W
interizing Your Golf Cart
Will Save You Time This Spring
Park your golf cart in cold
weather? Winterizing your
golf cart is crucial if you store
it and hope for a quick start
up in the spring. While the
procedures are a bit differ-
ent for a gas vs. an electric
model, you must clean it and
attend to the fuel source and
tires for best results.
Before you Start Winterizing
your Golf Cart
Cleaning your cart body, bat-
tery terminal, and tires is im-
portant to both maintain the
finish and making it easier
to work on. Soap, water, and
degreaser will clean away
this year’s dried sand, mud,
grime, and dirt. Pull up the
seat to expose the battery
and clean the case with wa-
ter, a combination of baking
soda and water, or battery
acid neutralizer. Clean the
battery terminals and make
sure that the cables on the
battery are tight and in good
shape.
Before starting your winter
preparations, you must first
determine where you are go-
ing to store it. Indoor storage
is best. If you have no room
in your garage, consider rent-
ing a storage unit and towing
the cart there. If leaving it
outside is your only choice,
remove the rain curtain. Po-
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sition the vehicle in its winter
destination, as once you do
the next steps, the cart will
only move if you push it.
Steps in Winterizing a
Gas-Powered Vehicle
For gas powered carts, you
should next remove gasoline
in the carburetor and fuel
tank to prevent leftover fuel
from gumming up the works.
• Disconnect the fuel line and
run the engine until it quits.
• Drain the carburetor by
loosening the drain screw
at the bottom and then
tightening it again.
• After removing the air filter,
spray cylinder oil into the
carburetor while operating
the starter, and then
replace the air filter and
reattach the fuel line.
• Seal the gas tank to prevent
air from getting in by sticking
a golf tee in the vent tube,
and sealing the edges with
duct tape.
• Disconnect the battery and
spray the terminal with
protector spray.
• Inflate the tires to 12 to 14
psi and secure the car from
rolling with the blocks,
without engaging the parking
brake.
Protecting an Electric Vehicle
For electric cars, clean the
battery as described above,
and then:
• Remove the battery caps to
check the water level in
each cell, and if necessary,
fill with them with distilled
water.
• Coat the battery terminals
with anti-corrosive gel to
prevent corrosion during
storage.
• Fully charge the battery
with a battery charger.
• Inflate the tires to 18 to 20
psi secure the car from
rolling with blocks, but
do not engage the parking
brake.
• Set the tow switch to neutral.
Final Storage Tips
The final stage in getting your
golf cart ready for winter
is to cover it. A light cover
will protect it from dust if
you store the vehicle inside,
whereas you need a heavier
cover if you have to leave
the cart outside. As a result
of your care to protect your
vehicle from winter damage,
your preparation time to get
the cart back on the links will
be much shorter next spring.
Make winterizing your golf
cart a priority now to save
time then.