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Thread: 2008 Ruff n Tuff Buggie Question

  1. #1
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    Default 2008 Ruff n Tuff Buggie Question

    I own a 2008 Ruff n Tuff which I became the owner of in 2015. Other than having to replace 4 year old batteries last Summer, a parking brake cable, and a tail light, it has performed well for me in what I would describe as light use conditions. That is, until Friday. My wife took it for a spin with my daughter and called me shortly thereafter to tell me that it had lost all forward and reverse capabilities. Everything else was working. Signals, lights, sollenoid, etc. I arrived and took control. Jiggled some wiring, turned it off and on a few times, and after a few tries, managed to achieve forward mobility. I kept it to the floor and took it back to the house, but it was definitely limping a bit and making some different noises. It also was shuttering some. I called a repair guy I had used the previous year to come and take a look at it, and yesterday he diagnosed the issue: "the motor brushes have gone bad." I am not disputing that diagnosis, but I am seeking second and third opinions. So far I have over a dozen different opinions, but that isnt entirely the reason for this post. Knowing that RnT is no longer in business, and any RnT OEM replacement parts have the reputation as being cheap Chinese garbage, I asked my repair guy what my options are. He said a lot of people are tearing out the rear ends of RnT's and replacing them with EZGO equipment. He also told me he just so happened to have one brand new RnT motor left from when he serviced them quite a bit back around the time mine was new. I asked him how much the EZGO parts and install would be and he gave me a rough estimate of $2000. I then asked about the RnT motor and he quoted me a price of $1200. Both of those prices seem completely inflated. Anyone ever replace the electric motor on a Ruff n Tuff with an original Ruff n Tuff part? Has anyone ever modified one to use an EZGO motor? do those prices seem sky high, or are they reasonable? I seem to recall we have some very knowledgeable members when it comes to these vehicles, so tell me what you think.

  2. #2
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    Quote Originally Posted by Chap View Post
    I own a 2008 Ruff n Tuff which I became the owner of in 2015. Other than having to replace 4 year old batteries last Summer, a parking brake cable, and a tail light, it has performed well for me in what I would describe as light use conditions. That is, until Friday. My wife took it for a spin with my daughter and called me shortly thereafter to tell me that it had lost all forward and reverse capabilities. Everything else was working. Signals, lights, sollenoid, etc. I arrived and took control. Jiggled some wiring, turned it off and on a few times, and after a few tries, managed to achieve forward mobility. I kept it to the floor and took it back to the house, but it was definitely limping a bit and making some different noises. It also was shuttering some. I called a repair guy I had used the previous year to come and take a look at it, and yesterday he diagnosed the issue: "the motor brushes have gone bad." I am not disputing that diagnosis, but I am seeking second and third opinions. So far I have over a dozen different opinions, but that isnt entirely the reason for this post. Knowing that RnT is no longer in business, and any RnT OEM replacement parts have the reputation as being cheap Chinese garbage, I asked my repair guy what my options are. He said a lot of people are tearing out the rear ends of RnT's and replacing them with EZGO equipment. He also told me he just so happened to have one brand new RnT motor left from when he serviced them quite a bit back around the time mine was new. I asked him how much the EZGO parts and install would be and he gave me a rough estimate of $2000. I then asked about the RnT motor and he quoted me a price of $1200. Both of those prices seem completely inflated. Anyone ever replace the electric motor on a Ruff n Tuff with an original Ruff n Tuff part? Has anyone ever modified one to use an EZGO motor? do those prices seem sky high, or are they reasonable? I seem to recall we have some very knowledgeable members when it comes to these vehicles, so tell me what you think.
    2wd or 4wd?

    If it's 2wd, I believe your boy is full of shit. If I remember correctly, the EZGO motor will bolt on that differential with no mods. It's should be the same Dana axle that EZGO utilized. 36V variants, of course.
    "Freedom Isn't Free"
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    1983-2004

    Quote Originally Posted by Dook View Post
    Go tigers!

  3. #3
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    Highly likely. If there was carbon (what the brushes are made of) build up in and around the brush holders then a brush could have gotten stuck and not been allowed to be pushed by the spring down onto the commutator. Or they could have simply been worn so bad that they were extremely short and didn't have enough spring pressure on them to make good contact. Look at the commutator (the part the brushes ride on) and see if it's all arced up. You can take the motor to an electric motor shop and have them turn down the commutator and a couple of thousands and be good as new, but I would have them go ahead and replace the bearings in there as well, since they already had it torn apart. You can also get a commutator cleaning stick and try to clean it up yourself and it may go on for years. Sounds like those were probably the original brushes in the motor.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Bownut View Post
    Highly likely. If there was carbon (what the brushes are made of) build up in and around the brush holders then a brush could have gotten stuck and not been allowed to be pushed by the spring down onto the commutator. Or they could have simply been worn so bad that they were extremely short and didn't have enough spring pressure on them to make good contact. Look at the commutator (the part the brushes ride on) and see if it's all arced up. You can take the motor to an electric motor shop and have them turn down the commutator and a couple of thousands and be good as new, but I would have them go ahead and replace the bearings in there as well, since they already had it torn apart. You can also get a commutator cleaning stick and try to clean it up yourself and it may go on for years. Sounds like those were probably the original brushes in the motor.
    Good advice here.

    Replace brushes and bearings if you're gonna turn the rotor down. Period.
    "Freedom Isn't Free"
    _Spc. Thomas Caughman
    1983-2004

    Quote Originally Posted by Dook View Post
    Go tigers!

  5. #5
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    The rest of the cart is in pretty great shape aside from some rust on the roof rack and a couple scratches. Someone with mechanical know-how could probably fix this thing themselves in the garage, but I am not that person. With batteries not even one year old yet, and in generally good condition, what would it bring if I decided to sell it as is? I really dont want to do that- I would like to the EZGO motor in it. What would you estimate that would run me in parts and labor?

  6. #6
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    The price point you're looking for is all over the place.

    There are a plethora of resources for motor/controller upgrades out there that you can dig through.

    $1200 is probably somewhere in the middle as far as motors are concerned. R&T used to do re-manufactured motors for something along the lines of $500.
    "Freedom Isn't Free"
    _Spc. Thomas Caughman
    1983-2004

    Quote Originally Posted by Dook View Post
    Go tigers!

  7. #7
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    Where I am going with this is that I see no sense in replacing the bad motor with one that will likely have the same issues down the road. Thanks for the advice, guys, I appreciate it.

  8. #8
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    2008-2018 is pretty good service on a motor with the life cycle of an off road buggie.

    Unless you make the jump to DC->AC drives, it is what it is. AC drives are going to cost you a shit pile (you'll have to swap the differential and all).

    If I were you, I'd have it rebuilt. That's likely your best bet for price and longevity.
    "Freedom Isn't Free"
    _Spc. Thomas Caughman
    1983-2004

    Quote Originally Posted by Dook View Post
    Go tigers!

  9. #9
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    I bought the very last Ruff n Tuff Camo 4x4 hunter brand spanking new in Blythewood at the factory for 6K...because they were going out of business...because of one very unfortunate flaw in the earlier buggies...and that flaw, not your motor, might be your issue. My understanding of the rise and fall of R&T:

    Bad Boy Buggies were all the rage, and everyone did indeed want a capable 4x4 electric buggie. Bad Boys were freaking horrible handling, horrible riding hunks in the early days. R&T comes out with a better buggy that did 26mph with a 25+ mile range that rode like a dream. People were snapping them up, and they were great...until people started getting stranded 5 miles deep in the woods after a nice evening of hunting. Folks would arrive back to their buggys and they would not go. Turns out that there was a flaw in the parking brake design. They used a non-golf-cart type emergency brake and coupled it with a kill-switch so that you would not burn you emergency brake up if you forgot to disengage it before driving. After a few uses, the kill-switch would eventually fail to disengage when the emergency brake was disengaged, so people were getting stranded with no clue why they buggy would not run. From my understanding, it was an easy fix if you brought the buggy in, but by the time they got on top of the problem and either fixed the issue or did away with that feature in the new carts, the damage to their reputation was done....R&T got to be known quickly as an unreliable buggy that would strand you without warning in the middle of no-where.

    The buggy you have most likely has that feature that was either repaired or never had the problem before. Regardless, you might want to check into that before dropping a bunch of money on a new motor. That buggy is the best money Ive ever spent. I bought mine in 2011...still on my first batteries but need to get new ones. I've flipped it twice (not the buggy's fault) and absolutely beaten it senseless while leaving it out in the rain/snow heat and frigid cold...and it still hauls the mail when I hit go. I don't know any particulars on how to check to see if it is the problem I'm describing, but if you call GKU (golf karts unlimited), there are a couple of guys who know that cart very well, They are a company in...I think...Oklahoma or Missouri??? Anyhoo, they bought up all the parts for R&Ts, have just about any part for them you need (at least they did two years ago), and Richard knows and can talk you through the workings of that buggy. GKU...405-495-8440. Even if it's the motor...call this place and talk to them about it...they may have a good solution to keep you in a great hunting vehicle.

    Good luck, and I hope you get it figured out. Keep us posted on the progress.
    Last edited by WhitewaterDuck; 06-29-2018 at 09:05 PM.
    “I can’t wait ‘till I’m grown” is the stupidest @!#* I ever said!

  10. #10
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    After a little research...I realize that what I think I know about the rise and fall of R&T may be very distorted...That said, I did find this. This was a response in a forum to someone describing the same thing you are describing. Hope this helps...

    Kenlhlp, I have an '08 R/T Hunter 2P 4WD that did the exact same thing until I figured out it was the Emergency Brake sensor wire that was shorted out. You can check if that is your same issue by locating the wire under the E-Brake assembly on the floor from underneath the buggy. You will find 3-conducter wires running inside a loose black rubber sleeve coming out of the E-Brake and up the firewall. Needless to say before doing anything with the wires turn off the ignition on the buggy. Then you need to locate the quick connect plug (white/clear color) right in the middle of the fire wall…the wire colors are as follows: From the E-Brake there is a Red, Blue and Black thin gauge wires. From the upper dash there is a Red, Blue and Dark Yellow thicker gauge wires. Disconnect the quick connect plug and use a 3"-4" piece of spare wire or otherwise to jumper the Red and Blue wires together that come from the dash side of the quick connect plug. Warning: Do not jumper any wires to the dark yellow wire…leave it alone as it carries a good amount of voltage. Once the temporary jumper is installed turn on the ignition, push the rocker switch into forward or revers and try the accelerator. I did this and fixed my problem. Hope it helps for you. If it is indeed your issue then replace the quick connect plug, mine was too loose to make the proper connection.
    “I can’t wait ‘till I’m grown” is the stupidest @!#* I ever said!

  11. #11
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    Wow. Haven’t heard of that problem yet- thanks man!
    Last edited by Chap; 06-30-2018 at 12:42 AM.

  12. #12
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    I am new to the site. While checking out the topics I ran across this post. I have an 2009 Camo Hunter 4wd. I love it when it is running, I can ride for at least 20 miles on a good charge. It worked fine until last year I replaced the Curtis Controller and since then I have replaced it again and believe it or not it is down again. The online forums are not very much help, no one wants to discuss it and forget about a wiring diagram. It may be time to junk it and buy a Club Cart or Ez Go.

  13. #13
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    PM turbo if you have questions on yours. he may be able to help.
    welcome to the site.
    this is the last time I will be anywhere close to nice to you.
    Ugh. Stupid people piss me off.

  14. #14
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    I don't know much about electric stuff, but I rebuilt the motor in my EZGO (let my wife drive it as well) for $900 2 weeks ago. I don't know if everything would match up, but I don't see why you couldn't fabricate up a gas motor instead of what you have. 4 year old batteries gonna last how much longer?
    Quote Originally Posted by ecu1984 View Post
    Go Tigers!

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    I need to find brushes for my 2007 ruff n tuff motor any ides where I could get these? Will they work from another cart?

  16. #16
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    Good luck. Are you sure you can't have it rebuilt?

  17. #17
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    RT Gear in Columbia should be able to answer any question you have on brushes.

    Sadly, my memory of the compatible motors has faded in the 10yrs since Ruff & Tuff was a thing.

    If I may be bold, how did you arrive at the assumption that you need brushes?
    "Freedom Isn't Free"
    _Spc. Thomas Caughman
    1983-2004

    Quote Originally Posted by Dook View Post
    Go tigers!

  18. #18
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    I had not driven the cart in about 18 months because the batteries were shot so got new batteries yesterday. Then it moved about 100 feet and could smell the motor so took it off today and the brushes are sized up and crumbling.

  19. #19
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    How did the brushes get bigger?

  20. #20
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    Broken brushes. Got it.

    Give RT Gear a call and see what they say.

    PM me if you don't get anything from them.
    "Freedom Isn't Free"
    _Spc. Thomas Caughman
    1983-2004

    Quote Originally Posted by Dook View Post
    Go tigers!

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