Melex Golf Carts

Melex golf carts have a strange history. In fact, they have perhaps the most mysterious and interesting story in the golfing vehicle industry. While the history of Melex golf carts is intriguing, those who need parts for these vehicles often find locating those parts just as mysterious. Here is a little history on this company.

The people behind Melex golf carts were the Cotton brothers. One day they were talking with a Polish diplomat about a nearby EZ Go golf cart. The diplomat mentioned that he could make a similar vehicle in his country for half of what an EZ Go cart cost. The Cotton brothers took him up on the deal and they sent an EZ Go cart to Poland where it was promptly reproduced, exactly reproduced—some might say copied, and viola, Melex golf carts came into being. The vehicle was almost named for the town in Poland where it was made. The town is named Mielec, but the Cotton brothers were not about to name their new (albeit completely copied) creation the Mielec, so in what might have been their only burst of originality they promptly changed the name to Melex, which, one might assume, sounded less like a fungal infection and more like a cure.

Because of the low cost, Melex golf carts became very popular the world over and especially in the US. And never mind that they looked exactly like the EZ Go vehicles that were already on the courses. The new vehicles cost about half of what the EZ Go cart cost and that was enough to generate a lot of sales in America. Most golfing vehicles at that time were running in the neighborhood of $1200 or so. This new copy cat could be had for the low, low price of $600. Not surprisingly sales took off like a rocket.

One might think the story was over here, but fate has a way of making all things equal over time. Melex golf carts began to lose its fan base when it was discovered that the motors had an annoying and expensive habit of burning up. Many attribute this to the inferior materials that were used in construction rather than on the design. This only made sense since the EZ Go vehicles that were the basis of the design were not having this same problem.

Over the years, it was estimated that about 160,000 units were sold, which when we think about it is not that many. The initial sales spark simply did not maintain itself. And for a while it seemed as if the company had died off, but that is not entirely true. You can still find Melex golf carts but the company has changed hands and you have to buy through an authorized dealer.

This renewed interest in Melex golf carts has the added benefit of perhaps making it easier to find parts for the machines. One can only hope and time will tell. You can learn more this company and what they have to offer by doing an online search.