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Reprinted with permission from GolfCarCatalog.com

Step 1 - Cleaning the Batteries:

a. First make sure all the cell caps are snuggly attached.
b. Unplug the charger and move the car to a nearby place where you can wash the battery compartment. Lock the hill brake.
c. If you have a ‘Regen’ model, turn the master switch under the seat to ‘Tow’ or ‘Tow/Maintenance’. This turns the car completely off. If you do not have a ‘Regen’ electrical drive system, just put the Forward/Reverse switch into the Neutral position (straight up) and turn the key OFF. This also turns the car off…no battery current can run to the motor. Be sure to turn the switch back to the "RUN" position or the car will appear dead and not run.
d. We recommend that you DO NOT disconnect any terminals unless it is necessary to clean them. (There is some other maintenance to do here and we will cover cables later.)
e. Be sure your car is in a location where the neutralized acid water, grass and mud you are about to wash off will safely wash away. Be sure you are NOT wearing your best pair of jeans or any other cotton clothing. Hydrosulphuric acid just loves cotton. It’s fond of skin too, so you might want gloves.
f. Start on one side of the car and spray Battery Neutralizer (you will find a special, environmentally friendly neutralizer in our Battery Care section of our Store...click HERE) all over the tops of the batteries. Be sure to spray it between the batteries, down on the battery racks, and the inside walls of the body panels, if they are metal. Now use an old paintbrush to scour all the nooks and crannies of the battery tops and sides. Use a little extra water if you need.

Follow the directions on the bottle in applying and rinsing the Neutralizer. This liquid will change color to signify that it has neutralized the acid. Allow this to sit and work for a few moments. Wash thoroughly with copious amounts of water, standing away as much as possible to avoid any acid splash.

NOTE: Water from a garden hose, or even a commercial high pressure washer, will not hurt the electrical parts of an electric car. Do not let the water beat on the vital parts but a good thorough washing is fine. Many golf clubs wash the battery compartment out every day…this is great! Several times a month is good, once a month is ok, and certainly at seasons end at a very minimum. Hey, it’s your investment!

g. Now, if you are a REALLY frugal type person you can use plain water, which does nothing to neutralize the acid wash, or use a solution of Baking Soda (about 2 tablespoons to 1 gallon of water) to neutralize the acid, but you will be introducing some environmentally un-friendly side effects. In fact, in some regulatory jurisdictions, this is considered hazardous waste. Besides, bicarbonate of soda does not clean. Improperly washed batteries will not only stain finished concrete but, over time, can actually cause the surface layer to decompose and start to crumble. This is certainly a larger concern for clubs rather than individuals, but I have seen many examples in private homes too.

STEP 2 - Maintaining the Battery Terminals:

WARNING 1: For your personal safety always, always, always remove all metal rings from fingers, watchbands or bracelets from wrists or any loose hanging necklaces. If the jewelry becomes a short circuit between batteries, it will ruin your day…not to mention that cherished jewel!

WARNING 2: Eye safety is a vital concern too. Wear eye protection! A spark from a cigarette (NO! NO! NO!) or an inadvertent battery short, such as a dropped tool (or ring), can cause a battery to explode, spew battery acid and possibly catch fire (I know this from ‘lucky’ personal experience, thank you). Extreme caution is required. At best an exploding battery will put the hurt to your ears and a twitter to your heart for a few minutes. Should you ever drop a wrench or other tool onto a battery top—BACK AWAY IMMEDIATELY!!!!! It’s a whole lot better, and cheaper, to replace a battery than have an Emergency Room visit. Retrieve the tool after the smoke clears.

a. This is an excellent time to check, clean, tighten & treat all of the battery terminal connections. Battery cable looseness, oxidation and corrosion all interfere with the flow of electricity, create excess heat and decrease the efficiency of your Electric Golf Car. Perform these simple checks.

b. Carefully wriggle each cable end side-to-side and then gently up & down. There should be no looseness or movement sideways. If there is then the nut that secures the cable end to the battery post needs to be tightened some more. Use the adjustable wrench to tighten the nut, clockwise, just a little. If the cable will not tighten, even if the nut feels tight, there may be a problem with the battery post. Chronic looseness of the cable end will cause a heat buildup, which causes the nut to ‘freeze’ to the battery stud, and, if loose enough, cause the lead post to actually melt away from the cable end. You can see the melted lead on the side of the post, much like a melted candle…sometimes even a pool on the battery top. If it’s real bad, little beads of lead fall on the battery top and melt through the case allowing acid to jostle out as the car moves along. Be sure the cables are tight to the post. Don’t break them off, but they should be good and snug.

The up & down motion should not cause the cable terminal end, which is secured to the battery post stud, to flex…it should be rigid to the post. The cable can flex but the metal terminal end should not. If it does easily flex, or worse, it’s downright floppy, you have a battery cable end about to give it up. Fix it before it fixes you, where you least expect it!

c. If the cables have the old style battery terminals that encircle the battery post (which is just about obselete), then follow this tip. Remove and examine the inside of each collar of each battery connector (in turn). The lead should be shiny and bright on both the outside of the post and inside the lead terminal at the end of the cable. If there is any dullness, it is beginning to oxidize and you'll need to clean the lead surface, preferably with a sharp knife or battery tool (Click HERE), until it's shiny and clean.

There are commercial battery terminal cleaner tools and if used properly, they can do a good job. The sharp edged ols are usually more effective than the wire brush kind. A tough, crusty oxidation can build up that can be very difficult to remove, especially after a great while. The wire type terminal cleaners are ok if you do this procedure several times a year, but they are largely ineffective on built up crusted oxidation. The positive terminal of a battery seems to be the most susceptible to the oxidation and corrosion.

This tool will do an excellent cleaning job on both the Positive and Negative terminals (which are different sizes). The 3rd part of this handy cleaner will thoroughly clean the inside of the collar. Get it HERE.

Many times, people with older automobiles think their battery is about to die when it will hardly turn the engine over. They are usually very suprised to learn that the battery is fine, but the terminals were so oxidized that current could not flow. There's a lot of amperes trying to flow through. It needs a clean circuit.

d. The type of oxidation mentioned in the above section is fundamentally different from corrosion. Although both are caused by the acid atmosphere in and around the batteries, but corrosion is much more sinister. The crust and/or cable looseness can cause the car to stop. Corrosion just eats the car alive. Aluminum and steel frames alike! Aluminum frames handle salt air better than steel but both are the vegetable de jour to battery acid.

Here again the positive terminals generally take the brunt but the negative posts will corrode too. If they are badly corroded, you will need to do some serious cleaning. You will probably need to remove the corroded cable end from the battery, soak it in neutralizer, wire brush the metal ends and then carefully inspect them. If the ends are ok, firmly wire brush the battery post clean, reinstall the cable on the battery and tighten the nuts securely to the battery post (are the nuts clean too? Don’t contaminate a clean cable end with a corroded nut).

Corrosion can appear as thick yellow goop (sometimes gooy, sometimes hard), white powdery fluff or as a bluish goo. Sometimes these different kinds are on the same terminal or post or battery rack. This is never a good thing, as corrosion seems to beget more corrosion. Real trouble comes when it starts to get on the frame of the car. Wave goodbye to the battery racks…and car frame in severe cases. And it is so easy to prevent! Just hose off those batteries and racks several times a year. No big deal!

e. Check the water levels in each cell. Take the hassle out of this task by using a Battery Filler Bottle. Use distilled water (lead acid batteries can be damaged by certain elements found in some tap waters even though it is safe to drink). Be sure the electrolyte (water) in each battery cell is above the plates (which you can see by looking straight down into the battery).

In cold climates, when the car will be left uncharged for several months, leave the water level a little low. This raises the specific gravity of the acid, which will help prevent freezing. It is a little known fact that a lead acid battery keeps much better in the cold than in the heat, as long as the charge stays up. A fully charged battery will not freeze until 60 to 70 BELOW zero whereas a discharged battery can freeze at 20 degrees ABOVE zero. In the summer and golf season, it is recommended to keep a close eye on the water level and NEVER let it get low.

As a battery discharges, the acid turns into water by the basic chemical nature of the lead acid battery. Also a dirty, acid covered battery will self discharge at a faster rate than a clean treated battery, even in cooler temperatures.

The heat of a Florida summer can cause a battery to self-discharge in 30 days. Of course freezing is not a risk but a discharged battery will sulfate, which basically means crystals of lead sulfate clog up the tiny sponge-like cavities of the battery plates. The longer the state of discharge lasts the more this hard-to-dissolve crystalline structure builds up. It is a harmful, and costly, condition if left untended. Adequate charging avoids this situation.

f. OK, we have washed and cleaned and inspected and tightened and neutralized. Let the car drip dry for a while and then put some sort of protection on the battery terminals to inhibit future corrosion. When used on a new or clean terminal, proper protection can last for years with little care. If the terminals are corroded, treatment does little but add to the mess. Don’t believe the claims that a little spray here and there takes care of badly corroded batteries. Clean them thoroughly. Now put the car on charge. Allow the charger to run its full course.

g. After the charge is done, unplug the charger from the car and from the wall. If you have a ‘ReGen’ model electric (1995 and newer), be sure to turn the switch under the seat from ‘Tow’ or ‘Tow/Maintenance’ to the "RUN" position. This electrically reactivates the car for use after winter storage.

This is a very important step when preparing the car for seasonal use. If left in the ‘Tow’ or 'Tow Maintenace' mode, the electronic speed controller stays dormant and will not permit the car to move.

STEP 3 - Finalizing the Spring Prep:

a. Check the tire pressure and inflate to 20–25 psi. If you have had any problems with a slow leaking tire, don't waste your time with the foam 'Fix-a-Flat' stuff. It will not work permanently. I reccommend taking it to a tire professional and ahving it plugged (it's only about $5) or resealed. While you are down there filling the tires, look at the tread and sidewalls. The tire tread wear should be even across the entire width of the tire. If the center is worn too much the tire may be over inflated. If the outer edges are worn away then a chronic air leak is indicated, maybe due to weather-cracked sidewalls or a pesky tee. If one front tire is worn a lot more than the other, or the tread has signs of feathering or scrubbing, then a front-end alignment may be needed.
b. In order to keep your steering system running smooth and to prevent any metal-to-metal deterioration, it is recommended that your car be greased at least once a year. For those of you who use the car year round or use the car above and beyond 'normal' usage', you may need to do this twice a year. A simple grease gun is required for this tep. With the key 'OFF' and preferably far away from the car, jack up the front end. Always use jack stands or blocks of some kind when you are under the car. Never trust a jack to hold fast and you can never be too safe. The minute you let your guard done in situations under the car, bad things can happen. On each tie rod end and some steering parts, there will be a grease 'nipple'. Gently place the end of the grease gun onto the grease nipple. Be sure the end seats over the nipple. You will feel the resistance as it seats. Gently squeeze a COUPLE OF SQUIRTS of grease into each nipple. Do not fill to the point where grease is running out everywhere. If this happens clean away the excess right away. Grease is a magnet for dirt and if there is grease all over the tie rod ends, dirt will follow. Once abrasive dirt attaches to the excess grease, it will gradually work into the tie rod ends and cause damage. Most golf cars have grease fittings with only a few exceptions. Don't waste your time looking for grease fittings on a Yamaha, because there isn't a single one. They have a closed system which supposedly never needs grease (It actually works pretty well).
c. The beginning of the season is also a good time to be sure your brakes are working. It doesn't do a lot of good to have a great running golf car that can't stop. Begin (with the key off and on flat ground) by pressing the brake pedal. Feel to be sure the pedal doesn't feel mushy or weak. If the pedal tension does feel weak, you may need to make an adjustment at the turnbuckle or compensator assembly where the cables attach to the pedal underneath the floorboard. Check the cables while you're down there for wear or unraveling. You can purchase new cables HERE. If the pedal tension feels ok, but you still aren't stopping quick enough, you may need to adjust the brakes or replace the shoes. You can purchase new brake shoes HERE. Any of these components or combinations thereof may need replacing or adjusting to achieve the proper tension.