Here is Part 1, if you haven’t had a chance to read it yet.

After disassembling each component and analyzing them, it was time to determine which component I should replace in order to make the power wheel faster. Luckily, there are numerous excellent guides on YouTube as well as blogs showcasing the upgrades enthusiasts have made to their own power wheels. After reviewing several guides, it became evident that only two components truly mattered: the battery and the motors.

Battery

The battery currently in the power wheel is a 6V one, probably picked for its good balance of power, safety, and cost. But as my daughter has grown, her weight is slowing down the power wheel. It’s time for an upgrade to handle her size better. The battery’s capacity is 4Ah, not bad, but a bit more juice would be great without bulking up the size. Some online sources suggested swapping it out for a power drill battery. Since I’m all about DeWalt tools, I had a stash of DeWalt batteries, including a couple of 20V 4Ah ones, a 20V 5Ah, and even a hefty 20V/60V 9Ah beast. These options pack more punch with higher voltage and the same or better capacity. But hold on, the power wheel already has a 5A overload protector. So, the max capacity would be 5Ah unless I mess with the protector settings. But that depends on how much power the motors need.

The DeWalt battery attachment was a breeze, thanks to this sweet attachment I found on Amazon so I went ahead and bought it. Red wire to red wire and black to black wire. Simple enough, right?

The kit I ended up buying

I ended up purchasing a power wheel adapter kit, which included the DeWalt battery adapter, a speed controller kit, and a low voltage protection box. I opted for the kit after reading online because I realized I definitely needed low voltage protection. DeWalt batteries lack built-in low voltage protection, which is typically found within their tools. So, the low voltage protection box prevents the power wheel from completely draining the battery and potentially damaging it. It’s important to remove the battery completely, as the power wheel still draws power when left in the power adapter.

The speed controller wasn’t initially a necessity, but I wanted a way to limit the speed just in case the power wheel ended up moving too fast.

Motors

Now that I’ve made my battery selection, the options for motors narrowed down. I needed motors capable of handling 20V. I found a few 20V DC motors on Amazon, but I wasn’t certain if they would fit in the existing gearbox, and the dimensions provided for the motors weren’t very clear. Rather than purchasing them and potentially having to return them, it seemed simpler to buy a gearbox with motors already attached. Unfortunately, I couldn’t find any 20V DC motors with gearboxes, so I ended up buying 24V DC motors with gearboxes attached instead. Although there might be space for two 24V DC motors, I decided to start with one to test it out.

The motor and gearbox attached

Shopping seems to be done!

Now it’s time to wait for the order to arrive, as my daughter eagerly anticipates it! Let’s hope everything works out fingers crossed

Part 3