Dear Dictrict 6 Chairperson Re tire size
 

FYI - Comparing two very common size golf cart tires i.e.:
215 60 8 inch
205 65 10 inch

The theoretical speed difference is 2.5 mph. However there is a loss of torque by going to bigger tires which results in slower acceleration. Highly unlikely to actually achieve the 2.5 mph increase over a long period of time since a golf cart makes many starts and stops. Reality the speeders are probably averaging 1 to 1.5 mph faster if the speed is solely just a tire swap. Many other ways to make a golf cart go faster.

If safety is the true concern Vs. tires I prefer you go on a crusade for DOT approved golf cart tires on all carts. If it is about stripping the cart paths, 2 mph likely won't make a huge difference in visibility on a moonless night, raining, and a whole line of cars shining headlights straight at me as they leave the Savanah Center in a parade formation down the entire length of Morse Blvd from the center to the Polo Fields which parallels the cart path. As a footnote under those conditions I am already going 10 mph and I still have a hard time seeing the path.

Citing golf cart tire size as being a "serious" contributor to speeding is ridiculous. Agreed, a slight increase in speed is accomplished with larger tires/wheels. Adjusting golf cart speed up can be done easily in most cases with a 10 mm wrench. Adjusting the golf cart speed down is even easier...ease up on the accelerator!!!
It didn't seem to bother many people when the CDD 4 group started with the path striping issue, touting striping as being the safety issue of the century. The CDD 4 representative (s) clearly think they know more than safety experts consulted on this matter. And they seem to discount the accident statistics (facts) that point to causes of accidents of the MMPs , most of which center line striping would have not made a difference. Inattention for any number of reasons were cited as factors, much more than speed.
And now we have the CDD 6 Chairperson suggesting that regulating golf cart tire size is something that may be within their authority, even though her opinion is void of facts. I thinking some of our CDD representatives are dipping their toes into the water, testing the boundaries of their power. I personally want my elected officials to maintain what we have here in The Villages, and be mindful that it's our money that they are overseeing. I do NOT want any of them to become power players in The Villages.

Tire size isn't the problem. My Yamaha does 20.5 mph and I had people blow by me with the same size, or smaller tires.

I completely agree.

yep, I use a gps based speedometer and there is no difference going 20mph with big or small tires.....now the ability to go faster is there with bigger tires if all else remains the same...but then again I used to have an electric cart with 8" wheels and a motor I could've done wheelies with....

Most golf carts that exceed the 20 mph have had the governor altered. The is a person who modifies the governor as to make the carts go to 30mph. A new Par Car can go to 30 mph easily

yes they are supposed to be 'governed' to not exceed 19.8mph as going any faster can earn you an expensive 'driving an unregistered motor vehicle' ticket...even a registered street legal cart is open to the same ticket above 25mph. many threads on this and the law

"experts" also said the world would hit peak oil in 2012; Washington DC children would never experience snow. You ask two experts the same question, and you will likely get two different answers. I like what the CDD4 board did. I have ridden on both unstriped and striped paths, and I prefer the striped paths.
I agree regarding tire size; very little impact to speed. How many people complaining about a 25 mph cart, drive 5 mph over the speed limit on a regular basis? 20 mph versus 25 mph is not that big of a deal, imho.

The second meeting of the multi modal pathway committee meeting is this morning at 9 at the Savannah rec center. Their focus is on striping the pathways or throw out what other measures they can dream up. I attended the first one and just don't feel like attending today's. It was first interesting to hear people's ideas and feelings about the cart paths and then the absurd come out with " No villagers should be on the cart paths at night cause they are only on them because they are drinking." Really? Oh Well.

Just in the interest of accuracy……

According to Par Car, their new carts cannot be modified to exceed 20 mph by anyone except Par Car. It requires proprietary computer software modifications to change it's top speed. Par Car will not program their new carts to exceed legal golf cart speeds.

We own two new Par Cars. :thumbup:

Don

A new Par Car can exceed 20 mph--right out of the door--I have clocked new Par Cars @ 30 mph

:BigApplause: Ditto!

When I got mine and it had 12" wheels, it was still electronically set to 19mph max in the controller board. It takes a special ParCar plug in tool to set or change it when tires are changed, not something the owner can just do.

If they are getting changed, it has nothing to do with tire size. That Eagle version can be street legal, depending on the configuration purchased, so yes those as well as all brands of street-legal versions can go 25mph, but it is not because of the tire size.

What she is proposing would be difficult to enforce without cart registration. She's probably trying to put what she thinks is simple (after market tire upgrades) and apply it as though everyone who gets one is also not getting the thing recalibrated.

She may also have an agenda--perhaps to force registration of all carts! That wouldn't go over well, so maybe this is a short circuit method to get there. It might also open the district officers to litigation risks as it would exceed Florida law.

We have now put the yahoo's in leadership posts. Bring the Morse family back to make the rules.

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