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Go Carts & Other Moving Vehicles La Guerrita
La Guerrita (the "little war" in English) uses a 24v electric wheelchair motor with a chain drive for thrust. The electrical systems such as the Alpine stereo, headlights, horn, throttle, and drive motor run off an array of 12v 7Ah batteries. For the body, I utilized a standard pedal cart, which I disassembled and extended. Using plywood and steel reinforcements, I was able to make the go-cart a comfortable length. While La Guerrita cruises with a mad fervor, getting her to stop is another story. Currently I am merely using back-EMF from the motor to stop (by simply shorting the motor). The day is coming, however, when I either need to design a good brake system for the vehicle, or I will have to bail in a frantic desperation. La Mamasita
La Mamasita was a spur of the moment decision. I saw an old Powerwheels car in an alley and thought that I could make a go cart out of it. I brought it home (which was a story all in itself for it didn't have any batteries and I was on a bike) and modified the body so that I could fit in it. After moving the seat back 12 inches and tinkering with the drive and power systems, it became a perfectly decent go-cart. I threw on a super-powerful marine headlamp, a police siren and light, cabin lamps, a sound system with CD player, a key switch and a few other extras. It cruises at15 mph and can tow up to 350 lbs. Like La Cucaracha, La Mamasita gets many stares when I ride it down the street with the lights blaring and music playing. Similarly, valet people never fail to give me wild stares when I pull up in La Mamasita and toss them the keys. The stock motors on Powerwheels cars will take 36 volts DC for a period of time without burning out. While it is not suggested since they will draw huge amounts of current, the Powerwheels will go extremely fast. At these voltages, with sufficient current, my tests have yielded speeds up to 30 mph and leftover skid marks on the ground (with the stock plastic wheels). Changing the motors to higher torque wheelchair motors and installing pneumatic tires will give the cart a longer life, however. Pneumatic tires can be installed onto the Powerwheels gearboxes as long as custom hubs are made for the wheels. While machined aluminum is probably best for this, wood does the trick if access to a lathe is not feasible. This is what I did, since I did not have access to a lathe at the time. An accompanying freight wagon usually drags behind La Mamasita. La Cucaracha This was the first go-cart I built. It looked a little strange, but it sure did have quite a bit of power (which I will never forget due to a scar I have on my leg from when it went out of control and ran me over). Not much can top the experience of driving La Cucaracha down a busy street and seeing the looks on the drivers' faces as I cruised at a hefty 12 mph (in safe mode - I did run it up to 30 mph where it was burning pink plastic onto the asphalt and popping wheelies) on this moving piece of plywood painted to look like a cockroach. I sold it a few summers ago to make room for a new go-cart called La Mamasita. From what I hear, the person who bought it totaled La Cucaracha after running it at full speed into a wall. Maybe I should ask to see a drivers license before I sell another go-cart.
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