Where This Guide Comes From
This guide is based on Engineer775's golf cart lithium conversion video, which has just over 242,000 views. The setup is a 36V electric cart, one of the most common golf carts on the market, that had been kept in good shape on its original Trojan lead-acid batteries. The upgrade swaps all six batteries for a single drop-in lithium pack from Temgo, and the video walks through the unboxing, the included accessories, the wiring and what it is like to drive afterwards. We follow the same order here and add the practical points raised by viewers who have done the conversion themselves.
Why One Lithium Battery Replaces Six Lead-Acid
A 36V golf cart normally runs on six 6V lead-acid batteries wired in series. That is a lot of weight, a lot of maintenance and, eventually, a set of six batteries that need replacing together. A drop-in lithium conversion replaces the whole bank with a single 48V lithium battery that fits in roughly the same footprint. The electrical system sees the same nominal voltage, so the motor and controller carry on working — which is why these kits are called drop-in.
The battery in the video comes with the accessories you actually need for the swap: a 48V-to-12V DC-DC converter for the cart's lights and 12V accessories, and a proper lithium charger. On a 36V cart with all 12V accessories, the DC-DC converter is not optional — without it your lights and gauges would be running straight off a 48V pack. The kit approach matters because buying those parts separately is exactly where first-time converters make mistakes.
What the Kit Includes (and What It Does Not)
The unboxing in the video is the part owners care about, because it shows what "drop-in" actually means. The kit includes the battery, the DC-DC converter, a lithium charger, and the mounting and connection hardware. The video's owner was surprised the converter and charger were included — both are genuinely necessary, and both are easy to overlook when you price a bare battery alone.
What the kit does not include is a guarantee about your cart's specific controller and motor. Most 36V carts accept a 48V pack because the controller range covers it, but it is worth confirming your cart model's controller voltage range before ordering. The video's cart was an older 36V model and worked without changes; newer carts with sealed controllers may need a check first. If you are unsure, the manufacturer's spec sheet for your cart is the right place to look.
The 48V to 12V DC-DC Converter: Not Optional
This is the component that quietly decides whether a conversion works or smokes your accessories. A single 48V battery means everything in the cart now sees 48V, and the lights, horn, gauges and any other 12V accessory would be overvolted without a converter. The kit's DC-DC converter steps the pack voltage down to a stable 12V for those accessories, and the video installs it as part of the swap.
When you buy a lithium battery without a converter included, budget for a DC-DC converter rated for your cart's accessory load — a 30A unit covers typical golf cart lighting and accessories. Wiring order matters too: connect the converter to the pack through the same switch that powers the rest of the cart, so accessories cannot drain the battery while the cart is parked.
Charging a Lithium Golf Cart Battery
The kit ships with a lithium charger, and the video points out something worth repeating: do not charge a lithium pack with a lead-acid charger. The charging profile is different, and a lead-acid charger can push the pack past its voltage limit. The included charger handles the job, and because it is a lithium charger it also works if you later move a lead-acid-format project over to lithium.
Viewers in the comments raised cold-weather charging, which is the one genuine limitation of LiFePO4. A lithium battery should not be charged below about 32 degrees Fahrenheit (zero Celsius), and the video's build notes and commenters both recommend adding a heating pad or insulating the battery bay in climates that freeze. Charging a lithium pack while it is below freezing risks damage, so if your cart lives outdoors in winter, plan the heating before you install, not after.
Weight, Performance and Daily Use
The change in day-to-day behaviour is where owners notice the upgrade most. The video's owner describes a real difference in performance and charge times, and commenters who did their own conversions report the same: faster charging, consistent speed on hills and no more acid drips on the floor. For someone who keeps a cart for years — the video's owner had his for a long time before the swap — the maintenance reduction is a big part of the appeal.
One commenter converted a cart for his 89-year-old mother and noted the side benefit that matters to many owners: no more battery acid sitting in the floor pan, and no more watering and cleaning terminals. Golf carts are often stored in garages or sheds where lead-acid maintenance is a real chore, and lithium removes most of it.
How the Swap Goes Step by Step
The conversion itself is straightforward, and the video's order is a good one to copy. First, remove the old lead-acid bank — disconnect the series wiring, lift the batteries out one at a time (they are heavy), and clean any acid residue out of the bay. Next, place the lithium battery in the bay on its mounting plate, checking that the terminals are accessible and that nothing presses on the case. Then connect the pack to the cart's main power leads, wire the DC-DC converter to the accessory circuit through the cart's main switch, and fit the included lithium charger where it has airflow.
The final step is the one owners skip and then regret: charge the pack fully with the lithium charger before the first drive. A lithium battery ships at a storage charge level, and the BMS needs a full charge cycle to balance the cells. The video's owner charged on solar; a normal lithium charger works exactly the same. Give the pack one full charge, then test — lights, horn, gauges and drive — before you put the seat back on.
What to Check Before You Order
The video and its commenters together make a short checklist for buyers. Confirm your cart's controller accepts the pack voltage — most 36V carts do, but verify. Measure the battery bay and compare it with the lithium battery's dimensions; the video shows a comfortable fit, and commenters noted many carts even have room for a second battery to extend range. Check that your cart's accessories are wired for 12V and that the DC-DC converter is included or budgeted. And if you live where it freezes, plan the heating pad.
The video has drawn its share of criticism in the comments for not showing every wiring detail, so treat a kit's instructions as the final authority for your model. If your cart is an unusual make, look for a video of the same cart being converted — the connector layouts vary between Club Car, EZGO and Yamaha models.
Cost: What a Conversion Really Costs
A drop-in 48V lithium battery with converter and charger runs well under half the price of a full set of premium lead-acid batteries when you count the lead-acid bank's shorter life and the maintenance it needs. The exact number depends on battery capacity — 100Ah to 105Ah packs cover most carts — and on whether the kit bundles the converter and charger, which the video's does.
Owners who did the maths in the comments point out that lithium wins on the lifetime calculation, not just the upfront price: no replacement in a few years, no watering, no terminal cleaning and faster charging every single day. If you plan to keep the cart, the conversion usually pays for itself within the first battery-replacement cycle.
Is a Golf Cart Lithium Conversion Right for You?
A drop-in lithium conversion makes sense for most cart owners who plan to keep the cart: it cuts weight, removes acid maintenance, charges faster and holds voltage better on hills. The two cases to think twice about are carts that sit in freezing temperatures without heating, and carts with sealed controllers that you cannot confirm will accept the pack voltage. For everything else, the video's verdict is echoed by its commenters — the upgrade is worth it.
If you are converting a cart, a trailer or any other vehicle, the same principle applies at larger scale: a well-built lithium pack changes how the whole system behaves. We build drop-in and custom packs for carts, RVs and EV and utility applications, and the sizing guides on our insights page cover battery voltage, capacity and cold-weather planning in more detail.
What Viewers Are Asking (Top Comments on the Video)
These are the most useful of the video's top comments, with our practical answers. The original creator did not reply to these threads, so the answers below are ours — written the way we'd answer a customer on the shop floor. Thanks-only comments were left out on purpose; these are the ones with actual information in them.
Source video: Engineer775 — "Transform Your Golf Cart: Switching from Lead to Lithium Batteries with Temgo" (youtube.com/watch?v=cZ71pPLjhgI). Comment excerpts are quoted verbatim from the video's top comments; the original creator did not reply to these threads, so all answers are Dajiu Energy's own. Build figures are transcribed from the video's measurements.