golf cart / pit vehicle

thinking of buying a golf cart . have zero knowledge about them. any input would be appreciated. 36 volt, 48 volt, gas powered ? good brands, bad brands? please post pics of what you guys use. looking around some of them get pretty nice

You need a two-seater ?? This is mine which I bought to drive around swap meets. Folds down and fits in a pickup bed under the tonneau !! I made a new carrier for parts to replace the bag carrier.

that's pretty cool looking. I do have a pit bike but trying to move up in the world

Love having my own golf cart. I put a radio on mine, so you can listen to the track announcers, and a windshield is a huge plus. You can pull the car, haul a generator, battery charger, air tank, etc. I bought a gas powered one. Go through about a tank a year. Change oil in it every other year. Basically no maintenance.

GAS!!!!!

I have had 3 in my racing "career" lol, 2 electric and one gas, liked the gas the best but they are of course more expensive, recently bought a used 48V electric with a charger for a grand, works good all race weekend without recharging but if I find another reasonably priced gas I'll sell this one. I started with an electric years ago, traded up for the gas, only sold it (shouldn't have) because I quit racing for awhile and needed the shop space, started racing again now I'm starting all over with electric...lol.

Anything really different about the 48v? do they use more or just different batteries?

That does seem like a smoking deal...

Gas is 100% the way to go.

Batteries aren't cheap when it's time to replace them .

Gas golf cart period. I have had three. Thinking of going to a Smart car now, they can be cheaper than many golf carts these days.

I vote a used side by side...plenty of power to pull the car anywhere, not much bigger than a golf cart, and more top speed if necessary!

these guys are converting a electric to gas set up

I thought it was a good deal, found it on Craigslist, was an old dealer trade in, took awhile to find it, most in that price range were rough...no roof, needed batteries, stump jumpers, etc

Gas the only way to go. I have pulled a friends 3800 pound car with it up hill at Sonoma. Never any problems. I use it around my acreage in Tn on and off road. It has hauled all kinds of parts engine blocks to Dana rears.

Gas

Sold my old gas cart for $400. Have a 96 ezgo now. Side by side is too big. Would have to eliminate my tool cart for it to fit. It does come in handy, and as Jeff mentioned I can’t believe how nice it is having a windshield! I do need to add a radio.

GAS!!! Around here you can pickup an electric cart cheap but batteries can cost more than that cheap cart. Besides, if you sell that old gas cart, you can pretty much get what you paid for it unless you're buying a brand new one.

If you need to transport people, parts, tow a car, etc., gas carts are great. But when it's just me and I don't have to do any of those other things, my minibike works great. And it doesn't take up a bunch of space in the trailer or weigh a ton. Heck, a bicycle would work if I really wanted to slum it. Different solutions for different needs.

Just checked Facebook Marketplace in your area OP and there quite a few reasonably priced gas units for sale.

I would never go with a battery powered cart. The deep cycle 6 volt batteries will cost about $150. each. You can get them a little cheeper but you get what you pay for, lower amps. A friend has had both , always complaining about the cost of batteries. Now for some more info, he has a EZ GO Work Horse that he just put in a new engine. He got it from Vegas Carts. It's a single cylinder 650 cc engine , WOW!!!!! hit the gas and it snaps you back in the seat. One interesting thing about the swap is besides a bolt in deal is that the engine keeps running when you stop unlike a standard cart engine that shuts off every time. So if you can find a cart with a bad engine it might be worth looking onto a engine swap.

Electric the only way to go.. Costco sells the six volt batteries for around eighty bucks each.. mine have lasted about five years I have never had problems with it starting never have I had to clean out the carburetor or fuel tank only charge and go..

I love my Gas cart myself. Fuel once in a while and check the oil. Starts every time and no battery charger. I have an older Yamaha and it still runs like new. Gas my 2cents

I have a gas club car with a windshield (handy when cold out), lights, rear seat and radio as mentioned for hearing the announcers at the track. Also, has push bar for my car that attaches in the chute mount and a tow hook on the rear for pulling other people's cars also.

My buddies electric cart has a solar panel on the roof and keeps it charged all season long.

Go with a Gas Golf Cart if your going to buy one.. Been happy with mine for years now ,but just bought me a Smart Fortwo and cant wait to turn it into a Push vehicle..

took the leap bought a 2001 ezgo gas powered. wasn't a super great deal but wasn't to bad either. thanks to everyone for the input!

I sold my gas cart a few years back, it worked fine, painted it with some leftover FC7 from challenger and put Cragars on it. Bought a 72 volt GEM cause it’s unique. It’s street legal with limits, lays rubber and looks cool. Time will tell on the batteries.

I finally got one this last fall, a gas powered Yamaha G1 (two stroke).

I couldn't pass it up for the price of $500.

The guy said had been running, but I doubt it ever ran recently.

After checking the compression which was about 10 psi I decided
it needed a top end kit (piston, cylinder, etc).

The kit was $225 and after installing it and a few other parts ($275 in all the parts total) I have a good running gas golf cart.

I've pick up some deals on new tires for it too, which I was actually working on installing a few minutes ago in the garage.

All in all I have less than $900 in a good running gas powered golf cart so I'm happy.

Here's a pic I took just after getting it running.

At some point I'll probably paint it and make it a bench seat and add a rear seat.

Straight up Cali boy Prius envy going on right here!!

I work for a Battery Distributor. The GEM cars are not common around here but the original batteries seem to last a long time. It is expensive to replace the batteries in them but we sell a few sets a year, some people downgrade to a standard wet battery due to cost and some people pony up the money to keep an AGM battery in them. We don't see much trouble from them either way, which speaks for the owner using them properly and/or a good charging system.

People with electric golf carts always blame problems on the batteries but it is usually lack of use and/or improper care.

We have an electric EZGo cart and like it. I do not tow a car with it, just to get around at the track. Had it 10 years, changed batteries in it once.
A good friend of mine used to sell and modify/lift golf carts. His opinion was gas powered carts are like everything else w/ a small gas engine on it, sometimes they can be a PITA. He preferred the electric carts.
One of my best friends and racing buddy had a gas cart and he liked it a lot better than the electric he had prior.
If either is in good shape, I think you'll be happy with whichever you choose.

We considered a side by side, but because they're considered more as "off road" vehicles they come with very aggressive tires. Not good if you ever drive on a lawn you care about! Now I might look at a golf course maintenance-type vehicle.
They come with tires designed to not tear up the lawn, and have very handy beds for "stuff" and trailer hitch too!