push on the pedal, and the pulley will turn just a little bit, stop for a few seconds, and then start. I was told the brushes were bad, so I took the starter out and brought it in to get looked at. The brushes turned out to be fine, and the starter bench tested fine. Any thoughts on what this could be?

It almost seems like there isn't enough power to the starter at the initial demand to turn the pulley. Possibility of a weak battery?

Any help is appreciated. Thanks

 

[HotRodCarts]

I'd say weak battery or bad cable connection.

 

[watters32]

I think I'll try a new battery since it's old and should be replaced anyway. Might be a stupid question, but is there anything special about this golf cart battery or can I get any 12v battery from an autoparts store that will fit? I have a Club Car dealer in town that I could buy one from, but I'm sure they're more expensive. If it's a special battery I'll get it from the dealer. Let me know. Thank you!

 

[HotRodCarts]

No there's nothing special about the battery. I'd get the highest cranking amp you can in the size the cart has.

 

[watters32]

Great. Thanks for the quick response and the advice!

 

[HotRodCarts]

No problem your welcome. Let us know how it works out.

 

[ezgoesit]

I know you probably already checked, but is your starter belt tight?

 

[watters32]

Starter belt is tight. Put the starter back on and was still getting a bit of a delay where the starter would turn a little bit, pause, and then kick in. Brought the car to the cottage yesterday, pulled it off the trailer and it was working fine. Parked it for awhile, went to use it and it wouldn't do anything. Put the battery charger on it for awhile, and tried again. Fired right up, no delay, and worked great. So I think I'll be getting a new battery this week. That being said, after I charged the battery, the cart seemed to go slower than it usually does. If the battery is bad, would it cause the cart to go slower?

 

[HotRodCarts]

It could.

 

[areion]

There are plenty of reason from tired starter/generator, voltage regulator faulty to the mcor not working to it full capacity. The battery can be in good working order and still get a delayed crank. You people on here have only scratched the surface for a cause by assuming it's the battery and nothing else.

 

[guitarman]

Sounds like you’re the expert on 10 year old posts.

 

[areion]

Sounds like you’re the expert on 10 year old posts.

MAYBE A 10 YEAR OLD POST BUT THIS PROBLEM STILL OCCURS DO U HAVE ANY IDEA WHAT WOULD CAUSE THIS?

 

[Kingnewf]

I have a 1999 DS which has had a delay in starting for awhile. I push the pedal down, the solenoid clicks, and nothing happens for about 5 seconds before the cart fires up. Sometimes it fires up right away, so this is an intermittent problem. I thought maybe the starter belt was loose, so I tightened that up. Still the same problem. I started watching the starter when I push on the pedal, and the pulley will turn just a little bit, stop for a few seconds, and then start. I was told the brushes were bad, so I took the starter out and brought it in to get looked at. The brushes turned out to be fine, and the starter bench tested fine. Any thoughts on what this could be?

It almost seems like there isn't enough power to the starter at the initial demand to turn the pulley. Possibility of a weak battery?

Any help is appreciated. Thanks

I have exact year and same problem. Removed generator and brushes look good still look good 1/4” left on them. It’s intermittent and I may try a new battery first. I’m going to check the ground and power cable and may make temp ones to bypass to see if it’s cable issue. Other than a weak generator motor or maybe the voltage regulator is acting up. I’ll have to find a way to test the voltage regulator. Has anyone on here tested one? I will eliminate all items before I replace the generator motor. Thoughts.

 

[Coy's Carts]

You need at least a 450 CC amp battery.

 

[Rose88]

No problem your welcome. Let us know how it works out.

Having similar troubles on a 2016 with the Subaru EX40 EFI engine. New battery, starter/gen, solenoid and it's still hanging up like it's under compression and maybe the decompression is not working? If this engine has one?