Originally published 5-4-2021
Golf cars are a fixture of golf courses allowing players to finish more quickly and course owners to turn over more daily rounds.
Increasingly golf cars are also an effective and popular way to get around communities where golf cars and other low-speed electric vehicles (LSEVs) are often the primary means of transportation.
While battery-powered golf cars have many advantages over gas-powered vehicles, they must be charged. To get the most value from a battery-powered golf car, you need a portable means of charging and maintaining those batteries.
That’s where solar can make a difference.
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The 165W PowerDrive Golf Car Solar Panel improves electric cars by maximizing their battery lifetime, increasing driving distance, helping the environment, and saving money.
The PowerDrive panel comes in four designs to fit most cars.
PowerDrive Golf Car Solar Panel Benefits:
- Extended Battery Life
- Increased Driving Distance
- Reduced Charging Cost
- Environmental Advantages
- Easy Installation
- Trusted Solar Partner’s Guidance
Extended Battery Life
How can golf car solar panels increase battery lifetime?
It starts with how lead-acid batteries work.
Depth of Discharge (DoD) is a crucial factor in maintaining the health of your golf car’s lead-acid batteries (see the graph below). If you consistently drive deep into your battery’s capacity, over time, you will significantly reduce the number of charge cycles and need to replace your batteries more frequently.
A PowerDrive Panel generates and feeds electricity into your batteries when exposed to sunlight, lowering the DoD.
With PowerDrive, you can expect your charge cycles to increase by as much as 50%.
For example, if you get 1,000 charge cycles from your batteries without a solar panel, you can now expect up to 1,500 cycles.
Increased Driving Distance
A PowerDrive Panel on a typical sunny day generates enough power to increase the car’s driving range by 50%. This extra distance is due to the solar panel charging batteries, while a vehicle without solar drains batteries exclusively when driving.
Over an entire workday, a car with a PowerDrive Panel provides an additional 5-10 miles while maintaining battery life, dependent on usage.
The added driving distance equals fewer dropped rounds on the course, additional range for utility and maintenance vehicles, and extra driving for individuals in golf car-friendly neighborhood communities.
Reduced Charging Costs
If you have a golf car without a portable means of charging, you constantly pull energy from your batteries without putting any charge back into your vehicle.
PowerDrive generates and feeds electricity into golf car batteries during daylight saving an estimated 20 percent yearly electrical costs.
A PowerDrive Solar Panel will not replace your standard means of charging, but it will make conventional charging times shorter and save you money on your electrical bill.
Environmental Advantages
On average, the PowerDrive Solar Panel creates enough electricity per year to offset over 250 pounds of carbon dioxide production (calculated by the US EPA website using 273kWh of power produced by the PowerDrive in one year).
Think of it this way, planting two trees today would take ten years of growth to remove that amount of CO2 from the atmosphere!
Easy Installation
Many competing solar options are large and difficult to install. PowerDrive weighs less than 10 pounds and installs quickly with no special tools. Simple-to-follow instructions and video (each step clearly described with helpful diagrams) ensure frustration-free installation.
Trusted Solar Partner’s Guidance
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There are other solar kits for golf cars on the market, but no team is as dedicated to your success. We have been providing US-based solar solutions for customers since 1988 and are here to ensure your solution performs for years to come. Have an issue with your installation? Contact us via our website or give us a call. We are here to help you before, during, and most importantly, after you purchase your PowerDrive solution.
Confirming PowerDrive Compatibility
Let’s make sure PowerDrive is going to work for your golf car.
Batteries
PowerDrive Golf Car Solar Panels are compatible with 36V and 48V lead-acid or lithium drop-in replacement batteries (commonly used to convert a lead-acid golf car to lithium batteries).
If you have a lead-acid or lithium drop-in replacement with a different voltage, please contact us, and we can help source the proper charge controller.
Golf Car Make/Model
PowerDrive Panels are compatible with E-Z-GO TXT, E-Z-GO RXV, Club Car Precedent, and we carry a generic model to fit on a wide variety of other golf car canopies.
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If you aren’t sure our solution will work for you, please complete the compatibility form below, and a PowerFilm representative will be in touch shortly.
Whether you are a golf course superintendent, a golf car owner, dealer, or resident of a golf car friendly community, PowerDrive can help you drive farther and keep your batteries longer!
Are you an individual who owns a golf car? Purchase your PowerDrive Golf Car Solar Panel directly from us today!
Are you a business or golf car dealer interested in outfitting a fleet? Contact us today, and let’s start a conversation.