If you drive a golf cart, you need to properly maintain it. Otherwise, you’ll end up running it into the ground by way of unchecked wear and tear that will prematurely age the vehicle. So here are six essential golf cart care and maintenance tips from your friends at Richmond’s golf cart headquarters.
1. Body Care
Much like your automobile, the body of your golf cart should be washed and waxed on a routine basis. A simple mixture of soap and hot water will do the trick, while stubborn stains can usually be eliminated through the use of one of the all-purpose industrial strength cleansers that are available on the market.
As for waxing the body of the cart, you can go with a carnauba wax or liquid wax. You don’t need to apply this every time you wash the vehicle but be sure you do it with some level of regularity in order to preserve the paint finish.
2. Covers and Enclosures
These are also rather easy to care for and maintain by just relying on your standard dish soap and warm water. Be sure to use a soft cloth towel when you’re washing the covers. Stains may also be eliminated with the use of a standard all-purpose cleaner but just be aware that you may not be able to remove all stains that get on your enclosures.
This is important since applying stringent, abrasive cleansers can actually cause permanent damage to the window portions. Anything with ammonia is to be avoided completely, they will just cloud the plastic and render the windows entirely useless.
3. Windshield Maintenance
Again, mild soap and warm water is the answer here, however, some of you may be tempted to simply wipe down the windshield with a dry soft cloth. That’s a mistake, as you could scratch the windshield if you try to clean it without wetting the surface first. Ammonia should also be avoided here, just like with the enclosures.
Since most of these windshields are made from plexiglass you need to get a cleaner that is specially formulated for that material.
4. Battery Maintenance
Depending on how often you drive the cart and where most of that driving is being done, you will need to adjust your charging routines accordingly. A golf cart battery often needs to be recharged after a half hour to an hour of driving. But if you’re using the cart to get through a game of golf or you’re using it for transportation to get from point A to point B, your charging habits may differ.
So keep all of this in mind as you charge the battery, you must avoid over-charging as that could reduce the life of the battery. Under-charging can also be detrimental to the life of the battery and you may find yourself replacing it much sooner than you anticipated.
Not driving the cart very often? You still need to charge the battery every two to three weeks.
5. Fluids
Absolutely essential to the successful operation of your golf cart, whether it’s gasoline or oil you need to ensure that you have plenty of both if your cart relies on them to operate. For the latter, oil is something that is very specific to the cart you own and the environment in which you drive it. Much like with your automobile, if there isn’t enough oil in your crankcase you risk severely damaging the engine. That means oil changes are also critical as old oil can gunk up the engine and cause serious damage as well.
As for gasoline, not all carts are powered by it. If yours is one of them, then you can put in regular or unleaded, and don’t worry about the octane level either. The lower gas is just as good as the higher.
6. Check the Tires
Much like with your automobile, the tires should be checked periodically to ensure they are properly and completely filled. Air pressure is critical as tires are prone to losing air over time and tires that are low can affect the performance of your cart. This can interfere with the handling of the cart as well as the gas mileage, if your cart uses gasoline.
So be sure to check the tires every six months in order to preserve the vehicle’s performance and to avoid uneven wear on their tread. To be sure that your tires have enough pressure, check the sidewalls to learn how much psi your tires will require. Most tires will need about 16-20psi with a maximum of 22 psi.
