Are Re-manufactured Carts Really... Re-manufactured?
 

We are bristling at the idea of paying $18,000 for a golf cart. We're aware of a large dealer who sells only 'Re-manufactured' carts for about 2/3 that price.

How does a customer know if the cart is really Re-manufactured and not just a shined up used cart. What exactly is done to Re-manufactured a cart, and who does it- factory or dealer

Any feedback on if you are happy with yours is welcome.

Thanks!!!

All things remanufactured have one thing in common. They are NOT new. So--depending on how thorough the "remanufacture" was, you could just be buying someone else's problems with a little cosmetic cover-up.

Depends on what one is looking for, I guess. We bought a 2013 Yamaha from The Villages Discount Golf Cars for $6,000 two years ago. Regular six-month maintenance and it hasn't skipped a beat despite daily usage. Suits us just fine.

The carts they sell are refurbished carts originally purchased for golf courses. They are not the PTVs -personal transportation vehicles - that Yamaha sells. Having said that, many here have purchased one and are happy with them.

Consider buying the base cart from a dealer nearby and doing the upgrades yourself. I did this and saved a few thousand bucks after installing top of the line seats and all the upgrades you normally see in a TV cart.

Refurbished could mean a fleet of carts that yamaha leased to a large PGA tournament or a fleet that a golf club/country club leased.

Many clubs, post covid, hung onto their carts for an extra year or two. Because of 1) uncertainty or 2) supply chain.

They may be 2/3 the price, but i guarantee, the margins are the same.

A lot depends on the year of the cart. We bought a used cart that was a year old and had less than 20 hours on it. It came from a tournament for the PGA as the story goes. The cart is great and we have had no issues. If anything was damaged they had fixed/replaced it and it came with a 2 year warranty. At the time for us it was going to be over $16k at The Village Golf Cart store or $13k at the Village Discount Golf Cart Store. Also at the time ours had a better enclosure and better directional as the the Village Golf Cart store only had the manual ones.

The difference also is that purchasing from the Discount Golf Cart store is that your warranty is not a Factory Yamaha Warranty as they are not an authorized Yamaha Dealer. Also, any reconditioning parts used are never OEM Yamaha parts as they are not allowed to use them.

Why would a business that specializes in golf cart repairs/rebuilds not be allowed to purchase OEM Yamaha parts?

Remanufactured typically means that the major components are replaced. I.e. bushings, bearings, belts and anything else that wears. Anything cosmetic that is scuffed or damaged, like seats, trim, body panels etc. is also replaced. This can include the engine too if it was burning oil or was out of spec in any way.

A remanufactured cart will look and behave showroom new.

If they are selling refurbished or rebuilt or anything else, it's just cleaned up and anything that was broken has been repaired.

Most carts last a very long time with just a small amount of care. If you buy any Club car or Yamaha with fuel injection(2014ish) or newer you aren't likely to have much of an issue with it.

Electric used carts really need refreshed batteries. Gas carts that aren't spewing blue cloud of smoke, will be fine. Most dealers have some sort of a warranty but chances are you won't need it.

Good luck.

At the local 4 store chain here, the refurb I bought did seem to have a few new things replaced it. New things they added were installed with little care. Their workmanship was awful. Issues like stripped screws, wrong size screws, mis-aligned or crooked mounting, rattles and squeaks on everything they touched. Multiple issues have required repeated trips to service, for the same problem or new ones. The "new" windshield has an excess of swirls and scratches - apparently caused by me driving it home and then back the next day. Be ready to hear lots of "that's not covered" and "we cannot find anything wrong" and "it's within specs".
Beware, there is no indication about previous hours used, or how many miles it was driven before you got it.
You are buying something that should be just like new. That includes how it is delivered, and the service that should keep it like new for a year. Maybe other dealers are better. Actually, in my opinion, it would be really difficult to be worse.

That's ridiculous. First off, by definition, "reconditioned parts" are not OEM parts.

Secondly, anyone can buy OEM parts, over the counter at any franchised dealer.

To me the key word in village discount golf is discount. They discounted me after the sale. No notice of a warranty recall. They couldn’t replace a snap that fell off, and recently they couldn’t help me with a tail light that went bad beyond recommending other businesses that might me able to get the part.

But you do get a discount on a cart that you really don’t know it’s actual history. I think I will go to an out of town dealer when it’s time to replace my cart. I will know it’s new and still get some discount

Will an out of town dealer deliver to TV? And just how far out of town can we expect a delivery?

My understanding is the only thing they can’t do is sell current year models as The Village cart store is the only place to get a brand new one but everything else is a go.

They are just putting lipstick on a pig.

The lipstick is only what you can see.......paint, seats, lights, etc.

It is NOT, re-manufactured engine, clutch, etc.

DO NOT be impressed with the hours on the cart..........that can be reset.

We bought from Village Discount Golf Carts for the same reason. The only problem we have had is an out of round tire/wheel when it was newly delivered. We called them, their service guy came out, determined there was a problem, had the cart picked up, they put 4 new tires and wheels on and returned it the next day. It’s been good ever since. We feel like we got a good deal and saved several thousand dollars on it.