BuggyMasters Review: Carter Brothers Interceptor GTR 250

[BuggyMaster]

These are a great machine. The shining star on these is in fact the SYM 250cc powerplant. Where most 250's are about a 14hp engine, the SYM pushes 20hp and gobs of torque across the board. This machine features an independent rear suspension and a strut based front end. Overall build quality of the machine is not really any better than any of the other China built machines with typical China tolerances however the performance of these mini buggies throws in a Trump card that will overshadow any of it's imperfections.

They could stand to have a larger brake system and I am surprised that despite the overall large size of this machine, the interior room isn't much better than any of the other buggies. Still, for someone my size, there is plenty of room. If you are a big guy, this may not be the machine for you. Look for a Tiburon 400 instead.

One notable downside to this machine is the cost for a lot of the parts is high, when compared to others, and availability is a luck-of-the draw situation. For example, if you want mud flaps for it at the time of this writing, they are on back order for at least a month. In addition, you can't always get through to Carter when you need to. You may call for support or parts and have to leave your name and number only to NEVER be called back. If you do get through to them, they are pretty great to deal with. They would rather you go through their network of dealers which I personally don't care to have to do. There are however a lot of dealers so getting parts that are in stock is pretty easy.

This machine is currently the Track Attack record holder across the board at the time of this writing. (mnd you, the Pilot never got tested and surely would be the king)

Pros: Awesome, powerful, dependable engine.

Cons: Could benefit from better brakes and long travel suspension especially in the front. Service/Parts can be difficult to get a hold of. Price. These machines are expensive. Size. Won't fit in the back of a pickup or on narrow trails.

Buggymasters Overall Rating: 8 out of 10

[mgolden94]

my cousins have one. since they were bought out, they are all pieces of sh1t. everything carter makes now is just really sh1tty. first day i drove it, the left rear wheel came off at 47mph. later in the day, i hit a tree with the right rear tires, the live suspension is a fragile as a an old lady with arthritis in bones made of glass. i hit the three at 3mph and it SNAPPED the shaft driving the right wheel.

[joshstep1]

maybe you just got a lemon... a really bad lemon

[bige]

Originally Posted by mgolden94

my cousins have one. since they were bought out, they are all pieces of sh1t. everything carter makes now is just really sh1tty. first day i drove it, the left rear wheel came off at 47mph. later in the day, i hit a tree with the right rear tires, the live suspension is a fragile as a an old lady with arthritis in bones made of glass. i hit the three at 3mph and it SNAPPED the shaft driving the right wheel.

I have to disagree about them all being crap. I have a 300 and have had no issues with it. ridden the hell out of it and nothing breaks.

maybe the person that assembled it did not do a good job, and yes if you hit a tree the something will probably break. 47 mph on any gtr is not possible with out changing the top sprocket.

sounds like he got one that was not assembled according to carters pdi sheet

[24evanwilson]

i wouldint think that a carter was like crap im goin what bige said

[mgolden94]

i have a carter and im not one to talk crap about them, im simply telling you what happened, and yes the top sprocket was changed. the one i rode was a piece. im telling you. but everything else was fine. the motor is amazing. its a torque monster. i just think the pre-buyout carters are way better. there just not as great anymore

[bige]

what pre buy out are you talking about? no one has bought carter and never will, its a family owned company and has always been. they added sym to the line up for scooters and atv's and their engines for the buggy's are now sym.

again if they are not assembled right then yes stuff will happen to them just like any others.

[TotallyKartKrazy]

Originally Posted by mgolden94

i have a carter and im not one to talk crap about them, im simply telling you what happened, and yes the top sprocket was changed. the one i rode was a piece. im telling you. but everything else was fine. the motor is amazing. its a torque monster. i just think the pre-buyout carters are way better. there just not as great anymore

Well you may not be one to talk crap but i certainly am one to state the facts. We bought our GTR250 in Feb. of 2009 and it has been out of service for over 8 months because Carter Brothers will NOT get a simple part in stock. Our CV axle broke and they make you measure it ours happened to be the one that has been on back order for nearly a YEAR now. They refuse to do anything to help us other than not return our calls and be completely rude to us. I hope for your sake that you do not have this problem as you won't be riding this thing for MONTHS possibly YEARS if you end up with the same issues we've had which apparently according to my local dealer is over 10 ppl just at his store that have that part back ordered with them. The biggest sham is that it was the 3rd time we'd rode the cart when it happened it has less than 10 miles on it and because of there crappy 30 day warranty we are even footing the bill. EVERYONE should make sure they have specific parts in stock for your unit before buying one of these hunks of chinese junk. They say they are made in the USA but why then is my part coming from China? only the frames are made in the USA ALL parts are from china and it's "assembled" in the US, i know two other ppl who have lawsuits out with them and they are in financial ruin at this moment and I hope they go under and we all get compensation for our time and wasted money!

[cbelk]

The Carter GTR 250 is an amazing piece of machinery. I bought one that had been on the showroom floor for a couple of years and had rot problems with the CV boots and the rack boots which i paid to replace. At the time that i did the CV boots i also found that the CV joints were not assembled correctly and had to fix the problem. The current of problem of broken piston ring lands probably had to do with poor octane fuel, I let the grandsons fuel it and I'm sure that they used the lawn mower gas. We laid out a race track behind the house and all the grandsons are learning to drive it. Yes patience is part of the training as we wait for a piston. Tom at syc says that he has come up with one, but if not i will be talking to "bige" who seems to also have a source. The third day of ownership we rolled it and completely crushed the cage and have now fab'd a full race cage (pictures to come some day when i get time). For all the problems i can't think of a better value for a toy such as this. (At one time my wife and I owned two Honda Pilots which were most amazing but also much more expensive) For the money this Carter has Chinese copies of good technology and the SYM motor is nothing but impressive for its power but also excellent machine work. I hope that Carter can get past their problems so that others can enjoy such a toy as this.

As for those who are having other problems, this is what being an off-roader and tinkerer is all about, i.e. creative solutions to impossible problems.

[Brennsss]

My boyfriend and I just recently purchased one and we love it but we are looking to replace both headlights and can

[cbelk]

I have a new sym 300 with transmission in a box if anyone is interested.
c belk 951-295-1576