Symba vs. Super Cub
June 8th, 2009 - Scooter-News.com was lucky enough to test a brand new SYM Symba last month and it most definately lived up to its' quickly growing hype. Since one of our daily drivers is a 1965 Honda Super Cub, we thought it would be interesting to write an article directly comparing the Symba to its' inspiration.
As you can tell from the photos, there is quite a size difference between the bikes. While both the Symba and Super Cub roll on 17" wheels, the Symba's seat height is a good bit higher than the Super Cub's and the bike in generally feels larger and more substantial. Believe it or not the size difference between the bikes wasn't the most notable difference.
Original Honda C100 Super Cubs such as the one pictured in this comparison, came with a 4T, 50cc engine from the factory. In stock 50cc form, the Super Cub would not even compare with the Symba. Luckily enough new Honda horizontal type engines are available in a number of displacements from manufacturers such as Lifan for only a few hundred dollars. With just a little modification the aftermarket engines will bolt right into the Super Cub, and that is exactly what we've done with this bike.
The Chassis is really where the Symba shines above and beyond the Super Cub. It's not so much that the Super Cub's chassis is flawed, but more that the Symba's chassis is superb. In the corners it provides more feel and is more stable. At higher speeds the Symba feels much less twitchy than the Super Cub and overall feels more inspiring to ride. Brake-wise the Symba just barely beats out the Super Cub. While both are equipped with drum brakes, the Symba's age advantage of being 45 years younger than the Super Cub helps it pull out the win.
So I bet your asking youself, "is there anything that the Super Cub does better than the Symba?" Well in my opinion, looks are the one catagory that the Super Cub prevails over the Symba. While the Symba looks great, there is something about the Super Cub (it's soul perhaps) that can't be entirely replicated. The classic lines of the 1960s designed machine scream "look-at-me," and while the Symba does get a lot of looks out on the street, it doesn't get nearly as many as the Super Cub.
So while it may seem that there is a clear cut winner on the surface, the Symba won't be the most satisfying bike for some. More specifically, for those who really love vintage scooters, the Super Cub is a great choice. For just about everyone else the Symba will be more appropriate due to its better performance and reliability. Either way you can't go wrong with a Super Cub style bike.
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Comments
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honda_Super_Cub Quote
Not sure why a comparo to a newer super cub is more useful since none have been sold in the US since '83. The article already uses a Cub with a newer engine for more equal power comparisons. Quote
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