Just took my 2013 GEM out for the first time this year. Worked perfectly when I put it in storage last Fall. What’s happening is when I press the accelerator pedal, it starts to move, then makes a clunk before it picks up any speed. Similar to how it feels when your car has a broken motor mount. I let the Lithium battery completely charge before road testing. It’s a Ride4Fun motor I installed about 7 years ago. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
If the clunk you hear happens when you slightly press the pedal, then this is normal. This is the Main Contactor snapping closed.
If you wait for about 30 seconds (fully stopped) you will heat it release/open/unclunk, then pressing the pedal again will cause it to snap closed again. HandbrakeUP right after moving will also release the MainContactor.
If something in the driveline is coming loose, it might be obvious and repeatable when switching from FWD to REV.
The motors hate sitting. Your motor comms might be a bit oxidized in a spot or two and might be a bit jumpy after a long storage period. Running the car in place(wheels up) for a bit normally clears this up.
7 years on a motor install is a bit much. It might be a good time to pull it just to blow out all the dust, lube the coupler and service the brushes.
How has that SDI22 battery been working out for you? (installed in '23?)
Hey, just FYI, that R$F motor is built by D&D Motor systems. You can look up your model number here, it’s the 170-xxx-xxxxy number at the top of the nameplate. You’ll probably have better results for tech support and parts with the manufacturer.
Thanks for the info, much appreciated