Update on policy change on mph on new golf carts bought at villages golf car stores

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  #31  
Old 04-03-2017, 07:26 AM
bilcon bilcon is offline
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My cart is always set at 20 mph at the Villages golf carts after. If you want to get there faster drive your car! Many cart drivers can bearly handle 20mph safely
  #32  
Old 04-03-2017, 07:44 AM
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Originally Posted by JerryLBell View Post
When I was in the market for a 2017 Yamaha, I saw this and emailed the guy I talked to at Village Discount Golf about it. Here is what he had to say:

Thank you for your inquiry. I have read jane035657 threads on Totv, and I suspect the misinformation she is providing is a combination of sales tactics, and technical misunderstanding, and no fault of her own.

The 2017 Yamaha does not have a high performance clutch of any kind. It's absolute nonsense, and very troubling that dealers have to create selling points where none are needed. In fact,* it is a lower quality clutch then was installed on older models. Salesman's tactics for sure !

Yamaha changed clutches in 07 and again in 2012 1/2 and again in 2017. Though the current clutch works just fine and is sufficient it is not made with the same quality as the older models . The truth is the further back you go the heavier duty the clutch was, but that's ancient history.

I believe one dealer is just trying to create a stir , to sell more golf carts than another. These clutches engage from 0 mph to 5 mph. The clutch makes little to no difference between 20 and 25 miles an hour. Once the clutch is engaged to the belt at a very low speed it stays engaged unless you have faulty clutches.

There were some problems at the beginning of 2013 as thousands of clutches left the factory without enough oil in the clutch itself. The weights inside of the clutch did not slide properly and many clutches had to be replaced.

Also the 2017 EFI carts have an (ECM) Electronic control module, this is pre programmed and dictates the amount of fuel injected into the motor. The factory has tweaked the ECM on 2017 models to get maximum gas mileage and less exhaust emissions. As with most things there is a give-and-take. 2017 EFI models have less torque than previous EFI Carts , and far less torque than a carbureted cart. A carbureted cart will suck as much fuel into the motor as it needs , resulting in far more torque than an EFI cart. The only time this will be noticeable on a 2017 is going up a steep grade. Other than that the 2017 models are fine. Weaker but fine.

As far as the speed of your cart. It is my understanding that the Villages Golf Cars sets their carts at 20 mph , as it is our policy to do the same. On EVERY cart !* When it comes to recreational vehicles , we are all boys at heart, and we all want to go faster. But the problem is , the law is very clear in Florida. Subsequently In the event of a serious accident , collision , or ejection , law enforcement will* immediately impound the golf cart.* If their investigation shows that the cart was set over 20 Mph, it is literally Un Defendable for any dealer in a court of law. Even if it is found that the driver was at fault , the dealer will still be held liable for setting it at a speed in excess of* state law of 20 mph. We put in writing on every sale , our carts will be set at 19.9 mph for this reason. If Carts And Clubs chooses to make it public to set their carts at a higher speed just to sell more carts, as they obviously do on this forum, then we can only assume they are uninformed by counsel , or reckless , or both.

Finally the calls to Yamaha corporate office.* I suspect if Jane got to the right person, they would tell her the Motor performance is better at a higher speed. This has to do with the power curve that Motor is designed to put out. The reason for this is , Yamaha designs carts primarily for golf courses , and carts without a higher speed gear, and 10" high profile tires. When we (as we must do in The Villages), ad these performance options to a cart, and then combine that with Florida's 20mph speed limit laws,* the Motor never gets to optimum rpm in the power band of the Motor. Thus higher speed could be construed as better. That being said, Performance is one thing to consider , longevity is another. The lower the rpm, the better the mileage and longevity of your motor and drivetrain . Again always a give-and-take.

Unfortunately there is a plethora of misinformation on* Talk Of The Villages , and given to folks at golf cart dealers about golf carts,* both uninformed and with a specific purpose.

As far as what you do to your cart after you take delivery, is completely up to you sir. The feedback we get from customers is it is almost necessary to pass slower traffic. It is your property to do with what you wish,* and I can assure you , that many Villagers turn their carts way up on their own. We know this because we take trade-ins as you know , and a good amount of our trades have been turned way up, even if purchased from us, Village Discount Golf Car or the Villages Golf Cars , which I assure you , neither deliver the cart in excess of 20mph.

I will caution you that if you are cited for speeding over 20 mph , the ticket that they issue is failure to register a motor vehicle, not speeding. It is our understanding it's pretty expensive and requires the owner , to return a second time , to show proof that the cart no longer goes over 20 mph. This is not my area of expertise , I would suggest you ask others about the ramifications of being ticketed.

I hope this information helps , if you need to contact me directly please feel free to do so.


Warmest regards,

Sal Granata
Village Discount Golf Car
Thanks for taking the time to provide clarification.
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  #33  
Old 04-03-2017, 08:14 AM
OhioBuckeye OhioBuckeye is offline
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Originally Posted by jane032657 View Post
OK EVERYONE!!! Hold on. I just got a call from the head of sales from Villages Golf Cars. THEY HAVE NOT CHANGED THEIR POLICY on how the 2017 's are set. There was miscommunication with their staff who passed on to some buyers, my friends, that there was a new policy to set the carts at 23 mph like Carts and Clubs in Ocala does. They are in discussion with Yamaha and are looking into it but HAVE NOT changed the policy to date so stay tuned. They are going to call me when it is straightened out so I can give you the facts as they emerge. It is a controversial issue and they are trying to come to an understanding with Yamaha about the right thing to do here in The Villages. That's all that is for now. THE VILLAGES is NOT upping the speed to 23 at this time. New carts are being sold at 20 mph. Their salespeople were misunderstanding a meeting they had and passed on wrong information. Will get back to you when this is updated. They are also discussing having the ability to get carts set at 23 serviced in The Villages, but this is under discussion as well. I will share info as I get it. Sorry for saying they changed their policy but it came from the sales people who were not understanding they were only discussing it.
I don't know why TV would change their speed limits for carts. Have you or anyone else EVER seen a golf cart pulled over for speeding? Personally I think they could leave it at 20 mph & carts could go 40 mph & probably nobody would ever get pulled over. I guess I don't understand why they have the 20 mph speed limit now, because I don't think they enforce the ones they have now. My cart will run 20 mph top speed & I mean everbody passes me. Are the speed limits for real?
  #34  
Old 04-03-2017, 08:24 AM
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Originally Posted by OhioBuckeye View Post
I don't know why TV would change their speed limits for carts. Have you or anyone else EVER seen a golf cart pulled over for speeding? Personally I think they could leave it at 20 mph & carts could go 40 mph & probably nobody would ever get pulled over. I guess I don't understand why they have the 20 mph speed limit now, because I don't think they enforce the ones they have now. My cart will run 20 mph top speed & I mean everbody passes me. Are the speed limits for real?
I personally would like to see the statistics of how many golf cart operators were charged for an " unregistered golf cart" as local authorities call it. I'm passed constantly in our golf cart on just about every public street in the villages. Our cart can only go 20. I'm passed like I'm sitting still and most of the time unsafely especially this time of year. Sorry. I just don't see the enforcement happening.
  #35  
Old 04-03-2017, 08:25 AM
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If you get caught going over 20 mph, the fine can run over $500. Plus a whole bunch of other stuff
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Old 04-03-2017, 08:32 AM
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Originally Posted by DonH57 View Post
I personally would like to see the statistics of how many golf cart operators were charged for an " unregistered golf cart" as local authorities call it. I'm passed constantly in our golf cart on just about every public street in the villages. Our cart can only go 20. I'm passed like I'm sitting still and most of the time unsafely especially this time of year. Sorry. I just don't see the enforcement happening.
Me too. My cart can get to 20.4 on level ground, and about 21.8 on a downgrade. Even at that speed, I am constantly getting passed like I'm standing still. Worse yet, some of these drivers make it clear that they are annoyed that I am traveling the legal speed limit in THEIR cart lane while passing me in THEIR ILLEGALLY modified golf cart.
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Old 04-03-2017, 08:33 AM
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My experience this year is that about half of the carts are driving around 30 mph in the cart lanes (not the paths). It probably would be more except for those only doing 20 mph are holding the speeder them up and they are afraid to pass. The law is a little lame, as ALL carts are capable of doing over 20 mph with easy throttle adjustments.
  #38  
Old 04-03-2017, 08:37 AM
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Originally Posted by sldsld View Post
My experience this year is that about half of the carts are driving around 30 mph in the cart lanes (not the paths). It probably would be more except for those only doing 20 mph are holding the speeder them up and they are afraid to pass. The law is a little lame, as ALL carts are capable of doing over 20 mph with easy throttle adjustments.
Not really a lame law. The cart is only illegal if you go ahead and ACTUALLY MAKE those adjustments
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Old 04-03-2017, 08:55 AM
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It is correct that carts going over 20 mph are required to be licensed as low speed vehicles. Nobody has mentioned that, if you are caught going in excess of 20 mph your ticket is not for speeding but is a, albeit low grade, felony. Fines are very high and the felony stays on your record until you die. Someone who had this problem wanted to go into Canada for a vacation but was refused when the felony showed on his record.
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Old 04-03-2017, 09:36 AM
kathym.sutton@gmail.com kathym.sutton@gmail.com is offline
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I don't understand...if the cart is capable of going faster, but you don't go faster, are they ok? How fast does one have to go to be considered street legal? Is there a way for a golf cart service person to put a limit on the speed so that it doesn't come under street legal?
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Old 04-03-2017, 09:41 AM
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Originally Posted by wknutson View Post
It is correct that carts going over 20 mph are required to be licensed as low speed vehicles. Nobody has mentioned that, if you are caught going in excess of 20 mph your ticket is not for speeding but is a, albeit low grade, felony. Fines are very high and the felony stays on your record until you die. Someone who had this problem wanted to go into Canada for a vacation but was refused when the felony showed on his record.
This is about the umpteenth time someone has posted that getting a citation for an "unregistered vehicle" is a FELONY. Here is the Florida statute regarding the penalty:

(9) A violation of this section is a noncriminal traffic infraction, punishable pursuant to chapter 318 as a moving violation for infractions of subsections (1)-(5) or a local ordinance corresponding thereto and enacted pursuant to subsection (8), or punishable pursuant to chapter 318 as a nonmoving violation for infractions of subsection (6), subsection (7), or a local ordinance corresponding thereto and enacted pursuant to subsection (8).

The fines are substantial, but not criminal. Even an E class felony can be punished by 1-3 years in state prison, can you see that. Even aggravated unlicensed operation 2nd and 3rd degree (driving a car without a license) is a traffic infraction, 1st degree is a class B misdemeanor.

I'd like to hear what one of our resident lawyers think
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Old 04-03-2017, 09:48 AM
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Originally Posted by kathym.sutton@gmail.com View Post
I don't understand...if the cart is capable of going faster, but you don't go faster, are they ok? How fast does one have to go to be considered street legal? Is there a way for a golf cart service person to put a limit on the speed so that it doesn't come under street legal?
Golf carts are defined by their inability to exceed 20 mph, and can only be driven on roads with a speed limit of 30 (when no cart lane is available). LSVs are capable of 25 mph and can be driven on roads with a speed limit of 35 or less. Even if you are not exceeding these maximum speeds, you can be cited if the cart CAN go faster (and LEOs will check it). It usually only comes up if there is an accident. Also, if the cart is found capable of exceeding these speed, your insurance will probably not cover you. The cart retailers are required, BY LAW, not to sell anything that exceeds these limits, and will typically adjust your cart or LSV back to these limits at a service appointment. The problem is not with the manufacturer or retailer, it is individual owners who adjust the governor on the cart to achieve speeds of 25, 30 or even 35. Until they get caught, that is!
  #43  
Old 04-03-2017, 11:29 AM
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Originally Posted by jnieman View Post
Yes the Villages Golf cart store set ours at 17. We turned the screw just a tiny bit and now the cart goes 20. Every time we take it in to service they turn it back to 17.
My experience with them is that if you ask them to set speed at max legal, they do.

I don't experience many golf cart speeders in the Villages, but I did have one blow by me a couple of days ago that had to be doing 30. I was hoping he would get caught, because that's unsafe for everyone on the paths.
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Old 04-03-2017, 12:00 PM
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[QUOTE=jane032657;1359498]OK EVERYONE!!! Hold on. I just got a call from the head of sales from Villages Golf Cars. THEY HAVE NOT CHANGED THEIR POLICY on how the 2017 's are


It it sad, the obsession so many have with speed. At 16 my friend was driving his mother's car, I was a passenger. He did a quick turn at 100 and was thrown out, the car rolled several times, and so for all of my life I have had a badly injured back, multiple fractures, lots of pain. He died instantly. It is only my view folks, but what it the hurry here? Going from Old Mill to A. Palmer my cart does 19 or 20 mph, others gain and swiz by like crazy. If I am on my bike it is a plan of many carts to see how close they can come to me, one guy, a passenger, slapped my rear view mirror as they went by, illegal for sure!!! There is a three foot law, for clearance, but how many care? Why is a moving vehicle a toy? Hey, go to some race track, watch as they fill the toys with fuel, drive at breakneck speeds, hit the wall, hit each other,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, real smart Right? How about being safe, being practical, slow down, and not being sorry???
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Old 04-05-2017, 12:12 PM
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You know technically, most golf carts are CAPABLE of going more than 20 mph, even if they are set for 20, so under the FL code section it can be argued that almost any "golf cart" on the road does not meet the legal definition.
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