[Dr Winston O Boogie jr]

Originally Posted by tuccillo

I assume the typical golf course leases the electric carts so they never directly bear the cost of battery replacement? Cart ownership is different here as you may be replacing battery pack several times. That is where the majority of the operating cost will show up.

You're right about that, but the cost of the battery replacement has to be included in the lease agreement. The company that leases out the carts has to make a profit. One way or the other the batteries have to be paid for.

I did, however, know of several courses that owned their carts and in fact I had a good friend who owned the carts at his club and always had electric. He did extensive research on the issue and came the conclusion that he could make more money with electric. He kept his carts for years and had a full time mechanic to maintain them. I'm sure he replaced the batteries several times over the thirty years he was at that club.

[tuccillo]

I have played at numerous golf courses that have gas carts. I can only assume they opted for gas over electric because they believe it has a lower cost. ParCar estimated the cost for batteries at 10 cents/mile. As I indicated before, the actual operating costs are a small percentage of the cost of the cart.

Originally Posted by Dr Winston O Boogie jr

You're right about that, but the cost of the battery replacement has to be included in the lease agreement. The company that leases out the carts has to make a profit. One way or the other the batteries have to be paid for.

I did, however, know of several courses that owned their carts and in fact I had a good friend who owned the carts at his club and always had electric. He did extensive research on the issue and came the conclusion that he could make more money with electric. He kept his carts for years and had a full time mechanic to maintain them. I'm sure he replaced the batteries several times over the thirty years he was at that club.