Well, it's that time of the year again, at least for Symba owners in the parts of the world that get all snowy and icy during the Winter months.  I could have moved to southern California, or Texas, but New Jersey is my home and I've just got to bear it.

Here's a guide to winterizing your Symba.  It's advised if you are going to store your bike for more than a month, you'd best follow these procedures so that you get back on the road in the Spring with a minimum of hassle.

Exclusive Peek Inside the New Alliance Powersports Website!

Breaking News! Our intrepid research staff at Teamsymba.com has managed to hack into www.alliancepowersports.com and download unpublished web pages, such as the above screen shot of the 2012 SYM Wolf Classic page. Does that put us in the same class with those guys that hide in the Ann Arbor shrubbery for days trying to snap a spyshot of some future Ford or Buick?  Unfortunately not. Actually, we just stumbled across the pages that Google had already cataloged by its own methods and added to search results.  Oh well. Anyway, its still interesting to see the new site take shape!

Lance Powersports Demo Website

Astute observers at Teamsymba.com recently noticed that Lance Powerports has put up a demo version of their new website, featuring the (SYM-manufactured) Cali Classic. Soon they'll be adding the full line of SYM USA scooters and, of course, our beloved Symba.  


Rumor has it the much-anticipated Classic-150 will be making its USA debut either late this year or early in 2012. That's a very interesting bike! Very much a retro throw-back to the Honda CB125 of the '70's, and with some really cool trim options, such as a Triumph Cub look (with pea-shooter exhaust, which I adore), a cafe racer, and even a '40's military version. I'm not sure how many of these Alliance will decide to bring in from Taiwan, but they're all on the table.

Could the Symba be the World's Most Fuel-Efficient Mode of (ICE) Transportation?

Fuelly is a website that posts real-world fuel efficiency data for cars and motorcycles collected by people who own and use the vehicles in question. So far there are five posts by Symba owners, indicating that the Symba gets from 104.9 to 111.6 MPG. That's pretty darn good - even for a motorcycle - and about twice what you get in a Toyota Prius.


The higher the price of gas goes, the more sense it makes to have a Symba in your garage (next to your bicycle and Chevy Volt, of course)!


Click here to see the Symba MPG resluts at www.fuelly.com.

Good News From Alliance - Symba Parts Are Coming Soon!

This is good news: Alliance Powersports is expecting a new container shipment of SYM bikes ('12 models) and parts to be on its way within 30 days, including a good quantity of Symba bench seats and the rear racks that fit with them.


Now would probably be a good time to contact your dealer and put in an order for one of the new and improved bench seats. According to photos I've seen of the new seat, its much taller and therefore probably provides more cushioning for a softer ride. That was one of my concerns about the original design - the padding was rather thin.  

Also, the new rear rack that is designed to fit with the bench seat installed should be available soon. Previously, you had to make a choice:  solo seat and rack, or bench seat and no rack. Now you can have both!

Introducing:

Anyone who owns a Symba or a SYM scooter will soon be familiar with this name:  Alliance Powersports (website not quite up yet).  They're the new USA distributor of SYM vehicles, taking over this month from the former distributor, Carter Brothers (see story about Carter Brothers, below).

This is great news for Symba fans!  So far, the response by SYM dealers regarding Alliance Powersports has been very positive:  scooters are in stock and shipping, parts and accessories are flowing again, and warranties are being honored - including those on bikes sold through the previous distributor.  The people at Alliance are excited at this new opportunity to really do justice to the Symba and the other quality scooters made by SYM.  They are definitely keeping the Symba as part of the USA product line (why wouldn't they - it's very popular!), and are looking to adding the new and much-anticipated Classic 150.  The impression I got from my emails and phone calls with Mike Hickman, the head honcho over at Alliance, is that this is going to be a whole new ball game.  Hooray!

And by the way, if you'd like to add a really fine 125cc scooter as a companion to your Symba, you can get the (made by SYM) Lance Cali Classic at only $1995 ($300 less than the SYM Fiddle-II), at Alliance's sister company, Lance Powersports.

Now You Can Have The Symba Bench Seat AND A Rear Rack!

Good news for Symba owners who have opted for the bench seart! SYM has finally introduced a new rear rack for the Symba that fits with the bench seat.  It's not quite in the USA yet, but Chris at Ooty's Scooters (Santa Barbara, CA) has put in an order for them - along with more of the bench seats, which have been hard to find for quite some time now. Email Chris to reserve one or both for your Symba!


Note in the photo above that there is also a Symba "inner" rack that fits on the legshield.  Let's hope they soon become available as well!

The Symba Conquers the Australian Outback

Two intrepid Australian chaps have made the 2,148 mile journey across their home continent, from Perth to Melbourne - each on a Symba, of course!  Of note is the fact that on one day of the trip the temperature went over 110 degrees (F)!  Just shows to go you - the Symba is a quality machine that can take extremes in stride and just keep going.  The only issue either bike had during the 7-day trek was a flat tire (or, "tyre", to use the king's English).  The full story is here.

A Few Simple Customizations Can Make Your Symba Really Special!

This Symba is new on my list of favorites!  The owner painted the side covers to match the body - which may sound like a minor point but I think it really enhances the classic "Cub" lines of the bike - and he added rally striping and decal to the legshield.  Nnnice!  I'm not too keen on windshields, though - but if you're going for that British "Mod" scooter look, they work.  About 8 more headlamps would be fitting as well.  Perhaps that's next on his list!  Thanks for the submission!  Visit the owner's blog here.