Carter Brothers Manufacturing: 1936 - 2011. Done. Gone. Finis.

I had originally written a long treatise on the demise of Carter Brothers to be posted here, but it seems to me that there is no point. The company simply failed, and the reasons, which are many, are now meaningless, because in the final analysis, nobody cares.


This may very well be my last post on this blog. I'll keep it up a bit longer for the benefit of Symba owners who might find the links useful.  But, although I am relieved that SYM has decided to stick it out in the USA, at least for now, and has a new and eager distributor in the form of Alliance Powersports, I find it difficult to muster much enthusiasm.  It seems to me that SYM is a company with many flaws, not least of which is a marked lack of vision.  They are definitely not taking cues from the history of American Honda, or even that of the more recent Kymco USA. If they were really serious about establishing the SYM brand in America, they would have set up their own subsidiary rather than relying on 3rd party distributors such as Carter Brothers and (now) Alliance Powersports. If not for the incompetence and ultimate failure of Carter Brothers, SYM might have been quite a bit farther along in the USA than it is now, instead of basically back to square one, working out of the same (failed) playbook.


I remain an admirer of their products, particularly the Symba. But that's not enough. Back in 2006 when I first emailed SYM and Carter Brothers about the Symba, and found a receptive ear, I hoped to be part of something worthwhile and exciting. The spirit is just not there, unfortunately.  Alas.