Hello from Houston. I just got my 2002 Blue 4 passenger Think back on the road after it was hit by a neighbor while parked in Houston. Also got rid of the crappy neighbor who ran into it. I shipped it to my mechanic in Wisconsin and had a bunch of work completed. Body (fender repairs), a new full interior (grey) after the neighbor cat got under the cover and in the car and used my interior as a scratch post. Cat no longer an issue. :(. 4 new HD coil over shocks, 4 new ball joints, and 2 new tie rod ends from NEV Acessories. 6 new Deka group 31 Gel batteries from Alex on eBay, A new multifunction switch from NEV Accessories, new LED brake lights, all new lights, new cluster sticker, new wiper/arm, and new relays. I also had my cluster sent in to Bob the Cluster guy for a rebuild. The car just arrived by enclosed transport from Sturgeon Bay, WI. I managed to put about 50 miles on it this week before I snapped an axle. Just had AAA flat bed the car to a local golf car mechanic nearby. Looks like it will be getting new CV axles and a new set of wheels and tires this week because why not at this point? I really like the car and it’s great to have it back. I use it daily around town (Montrose). It’s so much more convenient than driving my full size SUV (LX450) around town and around the universities (Rice and St. Thomas) where I spend a bit of time. Considering having my Rev2 controller sent out for programming to 32mph. When I bought the car in 2017, I paid the seller $500 extra to upgrade (swap) my motor and controller to REV2 before he shipped the car to me. Seems like a relative bargain now. I never had them reprogrammed but I am considering it now. I was thinking of buying adapters to go from 4x4” hubs to 4x100mm but I just found the website golfcartking.com and I now think it would be easier and cheaper to stick with 4x4” 14” wheels and tires and just go with that. My car still has 12” grey steel wheels on it. Any advice on the 14” wheels and tires (don’t want to mess up diameter and offset).
Congratulations on getting your think back on the road. They are a lot of fun, for sure.
Most golf cart wheels have a ET-20 offset which will make your tires stick out about 2 inches past fender wells. While some like that look, I don’t. And when they do stick out, and you put larger tires on the vehicle, when you hit a deep pothole or go around a corner fast and run over a street gutter, you may rub the fenders. Mine did with 22 and 23" tires. If I’m not mistaken the factory wheels are ET20 or ET0 offset. I do know ET0 wheels work, as I have them on one of my Thinks. I’m in the process of getting ready to mount 4x100 ET20 17" rims with 195/40 17" wheels, using the 4x4 to 4x100 adapter. I was told I could use wobble lug nuts, but I don’t trust them. They fit, as the tire is a little thinner and the adapter adds some offset.
All the Thinks I’ve seen and driven, with larger wheels ride so much nicer and are safer at higher speeds. And golf cart tires don’t last very long compared to highway tires. The highway tires will rot before the tread wears out.
Back in the shop in Houston. So after getting my Think back from Wisconsin, I snapped an axle and had it flatbedded to a golf cart shop in Houston. (billscartsalesandservice.com) I had CV axles installed (nevaccessories.com), new wheels and tires 14” wheels with 21” tires (Golfcartking.com), REV2 controller reprogrammed to 32mph (think-clusters.com). new horn, adjust parking brake, replace 3 fuse holders, replace rear view mirror. I got the cart back and it is like new. It sure is running nicely and it handles better than ever with new shocks and ball joints, wheels and tires. Looks great too. I put about 18 miles on it last Sunday taking a nice tour around downtown Houston. It’s great to have it back on the road again. I think these are once again, just a little ahead of their time. At some point, people will realize these can be better than a car for local trips.