Fact or Fiction, 2023 Yamaha
 

A friend just got a 2023 Yamaha at The Villages cars and they told him not to mess with the governor because it will burn out the clutch. I know a few years back that the clutches were defective, but I though Yamaha put in a redesigned clutch.

I have seen warranties that exclude damage to the input shaft due to the cart exceeding the 20mph speed limit. I don't know how real this problem is since I have also seen many, many carts exceeding the 20mph speed limit.

Fiction. Altering an engine limiter will in no way damage a clutch. Well I should say, not in a golf cart. It's a very simple, low HP utility engine, but is is being held back a tad.
Regarding a warranty being voided because of a re-flash of the controller? Absolutely! Not that it matters but the stock system was altered and manufacturers are just looking for reasons to void warranties. That is across the board.

A higher rotational velocity wont "burn out" a clutch...It might harm the engine, so use a high HTHS engine oil like A3/B4 Castrol Edge 5W30.

I don’t know about that but was told if I did anything it would void the warranty. So you should wait if you plan to do anything. I waited and only made a change to get it faster than 18-19 mph.

The only way a manufacturer can void a warranty (per Federal Law) is if the change/modification has a causal effect on the damaged/defective part. In other words, if your clutch failed as a direct result of your modification, no warranty covered.

Default Fact or Fiction, 2023 Yamaha
 

Ask the Villages Golf Car people what additions are necessary to make the golf car street legal. As I understand it, one of the changes is a speed increase to 30 mph - does that void the warranty?

In Florida the speed of an LSV cart cannot legally be more than 25mph.

The drivetrain for a street-legal cart *might* use sturdier parts than those designed for a 20mph cart.

The issue with the warranty might be less about what the cart was modified to do and more about a non-certified person making the modifications. While Yamaha will warrant the quality of the work done by their representatives they should not be expected to warrant the work someone else did to the cart.

20 mph is pretty much the limit a golf cart should go. Let's face it, they're not built for speed.

My clutch recently went bad on my 2022 Yamaha. My speed was set at about 22.5 MPH (I set it myself - a five-minute job with a size 10 metric wrench). The Villages Golf Cars replaced both clutches and both belts under warranty. No questions asked.

We purchased a golf cart in October, shortly after arriving here. It's dealer-set at 21mph. We get passed constantly by other carts.

22mph tops for me. Plenty fast enough. Yet I get passed often by jacked up Yamahas that must be going 25mph plus, making them unregistered motor vehicles and subject to a court appearance and a stiff fine. Not many will pass you on a multimodal path, but once you get onto a main street with cars moving on the left, a lot of drivers think they have to keep up with the cars.

I guess one could adjust the governor, get the cart topping out at something over 20mph (as probably 99% of the carts in TV are) and if one had a problem, one could just rest the governor back to where it is supposed to be.

How would anyone know?

However, more realistically, it would be up to the dealer to enforce the warranty restriction, and why would they do that? Happy customers = successful business model.

My cart guy told me that by making it go faster, you can over rev the engine causing a failure. They are made for golf, not for speed.

Are we talking about an engine that can't do 22 mph, or are we talking about an engine that can't do 30?

The limit of 20mph is set by the legislature, but is that really the mechanical limit of a Yamaha golf cart engine?