[getdul981]

If you have doubts about the need for a golf cart, you can always rent one for a while and see how much you use/like it. My bet would be that after a week or two, you will be buying.

[Dirigo]

We rented in Jan-Feb-Mar 2010. We didn't have a car for those three months. We went "native" and went everywhere in the golf cart. When we wanted to go to Disney we would rent a car. We rented a total of 10 days in three months.

I think you get into a TV frame of mind when you use a cart almost all the time. When I drove a car in TV I felt like an outsider. I couldn't wait to turn the car in and drive the cart again.

Once we went a month without driving a car. When I picked up the car and drove off I felt like I was driving a house, the car seemed so darned HUGE.

Now that we live here we use the car a lot. But that has to do with working hard to renovate the house we bought ASAP as I have to go back to Maine soon to finish my contract out before I retire at the end of June.

I am eager to park the car in the garage and get back to using the cart almost exclusively. It is a frame of mind.

As far as the dangers of driving a cart? Drive defensively. Expect the unexpected. Stay alert. Drive slow. And keep your fingers crossed.

[Skybo]

For us, a big part of the enjoyment of going places in TV is the journey there. Even trips to not-so-fun places (like doctor appointments or grocery shopping) is made more palatable by the beautiful scenery during the trip. Unless I’m under some kind of time crunch, I tend to take the golf cart just about everywhere, no matter the distance.

And as far as distance goes...I think most people, once they get settled in, tend to use the facilities, amenities and squares closest to their home most often. No matter where you live in TV, you’re going to be pretty close to at least one square and grocery store as well as two or more rec centers/pools/country clubs. For me, the closest square is about 15-20 minutes by cart. It would be 7-10 minutes by car. It doesn’t take that much longer by cart, but it saves a lot of gas. We downsized to one car and two carts. Savings on gas, insurance and car maintenance was part of my budget considerations when moving down here.

As EdVinMass pointed out, the interior of your car will heat up very quickly during the summer months and it will take several minutes for the air conditioner to cool it down while you are baking and sweating. With a golf cart, you’ve got a breeze in your face as soon as you hit the gas peddle. It’s a much more logical transportation choice when returning from the pool in a wet swimsuit or after working out in the gym or exercise class.

We only personally know one couple who doesn’t have a cart here. When they join us for dinner at a restaurant or a trip to the square, they always prefer riding with us in our carts, as opposed to us riding with them in their car. And if we didn’t have carts, we’d be constantly renting them, because that’s the only way our out-of-town visitors want to travel.

There are times when a car is necessary or more desirable, but for us, those times are fairly infrequent.

[George Bieniaszek]

The whole golf cart experience is one of the 100's of perks that are available to enjoy here in TV. You get to see the world, the sights and sounds around you at 20 MPH instead of racing around with the windows up and the AC blasting!!

We live in Pennecamp and take the cart everywhere with us. LSL may be 5 minutes quicker by car and SS 15 minutes quicker, but we all live in a retirement community so what's the rush??

With gas prices creeping up every week, you also save a bunch of money. I am amazed how little we use our cars when we are here.

[OpusX1]

We love to use the cart. Our experience is that on trips of 5 or 6 miles the cart is faster than a car and our cart is a 19 mph cart, not supped up.
We live in Belvedere and can get to all the shops and restaurants on 466 faster in our cart than the car also the parking is easier. Also seems quicker to get to LSL and we normally park on the square or very close. When we go to SS we take the cart because we like the time together and its easier to park.
The accidents while bad are statistically very small. I think there are now over 40,000 carts and just 10 fatalities in the past 10 years.
Get a cart and enjoy.

[LittleDog]

I agree with the posters here. However, maybe I'm unique. I get 52 MPG in my Prius while my gas cart only gets around 33 MPG. However, I do have a MEEI enclosure on my cart which probably accounts for the lower gas mileage because of the extra weight. So when I want to save gas I take my car

John

[OldDave]

I want to thank everyone for their answers, especially the many really thoughtful ones. Sometimes these kind of questions get nearly Chamber of Commerce positive responses. I've come to understand that is because many of the folks who live their truly love it.

I really liked the idea of not having a hot car in the summer. Living in Kansas where it's often over 110 in the summer, the golf cart seems really good.

Thanks again everyone.

[CarGuys]

Originally Posted by jrheydt

I agree with the posters here. However, maybe I'm unique. I get 52 MPG in my Prius while my gas cart only gets around 33 MPG. However, I do have a MEEI enclosure on my cart which probably accounts for the lower gas mileage because of the extra weight. So when I want to save gas I take my car

John

Love my Prius! When we were visiting it was so cool to leave it on by locked while at open house's. Electric criven AC compressor kept the interior cool.

But we will be getting a cart when we are full time. The Electric vs Gas is still a ongoing decision.

Wish Toyota made a Cart! They have a lot of experience with battery powered forklifts etc

[er9027]

It seems to me with the distance from Brownwood to SS it could be an issue if you want to play golf. If you drive a car you would need to rent a cart right? If you lived south of 466a (Brownwood)and want to play Lopez or even Palmer. Do you pay to sit on other persons cart during a round rather than have 4 carts for each group? thanks

[Russ_Boston]

Originally Posted by er9027

It seems to me with the distance from Brownwood to SS it could be an issue if you want to play golf. If you drive a car you would need to rent a cart right? If you lived south of 466a (Brownwood)and want to play Lopez or even Palmer. Do you pay to sit on other persons cart during a round rather than have 4 carts for each group? thanks

There would only be 4 carts if you all came in separate carts which doesn't happen often since you tend to golf with neighbors/friends and pick each other up at the house. But there are times when golfing as a single that you have extra carts so you just leave one/two at the starter shack and ride two on the course. The only time you pay to ride is if you haven't paid your annual trail fee.

The real long ride won't be from Brownwood to SS. It will be from Brownwood to Lopez. But it can be done and I'm sure many will do it.

I only take the car if going off campus.

[Mama C]

Omg! I love going for golf cart rides! You see things in a whole different prospective. Why would anyone move to TV and not want one? That is what this community is about. If you are retired, you can plan accordingly, not get in a hurry and enjoy the scenery. I still work 40 hours a week but take time for my evening rides to the square and enjoy the beautiful weather.