A golf cart’s battery light is undoubtedly an indispensable accessory of any battery-operated golf cart. This light notifies you when your golf cart battery or batteries are low on charge. It saves you the hassle of worrying whether you would be stranded because of a drained battery.
The battery light acts as a warning light to show the charge status of the battery. This light is usually located on the dashboard of the golf cart.
The drive time you get out of charged batteries depends on two parameters. One aspect is the weight of the loaded golf cart.
For identical batteries with the same charge, a golf cart with a thin lady driver will cover a longer distance than a cart with two male drivers and a bag full of golf clubs.
The other aspect is the terrain on which you drive the golf cart. When driving downhill, the golf cart battery lasts longer than when the same cart is driven uphill.
Types of Golf Cart Lights
Golf carts are of two types and can be either gasoline operated or battery operated. Whichever type of golf cart you own, the cart is bound to have various types of lights to alert you on different situations.
I will now explain the different lights found on a standard electric and gas golf cart:
Warning Lights
The warning light on an electric golf cart is the battery light. True to its name, this light gets illuminated to warn you of a low battery or low batteries. It serves as a signal for you that it’s time for battery recharge.
Your standard gas golf cart is equipped with similar light, to let you know when you’re low on fuel and you need to refill the tank.
The light, usually red, starts flashing when the battery has got less than 10 percent charge left, in an electric golf cart or less than 10 percent fuel in a gasoline-powered golf cart.
The golf cart has several other warning lights. For example, there is a warning light to indicate if there is any problem with the engine of your cart.
Tail-Lights
As the name indicates, the taillights are located on the rear of your golf cart. They primarily have LED bulbs because of the long lifespan and brighter illumination that is required.
Tail lights are quite handy if you do a lot of driving in your golf cart at night.
They help inform other vehicles about where you’re on the golf course to avoid accidentally bumping into each other. Some golf carts make use of halogen bulbs but these lights are more expensive.
Indicator Lights
The indicator lights of your golf cart function as typical turn signal indicator lights. They are located on either side of your cart. The light gets illuminated depending on the side you turn your golf cart to.
These lights are usually not a standard feature of golf carts. However, you can connect them externally with wires to a three-way switch that is powered by the battery.
You can also fit a reverse indicator light to let others on the course know that you’re reversing your golf cart. This helps them to keep a safe distance from your golf cart to prevent accidental collisions.
Brake Lights
The brake lights of your golf cart are located behind the vehicle. Typically, they are placed close to each other. In some cases, you may also have a brake light on the center of the cart.
These lights get illuminated when you apply the brake on your cart to stop it. This will let other cart drivers behind you know that you’re stopping your golf cart and avoid coming too close to your cart.
Headlights
The headlights of the golf cart are housed in front of the cart. Like the taillights, they are particularly useful if you’re using your cart in the dark or at night. They help you see what is ahead of you, which you would fail to without these lights.
Often, the headlights and taillights can be bought together as a kit. However, they can also be bought individually. Buying them as a kit may turn out to be slightly less expensive than two individual purchases.
Why is My Golf Cart Battery Light Flashing?
There are quite a few reasons why your golf cart battery light may be flashing when your cart is not on the move. I will guide you on some of these reasons and what you can do to fix it.
Charger Not Supplying a Full Charge
One reason why your battery light is flashing could be because the batteries are not getting a full charge from the charger. The flashing indicates that the charging is less than 90 percent.
- You can try resetting the On-Board Computer (OBC).
- For this, you must unplug the negative cable of the main pack and keep the FNR in reverse position for a while. This helps to drain off the power supply of the OBC completely.
- Now, reconnect the negative cable and let it charge one complete cycle.
- After this, wait for a couple of hours and remove the charger.
- Plug the charger in again immediately.
- This will cause an equalization charge, and your battery light should stop flashing.
Missed Connection to the Battery Pack Positive Side
If the red wire to the positive side of the battery pack is not connected nor has a loose connection, the battery light may keep flashing. This often happens after a battery change.
Check for a red, loose or unconnected wire. If you find such a wire, tighten it or connect the wire to the battery pack on its positive side depending on what is appropriate.
Wrong Battery Installation
A mistake in the installation of batteries can cause flashing battery lights. This can be something like a wrong polarity connection.
Analyze how your battery connections have been made. One or more batteries have likely been connected in the reverse order. Correct the connections and most probably your battery light will stop flashing.
Battery Is in Poor Condition
If the batteries of your golf cart are quite old, then there is a chance that the charge will not come on and trigger a flashing battery light. This typically happens if you have used the batteries for quite a few years.
The best solution, in this case, is to replace the old batteries with a set of new ones. The old batteries would have lost their efficiency due to the extended period of use.
The Battery Light is Flashing when the Key is Off
In some cases, you may notice that the battery light is flashing intermittently even when you have turned the ignition key of the golf cart to the off position and taken it out. Some reasons why this may happen are given below.
Low Charge on Batteries
Weak batteries are one of the main reasons why the battery light flashes even when the cart is turned off and the key removed. Low battery voltage is also another reason for this type of flashing. If the batteries are fully charged, there should be no flashing.
Try charging your batteries and see if the problem persists. If it continues immediately or just a short while after a full charge cycle, it could mean that the batteries are very weak. You may consider replacing them with new ones.
Overcharging of Batteries
The battery lights could also keep flashing when they have a problem due to overcharging. The battery is likely to have got boiled.
Verify if the batteries have been overcharged by checking if the batteries are boiled. If you notice the boiling, wait for the batteries to cool down completely and then take the corrective measures to prevent boiling.
Why Golf Cart Battery Light is Blinking
Like flashing, another thing that you may notice about your golf cart battery is that it keeps blinking. You can check for one or more of the following reasons to figure out why this is happening.
A Bad Diode on the Battery Indicator
The diode behind the battery indicator could beat fault causing a little current flow-back via the control circuit. This can cause the battery light to blink.
- Remove the battery connections and leave them unconnected for a while.
- Connect the wires in reverse order.
- This can offer a temporary fix.
- For a permanent solution, you should replace the diode.
Weak Battery Voltage
One or more of your golf cart batteries are likely to have a low voltage. This can stop the batteries from being able to pick up charge.
Check the voltage of each battery separately. When you find a battery with a low charge, try charging it to its full voltage using a smaller auto charger.
Faulty Charger
If your batteries are all good, then another reason for the blinking could be a faulty charger.
You can use a voltmeter to check the charger yourself or seek the assistance of staff from your local golf store.
Why Golf Cart Battery Light Stays On
Just like flashing and blinking, your golf cart battery light staying on continuously can also indicate a problem irrespective of the key position. You can check out for any of the instances mentioned below.
Low State of Charge
The state of charge on the dash is less than 20 percent. The charger may have to be reset if the batteries are good.
To reset the charger, remove the DC cord from the vehicle and AC cord from the power source. Wait for about half a minute until the red light turns off and then plug in the AC power once again.
When the blue light of the AC power starts illuminating, reconnect the DC cord. This should do the trick. However, if the problem persists, flip the switch to the Tow position and disconnect the negative cable of the main battery pack for half an hour.
Low Battery Pack Voltage
If the battery pack voltage is very low, the OBC will not be able to activate the charger.
Use a digital voltmeter to check if the battery pack voltage is in the 36 to 38 volts range. If not, check each battery voltage independently to find the faulty battery. You may have to replace the battery if it’s more than four years old.
Battery Light Coming On and Off
A faulty attenuator that needs to be replaced can be one reason for the battery light to come on and off. You can also check out the following if you find no problem with the attenuator.
Interrupted AC Power to the Charger
This battery light problem could be because there is no continuous AC power supply to the charger.
Wait for a while and resume the charging process. If there is no interruption, the light will go off and charging takes place smoothly.
Charger Cut Off Before Full Charging
In this case, the charger cuts off automatically after the preset 16 hours but the batteries have not got charged fully resulting in an abnormal charge cycle.
The best solution is to get both the batteries and the charger checked by your golf cart dealer or the service center.
Golf Cart Battery Warning Light
A yellow battery light can indicate more than one problem. I have listed a few reasons for this below.
Power Failure While Charging
There could have been a power failure during the charging process and hence charging would not have taken place fully.
You may want to resume the charging process for a while although there might be enough charge for you to do a couple of rounds.
Batteries Have Not Charged Fully
The battery pack or one or more batteries may not be receiving the required voltage.
Check the battery pack voltage and the voltage of each battery separately. Also, check for loose connections, especially to the charge port or corrosion on the connections and correct them.
Why Won’t My Golf Cart Lights Work?
There are different types of lights on your golf cart. The reason why one light doesn’t work may not be the same reason for another faulty light. However, in general terms, a few reasons why golf cart lights tend to fail are given below:
- One or more faulty fuses
- Improper or loose wiring connections
- Broken wires or cables
- Battery water leak
- Faulty switches
Based on the above factors, you can do the following checks regularly to ensure that the golf cart lights function properly.
- Check the fuses and switches to see if the fuses have blown out and the switches are operating properly. Replace the blown-out fuses and faulty switches with new, good quality ones.
How To Replace a Faulty Fuse on Golf Cart:
- Locate the service panel behind the battery on the driver side of the golf cart.
- Find out where the broken fuse is and pull it out using a pinching action with your fingertips.
- Push a new fuse into its position and push it till it cannot go any farther.
- Ensure that the new fuse has the same current rating as that of the old fuse. The number is usually printed on the fuse.
If the fuse is working fine continue reading and try these alternative methods:
- Check all the wiring connections among the batteries, to the motor and just about anything else that you think can cause a problem. If there is any connection that has come loose or undone, fix it right away.
- Check for broken wires or cables used in the above-mentioned connections, replace it immediately with good quality ones. It’s advisable to go in for a new wire or cable at the time of replacement.
- Check for battery water leaks. If you can see leaking, dry the battery completely. If the battery plates and other parts have corroded beyond repair because of the leak, you must consider changing the battery.
Golf Cart Headlights Not Working
Like the battery light, you must know why your golf cart headlights are not working. It could be because of one of these reasons.
Improper or Loose Ground Wire Connections
The ground wire connections to the headlight may have come off or must be hanging loose causing the headlights to fail when you try to turn them on.
Check for loose connections or disconnected wires. Tighten or reconnect them as required.
You will essentially have to check for two connections.
The first connection is between the positive wire of the headlight, to the switch. The second connection is found between the negative terminal of the headlight, and the battery.
Broken Wires from the Headlight
There are chances that a wire or two connected to and from the headlight may be broken.
Replace all broken wires from the headlights immediately with new and undamaged ones.
No Power Supply in the Wires
If there is no power supply between one or more wire connections involving the headlight, use a voltmeter and check if there is power going through all the wires connected to the headlights.
Replace wires without voltage passing through them. Even a single wire with this problem can stop the lights from working.
Blown-out Fuse or Broken Switches
A blown-out fuse is one reason why the headlights may not be getting illuminated. The problem can also be because of a broken switch.
Check the fuses in the battery bay under the seat. If you find any blown out fuse, make a replacement with the same current rating. Similarly, remember to replace any broken switch.
Golf Cart Taillights Not Working
If your golf cart taillights are not working, you can look out for the following problems and take the required corrective measures to fix them.
Loose Wire Connections
If there are loose or disconnected wires from the taillight, then it’s an almost sure sign of failure of taillights.
Ensure that the connections between the switch and the taillight are secure. Also look for loose connections and wiring coming from the negative terminal of the battery and taillight.
Problem with the Harness
The harness may have something in it that prevents the required contact to make the taillights work.
Check if the pins of the taillight connector from the driver side have got into the harness. If so, release it gently and put it back to the point of contact.
Golf Cart Brake Lights Not Working
Look out for the following instances if your golf cart’s brake lights fail so that you can fix them accordingly.
Dark Bulb or Damaged Filament
The bulb or bulbs may have become dark or the filaments inside them would have burnt out or got broken.
If the bulb or bulbs are quite dark, all that you may have to do is to make a replacement with a bulb of the same wattage and type. If the problem is a damaged filament, only the filament needs to be changed.
Faulty Fuse Connection
This is most likely to be the problem if only the two lower brake lights or the third brake light does not work.
Usually, the two lower lights share a common fuse while the third one has another fuse. Check both the fuses and make the replacement accordingly.
Igniter Switch Is Not getting Depressed
The igniter switch may not be getting depressed enough or not making enough contact for the brake lights to function.
Check if the contact for the igniter switch located below the brake pedal is getting released to the required extent. Alternatively, make sure that the switch itself has not become loose and the floor pad wirings are intact.
No Power Supply to Switches
One or both of the switches that are responsible for activating the brake lights might have no power supply to them.
Use a voltmeter to determine which switch is not getting power supply and change the switch. The ones below the floor and behind the pedal, turn them on and off respectively.
Club Car Battery Charger Light Codes
Here are some light codes that you will find useful when using a battery charger with your Club Car Golf Cart.
|
Indicator Symbol |
Meaning |
|
A drained battery with a ‘?’ inside |
There is no communication between the Visage and the motor controller over the LIN Bus. |
|
A drained battery with a black lightning symbol inside |
The motor controller has sensed that the charger cable is plugged into the car receptacle. The battery pack does not have a high state of charge. |
|
A green battery with a white lightning symbol inside |
The motor controller has sensed that the charger cable is plugged into the car receptacle. The battery pack has a high state of charge. |
|
A fully green battery |
The battery status is OK with state of charge >25%. |
|
A fully yellow battery with a % value inside |
The battery status is low with a level of charge between 10% and 25%. |
|
A fully red battery with a % value inside |
The battery status is very low with a level of charge <10%. |
|
An orange bar with a numeral value inside |
A charge alert is detected for the car. |