Let me add my 2 cents. As you can tell I'm partial to electric since my wife and I can't stand the jerking, noise and smell of gas cart fumes, especially in tunnels. I think the Government should require pollution testing on gas carts and perhaps the Surgeon General make a statement on the safety of sucking in the awful fumes from those carts. Oh I almost forgot how about a statement on what the constant jerking when starting does to your body and perhaps the effect of the exhaust noise on your hearing while their at it. If you drive a Model A Ford then none of this should bother you and a gas cart is probably a reasonable decision.
A few more hopefully constructive thoughts:
My Club Cart Precedent cart has 4 x 12V batteries and I can travel longer then I want to go in a golf cart. Going from Brownwood to the Polo Fields and playing 8 holes of golf and coming back at night isn't a issue. Do I want to go all the way to the Northern Territories golf courses from Brownwood - no but I wouldn't want to do it even If I had a gas cart - its just too far and long at 20 mph.
Last I checked my 4x12V batteries were under $700 not $1000 but then again they probably won't last 5 yrs either? I've just started to use a battery saver that de sulfites the batteries and hoping it will get me to 5 yrs. I've used one on our Jet Ski battery that I had to replace every year or 2 and its been very effective in extending the life of that battery.
I have heard that 6 x 8V configuration gives better millage but the Electrical Engineer in me likes less cables and connectors that could give problems. I think the 6x8v config has more lead so more amp hrs.
As far as top speed, a standard electric cart will only go about 19.6 mph but without the AC motor, in EZ Go carts, going up hills wasn't fun and I had ours upgraded for about $550 and now get a few mph more when I need it. Now I don't have to get out and push the cart up hills (that's a joke but close to true) and can use the little extra power to keep up with traffic and help me in some situations.
Wish Lithium batteries weren't as expensive if anyone knows of a cheap source let us know - hopefully I won't need them for a few more years.
The biggest issue with our cart is the head lights are very dim at light and driving at night into upcoming carts that have replaced their headlights with something brighter, but not aligned to the road, blinds us and make seeing even worst. You don't think it has anything to do with our "not so young eyes" do you?
Oh if you happen to see me stopped along side the road some day in the future - out of battery, please don't drive by and yell >> We told you so - get a Gas cart. Offer to help us out at our age we can't walk too far any more. I'll buy you a beer, soda, wine. BTW we have seen gas carts stopped out of gas.
