Power Wheels Motor Replacement: Fixing My Daughter's 24V Ride-On After a 36V Upgrade

Short answer: When a ride-on motor grinds the gears and quits, swapping the motor is cheap and quick. Pop the hubcap, pull the wheel and axle, unplug the motor, unclip the plastic housing, slide the new motor in and put it all back together. On my daughter's 24V ride-on, the motor was ruined after somebody ran it at 36 volts, and a new motor had her driving again.

The ride-on and what happened

This is my daughter's Big Toys Green Country 24V Monster Lifted Ride On Crawler Truck, the pink one. Somebody tried to turn it from a 24-volt ride-on into a 36-volt one.

She loved it for the whole three minutes it lasted. Then the motor on one side started grinding the gears and quit.

Why going back to 24V didn't fix it

Putting it back on 24 volts didn't bring that motor back. The damage was already done, so the only fix was a new motor. The replacement I used was the 24V Goliath Motors set from Toypartsnaccessories, a complete gearbox with the motor and wires already installed.

How I replaced the motor

The job takes a handful of steps, and none of them need special tools.

1. Pop the hubcap. It comes off the wheel on the side with the dead motor.
2. Take the wheel and axle off. This gives you access to the motor and gearbox housing.
3. Unplug the motor. Disconnect the motor's wiring connector.
4. Unclip the plastic housing. The old motor comes out once the housing is unclipped.
5. Slide the new motor in. Clip the housing back together and plug the motor in.
6. Put the axle, wheel and hubcap back on.
7. Test drive. My daughter handled that part, and it drove like it should again.

Common checks before you buy a motor

These are general checks, not things I did on this ride-on.

• Listen to it. Grinding from one side, like this one, points at that side's motor or gearbox.
• Check the battery and fuse first. If nothing moves at all, a dead battery, a blown fuse or a loose connector is more likely than a bad motor.
• Match the voltage. Buy a replacement motor rated for the voltage the ride-on actually runs on.
• Think twice about voltage upgrades. Running a 24V ride-on at 36V killed this motor in about three minutes.

Takeaway

If a ride-on toy starts grinding and stops on one side, the motor is usually a quick swap you can do in the driveway. It's a good first repair to do with your kids watching.