Hauling a Golf Cart or Low-Speed Vehicle on a Trailer

A golf cart leaves the property for any number of ordinary reasons. The course across town is hosting the member-guest. The second home in the golf community needs the cart that has been sitting in the garage here. A daughter's wedding is at a venue with a quarter-mile walk from the parking field. The dealer is 40 minutes away and the cart has a controller fault. Or the cart is one you just bought, and it is sitting in a stranger's driveway two counties over. A golf cart is street-legal almost nowhere outside a cart community, so for every one of those trips it rides on a trailer, and a rented utility trailer with a ramp gate is the usual answer.

It’s rarely the trailer that goes wrong; it’s where the straps go, because a golf cart has a dozen places to hook a strap and only four of them will not bend.

Know what you are hauling

A standard two-passenger cart is roughly 8 feet long and 4 feet wide, around 91 by 49 inches on a common model, and about 6 feet tall with the canopy. Weight depends on what drives it. A gas cart runs about 650 to 700 pounds, an electric cart with lead-acid batteries about 950 to 1,000 pounds, because the battery pack alone weighs several hundred, and a lithium electric cart comes in lighter than gas at around 650 to 750. Four- and six-passenger carts stretch to 10 to 12 feet and add a few hundred pounds. A lifted cart is taller, heavier and sits higher on its suspension, which changes how it loads.

A low-speed vehicle (LSV) is the street-legal cousin. Under the federal definition, an LSV is a four-wheeled vehicle built to go more than 20 mph and no more than 25 mph on a level road, and Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 500 requires it to carry a vehicle identification number (VIN), headlights, turn signals, mirrors, seat belts and a windshield. It usually weighs a few hundred pounds more than the golf cart it resembles and is a foot or so longer. For hauling, all of that comes down to three numbers: the weight sets the trailer rating, the length sets the deck, and whether it is electric sets the steps before you load.

Pick the trailer

A 5-by-10 utility trailer with a ramp gate carries a two-passenger cart with a little room at each end. A 6-by-12 gives a four-passenger cart space or leaves room behind a two-seater for the bags, the cooler and the charger. Six-passenger and lifted carts want a 6-by-14 or a 7-by-16, and at that point an enclosed trailer starts to make sense, especially for a long move, a valuable cart or a forecast with rain in it. A car hauler is more trailer than the job needs but works if it is what is available. Deck ratings of 2,000 to 3,000 pounds cover any cart with a wide margin, so the rating is rarely the deciding factor.

The ramp is. A golf cart cannot be lifted onto a trailer, so a ramp gate or fold-down ramps are not optional, and the longer and gentler the ramp, the better a low cart loads. Read more about what a 6x12 utility trailer can hold and about a utility trailer with a ramp gate versus a tilt deck.

Get it up the ramp

A golf cart has a few inches of ground clearance and a long wheelbase for its size, and the combination means a steep ramp catches the front cowl on the way up or high-centers the cart at the hinge where the ramp meets the deck. Park the trailer on level ground, hitched to the tow vehicle so it cannot tip, and drop the ramp. If the trailer sits high, put blocks or a ramp extension under the ramp's foot to flatten the angle. Then drive on slowly in the lowest speed setting with a spotter at the side, and stop as soon as the front wheels are over the hinge and the cart is level on the deck.

Never load with the trailer on a slope and the ramp pointing downhill, which steepens the angle further and puts the cart's weight behind it. A cart that will not clear the ramp needs a longer ramp or a lower trailer, not more throttle; the fix for a scraped cowl is cheaper before it happens.

Position it and set it

Drive the cart forward until a bit more than half its weight sits ahead of the trailer's axle, which on a short deck usually means the front bumper close to the front rail. That keeps the tongue loaded and the trailer tracking straight rather than swaying. Set the parking brake, turn the key off and take it with you.

Electric carts have one more step. Most have a tow/run switch under the seat or near the controller, and the manual for your cart says which position it belongs in for transport. On many models the tow position disconnects the controller and releases the motor brake so the cart cannot be damaged by rolling with the system live, while others want it left in run so the motor brake holds. Check the manual rather than guessing, because the two camps disagree, and set it before the straps go on. Chock the wheels if the deck allows it.

Strap it to the frame, not the body

Everything on a golf cart that looks like a tie-down point is a trap, except the frame. The body panels are plastic and crack under a hook. The bumpers are cosmetic and pull off. The roof is held up by hollow aluminum struts that bend the first time a ratchet strap loads them. The steering wheel, the seat frame and the bag rack are bolted to things that were never meant to hold a thousand pounds against a hard stop. The frame rails and the axles are the honest points, along with dedicated tie-down loops if the cart has them.

Use four straps, one at each corner, hooked to the frame or the axle and run outward to the trailer's D-rings or stake pockets so that the front pair pulls forward and the rear pair pulls back. That opposing tension is what keeps the cart from rolling, sliding or walking sideways. Axle straps or soft loops around the frame protect the paint and keep the hook from slipping. Tension until the suspension compresses slightly and the cart is one piece with the trailer, then stop; a cart does not need to be flattened. Check the straps after the first few miles, because they settle, and again at every stop.

This is where the golf cart parts ways with the ATV. An ATV gets strapped over its racks and down to the deck, and the racks are built for it. A cart has no rack, and the roof above the seats is the weakest thing on it. The method that transfers is the one used for cars: frame points, four corners, opposing pull. Read more about how to load and tie down a car on a rental trailer and about how to secure a load on a utility trailer.

Secure the loose parts

A cart at 65 mph on an open trailer is a cart in a wind tunnel. Fold down the windshield if it is the hinged kind, or remove it, because the wind loads it far harder than the cart ever does. Take off the cooler, the bag holders, the rear-view mirror, the cup holders and anything else that clips on. If the seat bottoms lift out, strap or bungee them in. A rain enclosure becomes a sail and tears itself apart, so remove it or zip it tight and strap it. The charger, the keys and the paperwork ride in the tow vehicle. The rule is that anything not bolted to the frame goes inside the truck.

Tow it and unload it

A golf cart on a utility trailer is a light load but a tall one, with a canopy up high catching crosswind, so drive for the trailer rather than the cart: slower in the wind, wider on turns, longer on braking. Check the hitch, the chains and the lights before pulling out. At the destination, park level, drop the ramp, release the straps in the reverse order you set them, put the tow/run switch back to run, release the parking brake and back the cart off slowly with the spotter watching the cowl at the hinge. Read more about how to hook up a trailer step by step if this is the first time.

What about insurance and damage protection?

Before towing a rented trailer, contact your auto insurance provider to ask whether your policy covers liability and towing-related damage claims.

Eligible rentals booked through Big Rentals also include Basic Rental Protection at checkout. This added protection can help limit your financial responsibility for certain damage or theft events during the rental period.

For full details on how Basic Rental Protection works, including deductibles, exclusions, and renter responsibilities, review our FAQ and platform terms.

The Short Version

• A two-seater is about 8 by 4 feet and 650 to 1,000 pounds depending on gas, lead-acid or lithium; LSVs run 20 to 25 mph and weigh a bit more
• A 5-by-10 or 6-by-12 utility trailer with a ramp gate covers most carts; six-seaters and lifted carts want 6-by-14 or an enclosed
• Load on level ground with a flattened ramp angle, slowly, with a spotter watching the cowl
• Weight slightly forward, parking brake set, key out, tow/run switch per the manual
• Four straps to the frame or axles at the corners, pulling in opposing directions; never the roof struts, bumpers or body
• Fold or remove the windshield, strip the clip-ons, and put the charger and keys in the truck

Browse utility trailer rentals near you.