[bowlingal]

you can buy a cart that has a flip back seat when you need it. best of both worlds

[Gsorace]

Consider upgrade of front seat, too. The bucket seats adjust forward, so a short person can drive comfortably. It also tilts & is very much more comfortable in general.

[mikeycereal]

Love my golf cart. They're very useful and fun. If you can afford one, get it. Can't help you with the 4 seaters, but as far as leaving keys in I've accidently done that in Brownwood but I wouldn't advise being that trusting because I've heard a couple golf clubs got stolen from someone's cart before. So I take out and carry my keys, garage opener and wifi speaker...stuff you don't want stolen. Brownwood and other squares may be mostly trustable areas to leave stuff in, but better safe than sorry. I'm really wondering if my 3x black hoodie got taken from my cart there one night. Can't remember how I lost it (November). If anyone sees one with Cobra Kai on the back lmk. It's custom made.

[NoMo50]

Something else to consider: a cart with the rear facing back seat will, by necessity, have a much stiffer rear suspension setup. While this is fine when you are carrying passengers, it makes for a rough ride when you travel solo or 2-up. Why suffer from a stiff ride 90% of the time? As others have mentioned, it may be better to rent a 4-seater on the occasions you need one.

[Mrfriendly]

Originally Posted by Papa_lecki

We have a 2 front 2 rear cart, we are trading it in for a 4 front cart.
I’ve never seen one where the 2 rear seats are removable.

The 2 rear facing seats are not that comfortable - even for my 20 something kids. I would not put my 60 year old sister in law in it.
The 4 front also have a lower center of gravity.

What ever you do, get the most comfortable, upgraded seats you can afford.

I believe the two rear facing seats are known as the mother-in-law seats

[ThirdOfFive]

Agree with #12. Rental is a good option for those times when family and friends come to visit. My stepdaughter, her husband and brood of four rented a six-seater from The Villages Golf Cars and had no problems navigating the turns, tunnels, etc. During all the other times a two-seater is more than adequate.

[retiredguy123]

Originally Posted by VApeople

Why not wait and decide if you really want a golf cart?

We have been here 7 years and do not have a golf cart. We can get anywhere we want in our cars. When we go to the Squares, there is a lot of parking in the many parking lots.

I agree. I thought I wanted a golf cart until I saw that they share the roads with cars, SUVs, large trucks, and distracted drivers. I don't consider them safe. They are also slow and hot in the summer.

[toma6000]

We find that renting a 4-seater isn't necessary. We prefer to "tag team" when they come. My husband and I will split up with the guests and one of us drives the cart and one drives the car to our destination - then we switch on the way home. (Sometimes guests don't even feel comfortable riding in the golf cart!) So we each get one-on-one time with a guest, sometimes in the cart and sometimes in the car. It's hard to have conversations in the cart anyways. Plus you get a different view of The Villages in each vehicle and with a different person.

[Miboater]

We bought a used 2 seater Yamaha when we first moved down here and just took delivery of a new Yamaha. We did want his and hers carts so there is no issues with conflicting schedules. We were looking at getting the flip down back seat version (they call it a 2 plus 2) but our salesperson sort of talked us out of that model. He said the ride is rougher, it's not very comfortable in the back seats and you lose the basket behind the front seats. He told us the best option to the two forward facing seats is the best but I didn't want that all the time. So we just went with another two seater and figure if we had more than two guests they could rent another cart.

[Deckboat234]

Look at Yamaha concierge 4 gas golf carts. It has 4 forward facing seats, rides great and you have room for your golf carts on back. We bought a refurbished 2018 from the Villages and love it.

[msilagy]

Why would any person, whether it's their golf cart or not, leave keys in the ignition? Highly irresponsible!

[Bilyclub]

Just a comment about renting a true 4 seater from TV. We've done this and found them to be old and slow. Nothing like driving around on the MMP's and having a long line of carts behind you waiting to pass.

[Nana2Teddy]

Originally Posted by ThirdOfFive

Check the header here, "Golf Carts and Cars". Quite a few for sale and in general you'll pay less for a used cart from a private party than from a dealer.

Don't know about bolting rear seats on when you need them. My guess is that would be make-and-model dependent. A dealer could give you more info. on that.

Oh--and don't take the honesty of the people here for granted. I've had sunglasses stolen from our cart. Some months back a cart (or carts?) had the windshield stolen near Spanish Springs. And carts have been known to disappear: read not long back about a cart that was left outside overnight and was stolen from a driveway. Theft is a crime of opportunity, so don't leave too much temptation (keys in ignition, sunglasses on the dash, etc.) laying around.

Oh--and a locking glovebox? Can't hurt. As Dad always used to say, "locks are for keeping honest people honest". Sure an habitual thief could probably pry a locked glovebox open in a few seconds and abscond with what is in there, but why tempt others?

We were told at Villages Golf Cart store the locking glovebox is pointless because every cart has the same key. I guess it would deter thieves who have no key, but anyone in possession of a Yamaha glovebox key can access any Yamaha glovebox.

[Battlebasset]

Originally Posted by bopat

Moving to The Villages in a few weeks, thinking about getting a Golf Cart. We'd like something that can handle 4 people when family and friends come to visit. We like the ones where 2 seats face back and 2 face forward, that seems to be a good layout and still manageable. We heard the ones with 4 seats facing forward might be tight turning into the tunnels.

If the cart doesn't have the rear facing seats, is that something we can bolt on in the garage and just have laying around for when we need it? Or is it permanently welded?

What about other factors that would make us want or not want a particular cart? We thought about a locking glovebox but learned they're not that secure. And when we rented a cart half the time we left the keys in the ignition while we shopped and dined, and nobody took it, so apparently that's not an issue either.

We bought an Evolution cart from one of the "off campus" dealers. Just the two seater. I like it well enough, I really like the fact that it doesn't smell of gas fumes, which is something to think about if you go with a four seater as those in the rear will experience. It's lithium ion, not lead cell.

What I don't like about it is:

- The ride. It's pretty stiff. I improved it a bit with some after market front shocks. It is the previous generation, so not sure if the new gen is any better.

- My dealer capped the top speed at 20 mph. That is Florida law, but you will get passed by almost every other cart.

- I had a number of issues with the power regulator. After getting it in three times, they finally gave me a new battery as well. Which brings me to my next point

- Make sure your dealer, regardless of the make of the cart, will give you a loaner when you have to get it serviced. We were without a cart more than a week at some times, as it took that long to get it fixed.

If I had to do it over again, I would have bought an electric from the Villages Golf Carts. Higher price for sure, but based on the experience of my neighbor who did exactly that, they are much more responsive and provide loaners if there is an issue.

[Papa_lecki]

Originally Posted by toma6000

We find that renting a 4-seater isn't necessary. We prefer to "tag team" when they come. My husband and I will split up with the guests and one of us drives the cart and one drives the car to our destination - then we switch on the way home. (Sometimes guests don't even feel comfortable riding in the golf cart!) So we each get one-on-one time with a guest, sometimes in the cart and sometimes in the car. It's hard to have conversations in the cart anyways. Plus you get a different view of The Villages in each vehicle and with a different person.

Also gives more opportunity to drive the golf cart.