Jakes lift kits let me down!

[ACEGOLFCARTGUY]

I recently installed a Jakes 5" lift kit on my 2004 EZGO and barely have 30 miles on it. When I was out road testing the cart today, the tie rod snapped as I was turning it around. Thankfully the lift kit failed at low speed or else it could have hurt!

Jakes gets a lot of praise for quality but I dont see where its at. They go cheap on the long travel(improper use of heim joints, low quality coil overs) and cheap on their drop axles. IMO the drop axle kit should come with a longer tie rod because the lift kit axle is wider than the stock axle. Instead they have you adjust the short stock tie rod(drag link) all the way out to where there are almost no threads left. As proved on my cart this isnt a safe idea. Please tell me I am doing something wrong and they at Jakes aren't really expecting this to be acceptable.

 

[HotRodCarts]

Wow that sucks. Like you said good thing you were going slow.

I agree. The drop axle lift kit should come with a longer drag link. I've never used the Jakes drop axle lift kit on the new style EZGO steering but I've worked on plenty of them and no way is the stock draglink long enough to work on a wider front axle. I thought that kit came with a new draglink. Did you call Jake's and ask them about it?

As far as the long travel lift goes I don't remember you ever posting anything bad about that kit. What type of cart did you use one on and what were the problems?

EDIT:After reading the doc file for the Jakes Drop Axle lift kit for 2001.5 and newer EZGO carts it clearly states if the tie rod ends don't have a grease fitting you must use the Jakes rod.

Most of the 2001.5 or newer I've worked on don't have grease fittings. So from the way I read the instructions you need to use the Jakes Tie Rod / Draglink...

 

[slim67]

They make drop spindles out of ductile iron which Ive seen backhoe booms made out of. As for the rest of their stuff Ill take your word for it. Im wondering if most people are buying the chinese kits forcing Jakes to lower their quality in order to compete for sales. A sad sign of the times.

 

[ACEGOLFCARTGUY]

I wouldn't have a problem with this lift kit if they had included their special tie rod or at the very least made it clearly known to the customer in BIG BOLD LETTERS that it should be bought seperately and installed. I did not see anywhere in the instructions stating a new tie rod must be used. As a matter of fact I questioned the sales rep from a vendor at the time of purchase and they specifically told me everything is included in the kit that you need to lift your 2004 model EZGO.

That aint cool at all. Its like buying a car and the sales man telling you the seat belts have to be bought seperately if you need them.

As for the long travel, I dont want to or mean to bash any company here. However, just to point out a couple things, the coil overs are cheap and the heim joints are improperly used at the spindles. Being mounted horizontally with the bolt vertical causes significant stress on the heim joint.

I want to make clear I have not used a Jakes long travel kit. These kits cost a lot of money and you should get what you pay for.

 

[HotRodCarts]

Sorry Ace I have to disagree with you on the heim joint. Heim joints are made to be used at any angle as long as there is no binding. I've installed that lift on a lot of carts that get the crap beat out of them and never had a heim joint bend or break. I don't see anything cheap looking about the Jakes long travel lift kit.

Now to the drop axle. Its clearly printed in the instructions about the drag link. Weather you choose to read the instructions or not is your business. But you yourself said you noticed the rod was to short so why didn't you look into it further before installing the lift in a unsafe manner. I'm not making excuses for Jakes or the vendor you bought the lift from, but sometimes common sense needs to be used. Now I'm sure not everyone who installs these lifts would notice the draglink is to short but I'll fall back to the instructions that tell you, you need this part in some cases...

My opinion, if you're going to be mad at anyone you should be mad at yourself for noticing the drag link was to short but installing the lift anyway.

 

[BadToTheBone]

9. Reattach the tie rod joints to the spindles. NOTE: If your cart does not have greasable tie rod ends you will need to install JAKES tie rod at this time.

NUFF SAID

 

[ACEGOLFCARTGUY]

Come on Rod do you think I am that ignorant!? The matter of fact here is the Jakes instructions I recieved with my lift kit does not have that line in it ANYWHERE PERIOD!!!!!!!!!!

I saved the instructions and will try to scan them in for yourself to see. Let me tell you something, I am not an engineer so when I received a lift kit from a respectable manufacturer, I THOUGHT IT HAS EVERYTHING IN IT TO SAFELY LIFT THE DAMN VEHICLE. HOW the hell do I know you are suppose to BUY AN EXTRA part to SAFELY lift the cart when its not written in the instructions they sent me? It is not my responsibilty to go hunt and peck on the fking internet to find more information on it.

If I ran a business like that I would be bankrupt and sued dry!

Im sorry we have to disagree about this Rod.

You've seen the work I do. What about a dad and his son who install a lift kit like this one weekend? Its not like the tie rod was hanging on one thread. It seemed feasible to someone who trusted the manufacture they just spent good money on.

 

[ACEGOLFCARTGUY]

Say your sorry.

 

[HotRodCarts]

Calm down Ace lmao...

The reason the new drag link rod doesn't come with the lift is it's not required on every installation. It sounds to me that the vendor you bought the lift from should have told you that your cart MIGHT require a longer drag link. I won't speculate if Jakes informed the vendor that but the dealings I've had with Jakes have always been very professional and thorough. The instructions I posted are right off their website. There's also a warning sticker that should have come with the lift. If the instructions you have don't mention the grease fittings, the Jakes drag link and the warning sticker then apparently you got the wrong instructions or the wrong lift. Does that make the Jakes lift junk? No not at all!!!

Bottom line is the lift isn't cheaply made. The part that broke on your cart isn't even part of the lift. Maybe if your initial post wasn't worded the way it was the replies would be worded different.

I'm sure a simple phone call to Jake's would take care of the problem.

EDIT:
I sure don't see anything about the drag link on the instructions you posted. I'd would definitely call Jake's and ask them whats up. Sorry Ace you got me on that... But I still stand by Jakes lifts and their quality 100%

Also thanks for posting the instructions and bringing this to my attention. I will send a email to Jake's with a link to this thread to bring this to their attention...

 

[ACEGOLFCARTGUY]

Thank you HRC,.

 

[dougmcp]

I can certainly see both points here.

Obviously no one manufactures a product and puts together instructions that are intended to deceive anyone, but like any product, some conditions arise that were not perceived originally.

Apparently Jakes has found this and their new instructions are posted "on line". If they let a product out to the public, knowing that the wrong instructions were placed in the box, shame on them. Maybe they have a communication issue in their office as those original instructions should have been destroyed and only new instructions should have gone with the product.

As was said before, lucky that the tie rod end connection failed at low speed and with someone who new what the problem was, the general public is not always as aware.

This could have developed into a messy situation with injuries and lawsuits and Jakes can count themselves as lucky on this one.

I realize that manpower and resources may be limited in a small company but I would think the onus is now on Jakes to inform anyone, dealers and individuals, who purchased these kits after the known problems should be notified by mail with a warning as it's safety and followup solution.

The last thing they probably want is legal action on something that could/should be circumvented now.

 

[HotRodCarts]

The issue is being taken care of as we speak.

Ace I sent you a PM with some contact info. Let us know what the out come is...

 

[dougmcp]

Jake's appears to be one our sponsors, is it possible for them to post an explanation or is against forum rules for them to respond?
I'm sure they're as shocked from this thread as anyone and their concern should justify a response.

 

[ACEGOLFCARTGUY]

I must applaud Jakes for their superior customer service!

It seems they are already on top of revising the 2001.5 - up EZGO lift kit instructions.
I purchased the Jakes tie rod today and am confident in the lift kit now. I think the real problem before was just a matter of misinformation.

I do believe the lift kit is a good value and great product. I was admiring the welds when it arrived!

One thing proven here is Jakes really does care for their customers' safety and 100% satisfaction!!

 

[slim67]

I purchased the Jakes tie rod today and am confident in the lift kit now. I think the real problem before was just a matter of misinformation.

I do believe the lift kit is a good value and great product. I was admiring the welds when it arrived!

One thing proven here is Jakes really does care for their customers' safety and 100% satisfaction!!
Just curious, but are the rear lift blocks cast or made from plate steel on that lift? I know on my Club Car lift they were cast and well made compared to another un-named lift.

 

[HotRodCarts]

Thanks Ace I appeciate the follow up. I'm glad to hear you're satisfied!!!

 

[Batman]

Due to the advice I got here I have the Jake's long travel lift on my ezgo txt and its rock solid. The welds are very nice and I find the overall kit very well built. The shocks are good quality and have held up fine so far and Im ruff on my cart.

PS: I HAVE USED ONE AND AM VERY HAPPY WITH IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!