Quote:
Originally Posted by huge-pigeons
The evolution cart doesn’t compare with the Yamaha quiet drive2. If you compare like carts, the lithium will cost you more. Then in 7 years or so, you will spend thousands for batteries.
Lithium does lose its strength over time. How does your iPhone work after a couple years?
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These statements are incorrect and based on common misconceptions.
1) With regards to "The evolution cart doesn’t compare with the Yamaha quiet drive2"... It depends on which Evolution cart you are talking about. The older carts didn't have any more features than the Yamaha, and rode rough - but they were also about 1/3 the cost. The new D5 Ranger is a completely new design and build. I had 2 Yamaha Drive 2's for 5 years. They pale in comparison to the D5 Ranger. While the D5 has bit of a stiffer seat, it's far more comfortable on a long drive. And the D5 includes a lot of features not standard on a Yamaha - self cancelling turn signals, integrated sound bar, automotive style screen, tilt steering wheel, etc. I'll never go back to a Yamaha after driving the D5 (I have 2,200 miles on it so far with no issues). Having said that, I realize that this is a personal opinion, so to each their own.
2) D5's have an 8 year warranty on the battery with a 15 year life expectancy. I'll be getting a new cart long before I have to ever even think about buying a new battery. Even if I had to buy battery - the current price is around $2K and will drop over time. I'm certain that I will save far more than what I would have spent on gas, belts, oil changes, etc in that 15 years.
3) I'm an Electrical Engineer that worked on this technology - LifeP04 lithium loses hardly any capacity over time. Lithium iron phosphate batteries are rated for over 4,000 cycles, meaning they can be fully charged and discharged over 4,000 times before their capacity is significantly reduced. My battery is a 205ah and gets me 70+ miles per charge. That equates to 280,000 miles before I will see any significant reduction. They are nothing like the old lead acid batteries, or even the batteries in phones. Batteries in phones use a far more aggressive technology to pack capacity into a small area. You don't have to design them that way for a golf cart. The battery will most likely never see a reduction in capacity while you own the cart.