S
EMItruck
Elsie man displays rebuilt semitruck, customized golf cart
SHIAWASSEE TWP. — Gene Maynard of Elsie
has put a lot of time and money into his
hobby — or maybe it’s hobbies.
Displaying his two matching trucks as part
of the Shiawassee County Fair truck show
that took place Saturday morning, his re-
built 2005 Peterbilt full-size semitruck is an
eye-grabber all on its own.
But it’s his custom, matching golf cart that
really seems to get people interested. The
actual truck is an award-winner. Maynard
says he’s won multiple honors with it at the
Shiawassee County Fair and other shows.
Maynard bought the truck as a salvage
project. The tractor had its trailer catch fire
and it did extensive damage to the rear end,
which had to be replaced. It was a project
he knew would take some time and effort,
but after the drive train work, several new
coats of paint, new diamond plate, and new
chrome, the truck got a second lease on life.
“That truck new was probably $120,000.
They go for $150,000, easily. I bought that
from a junk yard in 2009 and I’ve owned it
since,” he said.
But Maynard’s face changes when he begins
talking about the upgraded “golf cart,” and
his voice becomes animated.
“We spent 21/2 years building it,”
Maynard said, describing the min-
iature semitruck, “It’s the center of
attention every place we go. Peo-
ple take more pictures of that than
any full-size truck at every show we
go to. People just gravitate toward it
for some reason.”
“It started out as a 2008 club car,” he con-
tinued, “It had something like 14 hours on
28
WWW.GOLFCAROPTIONS.COM
www.argus-press.com
it, brand new. When you’re going to do
something like this, you want to start out
with something that’s easy to work with.
I have over $20,000 in materials into it.
There’s almost $2,000 worth of LED lights.
At night, it’s just a whole different machine.”
Maynard said he plans to drive it in the fair parade, and
the fair queen will be riding with him.
“Everything is functional on this machine,” Maynard
said, “except for the connections for the air brakes.”
Everything on the cart is custom —including the up-
holstery, diamond plate, stereo system, dash gauges,
interior and exterior lights, and an adjustable air-ride
system that controls the suspension.
“I had to add 19 inches on the front, and 27 on the
back. It’s air ride. It’s got an air parking brake. There’s
just so much about it that the average golf cart person,
they’d have no idea,” he said, “I had to extend the frame
to add another axle.”
Maynard also had an axle added to the rear, and had
an air compressor installed to make it raise and lower
via a switch on the dash of the cabin.
“I’ve been offered $60,000,” Maynard said, but added
he has no intention of selling his project any time soon.