Kam Kaddie Remote Controlled Motorized Golf Cart

[GregGarner]

Well well well, what do we have here?? I was fortunate enough to win a new Kam Kaddie electric cart (or trolley, if you live significantly north and east of me) and I wanted to share my experiences with the rest of the community here. So here's my hot-take and then you can tell me what else you want to know while I keep testing over the winter and (ideally) into the spring and beyond.

Quick Overview (from the Kam Kaddie website)

Take your game to the next level with the Kam Kaddie™ V1 Remote Control Golf Cart. This electric cart features compact 3-wheel engineering with a gyroscopic front swivel wheel, a lightweight frame design and multiple convenience features. The included remote control allows you to start and stop the cart along a straight line - simply position the cart in the right direction and go!

The Kam Kaddie™ V1 also features an advanced digital electronic screen with full color display that shows multiple speed settings, battery level indicator and more. It is powered by a Lithium ion 24v 10Ah battery which lasts 36-54 holes of play per charge, depending on terrain.

Through Day One of Testing -- I am really impressed!
9 holes on moderate terrain. My bag didn't fall off, the cart didn't tip over, the remote worked from across the fairway, and it still shows a full charge. Testing continues!

Great: Price - $598
Yes, mine was free. But I was already in the market to buy and honestly, dropping a couple G's on a motorized cart was making me think long and hard about what I really wanted and if a motorized cart would really make that much of a difference from my standard CaddyTek push cart. For anyone not totally sold on a motorized cart but willing to get something entry-level to try it out for a couple years, I think the Kam Kaddie could make a pretty compelling case.

Good: Value - Solid product that works as-advertised
Sure, $600 is a lot of money and you'd expect something of reasonable quality for that amount. But compared to the $800, $1200, and $1500 motorized carts out there, I was pretty sure there were corners being cut on this unit. I figured the bag wouldn't be secure or the cart would tip over or something would be wrong and I'd have to figure out a workaround, but I am quite pleased with the unit. Walking 9 is no big deal for me, even carrying my bag, but I was noticeably less winded on some of the longer uphill hikes and finished the 9 feeling fresh(er than usual). Plus, it's definitely badass to walk totally unencumbered down the fairway.

 

 

Meh: Yeah, there were some corners cut.
Obviously you're not getting the top-of-the-market cart here. They had to find some savings somewhere. And I'll tell you what, if I were in their shoes, I think I would have made the same decisions about where to find some savings. The phone holder is probably my biggest complaint. It's kinda flimsy and my phone has a tendency to slide down it as it's just two spring-loaded arms that gently squeeze your phone to hold it in place. A close second though is the strap system to hold my bag on the cart. I spent a solid 10 minutes in the parking lot trying to get it adjusted so that it would actually do its job and I finally just got fed up with it and got it close enough so that it wouldn't just flop all over. Also, there's no storage bag/compartment, so if you need to carry something, it better fit in your bag. I use the carry compartment in my regular push cart virtually every round. I will put my extra layers in there once it warms up, water bottles, snacks, trash, whatever I can't fit or don't want to put in my bag. I was really missing that compartment this morning. The cup holder attachment on the side is fine, but kinda large and my Swell water bottle rattled around in it. Didn't fall out, just annoyed me as the cart went over bumps. Also, slightly annoying that the remote is only faster/slower/start/stop. It does not have a directional pad to turn left or right. So as long as you're on a flat fairway with a straightaway, feel free to use the remote. But since it's a 360-degree swivel front wheel, it's going to naturally turn downhill unless you are using the adjustable-width handlebars to steer it.

Bad: Probably best to get acclimated in your yard or on a flat piece of turf before you tee off.
First and foremost, you need to know that there is no "engine brake" for going downhill. I set the speed at 3 and after teeing off, walked straight downhill. Ok, that's not true, I ran downhill. Because the cart was clearly racing me to the water hazard 100 yards away. And then I didn't learn my lesson after holing out and walking towards #2 tee. It's downhill from the green to the cart path then back uphill to the teebox. And this dummy decided that was a good time to try the "stop" feature of the remote. Long story short, the cart bounced and careened, tossing my phone into the rough and rolling towards the woods on the other side of the cart path. Thankfully, the bag stayed on the cart AND the cart didn't tip over. Lesson learned: the "stop" feature just ends the forward drive of the wheels. It does NOT apply a brake. When in drive, the cart will not roll backwards. Which is useful information when all of your greens are raised and you want to park your cart on the fringe without feeling like it's gonna take a 50-yard autonomous jaunt to a lower elevation.

I don't know where exactly to categorize my next observation, so I'll let you decide, but the thing is still huge when folded down. Like, 'goes in my back seat because it won't fit in my midsize sedan's trunk' big. I even took my bag out of my trunk to see if I could fit the cart back there by itself. Nope. (Meanwhile, my regular pushcart and my bag basically live in my trunk full-time.)

Testing continues! What do you want to know about the Kam Kaddie?

 

[cksurfdude]

6 minutes ago, GregGarner said:

Also, slightly annoying that the remote is only faster/slower/start/stop. It does not have a directional pad to turn left or right.

Yeah that's what I was gonna ask after reading the intro product description. IMHO very serious shortcoming and good info to know for anyone looking for a sub-$1k trolley ().

[chisag]

... I will say I never have used any functions on the 7 remote carts I have owned and used through the years, other than carrying my clubs. No extra basket, phone/drink holder, no seat and never bothered with the bells and whistles that that the read out provides and I carry everything in my bag including 80oz of water in summer. For me it is just a Robot Caddy that doesn't give me yardages. So most of your minor complaints don't apply to an electric cart for many remote users. And of course the difference in price between a MGI ZIP at $1599 and Kam Kaddie at $598 means you can almost get one for an entire family of 3 for the price of 1 ZIP. 

... I guess if you look at it like an electric cart without a remote function but  a hand held controller for stopping/starting and faster/slower it makes perfect sense. Congrats on winning one!

[GregGarner]

On 12/6/2022 at 8:51 PM, chisag said:

... I guess if you look at it like an electric cart without a remote function but  a hand held controller for stopping/starting and faster/slower it makes perfect sense.

That's pretty much exactly how I think about it. I put the remote in my pocket while playing 18 today and used it twice. Once when the cart went downhill and was getting far enough away from me that I was concerned, so I used the remote to stop it once it reached a flat area. The other time was when I went to go pick up my provisional and sent the cart to my ball, which ended up being safely in play. Once it got close enough to my ball in play, I used the remote to stop it and then walked over after picking up the provisional.

[mikeW1]

Hi.

Kam Kaddie has no break? So if rolling down hill on its own, is it comparable to push cart? My ClicGear will roll quite a distance on its own, had to sprint to save it from launching into pond once LOL

Course I primarily play is quite hilly. Just wondering how Kam Kaddie would work if I was walking with it. Sounds like on downhills I need to be holding on, on uphlls could walk along with Kam Kaddie. Also, was it pretty stable? So, could handle (reasonable) side sloping fairways?

How would you say it compares to bottom tier non-remote MGI, MotoKaddy, BatCaddy?

Thanks in advance!

Mike

[GregGarner]

On 12/16/2022 at 9:22 AM, mikeW1 said:

Hi.

Kam Kaddie has no break? So if rolling down hill on its own, is it comparable to push cart? My ClicGear will roll quite a distance on its own, had to sprint to save it from launching into pond once LOL

Course I primarily play is quite hilly. Just wondering how Kam Kaddie would work if I was walking with it. Sounds like on downhills I need to be holding on, on uphlls could walk along with Kam Kaddie. Also, was it pretty stable? So, could handle (reasonable) side sloping fairways?

How would you say it compares to bottom tier non-remote MGI, MotoKaddy, BatCaddy?

Thanks in advance!

Mike

downhills, you're holding on. uphills, you can let it go or you can push. the only brake is backwards, so if you need it to not roll away, just face it up the hill

It's pretty stable, in my opinion. I haven't had any of the other motorized carts, but I had a manual-push CaddyTek and I'd say this is at least as stable as the CaddyTek. The Kam Kaddie has a VERY low center of gravity, which really helps it stay grounded

[GregGarner]

Quick update that seems pertinent...

I'm totally acclimated at this point and there are really only three things that I would change:

1. Whenever the wheels get wet (whether from recent rain or morning dew), they 'squawk.' I had to WD-40 them a couple times, but without fail, as soon as they get wet again, they start squawking. Annoying, but not a performance issue.
2. The battery is absolutely awful to remove. It's a smooth plastic that was designed to be sleek and blend into the visual aesthetic of the cart and, when installed, does look great. But then at the end of the round when I want to remove it, there's nowhere to get a grip to pull it out. There's a small rubber cover for the charging port and after the 4th round, I was so frustrated that I couldn't get the battery out, I tried pulling on the rubber cover. It immediately ripped off. I need to get some adhesive silicone so I have a reasonable way to pull out the battery...
3. The front wheel has a tendency to wobble. Since it's a 360-degree wheel, it also has the tendency to cause the cart to follow gravity down a hill, but when I'm steering it straight, it will still sometimes wobble pretty aggressively. I'm pretty confident this is related to the relatively light weight of my golf bag, but if there are any ways to stabilize the wheel a little bit, let's hear it.

The battery life continues to be excellent and I typically don't charge until after 27 holes when the battery display shows half or just under. I've done 36 a few times and still had some amount of charge left on it, so absolutely no complaints there, especially since my course is pretty hilly. Still really only using the remote for emergency purposes, though I have figured out (and quite like) that when you use the remote to start, it automatically resets your speed to the lowest setting. Very rarely, I'll use the remote to start the cart towards the next hole while I'm putting the flag stick back in (etc) and having it go slowly means I'll catch up to it before it has a chance to careen into somebody's backyard.

Edited February 20, 2023 by GregGarner

[Steve S]

Thanks for letting us know that the Kam Kaddie has no braking feature and about the size.  Both are important to me.  Didn't really appear in any other reviews.  Save me some agony.   It was worth it to pay the extra $240 for the Alphard Omni cart?v2 combo.  Breaks down into two pieces and fits WITH my cart bag in my 2005 Civic's trunk with room to spare.  Since I play courses with hills and elevated tees/greens the braking feature is a must.

[Springbok]

~

Edited April 4 by Springbok