SEMA Show Recap: Come and Gone but Never More Than a Year Away

As the largest premiere automotive show in the world, the annual SEMA Show brings together the best automotive aftermarket companies in the industry. Among those companies that attend, you’ll find huge names like Edelbrock, Kinetik Audio, Vintage Air, Billet Specialties, Factory Five Racing, Dynojet Research and many more. But the SEMA Show isn’t just about the companies that attend. It’s also about all the new products and fresh-built cars that these companies showcase to industry insiders for the first time.

Just like in years past, we dedicated well over a week to all the new products and cars found at SEMA, but even a month’s worth of coverage couldn’t do this extraordinary event justice.

So we decided to take a moment and recap some of our favorite sights from the show as well as give those of you who’ve never made it to the Las Vegas event a better idea of all the happenings and excitement for the coming year. And trust us, even after attending the show for many years, you never quite get enough of what the annual SEMA Show has to offer.

Open officially on Tuesday October 30th, the 2012 SEMA Show got off to a start with a bang the night of Monday October 29th with several kick-off parties for vendors, exhibitors and media attendees. If you’ve ever wanted to rub elbows with some of the biggest names in the automotive industry in a less business-like setting, this is where the SEMA experience begins.

Bringing in the Bounty

On opening day, a more business-esque mood takes over the event, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t plenty of fun and excitement to be had. The SEMA Show floor is packed with exhibitors, vendors and attendees from all over the globe and as soon as the exhibition hall doors open, hundreds of thousands of media, dealers, buyers, and exhibitors flood the halls to take in all that SEMA has to offer. As this event is an industry trade show it is NOT open to the general public, so we will bring you the inside scoop of all SEMA has to offer.

Looking for something as simple as a steering wheel? Well, SEMA offers you hundreds of options for any given automotive product, including this fine Lakester steering wheel from Billet Specialties.

This year, more than 60,000 buyers, both domestic and international, attended the event to get the scoop on the industry’s latest products and to start building their must-have inventory lists for the coming year. With 12 different display segments dedicated to the different areas of the industry, and a special New Products Showcase, which exhibited nearly 2,000 new products, attendees can expect to get their fill of product options from A to Z on the showroom floor.

At SEMA 2012, we stopped by countless booths to check out the latest products our friends in the industry had to offer. From exhaust systems from Magnaflow, EZ-EFI systems from FAST, and new suspension components from Ridetech to hot rod accessories from Mooneyes, steering wheels and dress-up parts from Billet Specialties and crazy unique shifter knobs from American Shifter, there was something on the floor for everyone, no matter what make or model they were looking to supply.

Even product manufacturers like Magnaflow had unique and exciting vehicles to showcase their products, like this vintage Chevy pickup complete with a wheel full of functioning mufflers in the bed.

But supplying tangible items aren’t the only services offered at SEMA. There are also many companies, like big-name race tracks, that bring information about their offerings to the annual SEMA Show. So, whether you’re looking for a dress-up component, mechanical component or someplace to really drive your car, the offerings at the SEMA Show are like none other.

Ranks of Rides

You can’t have the biggest automotive aftermarket show on the planet without incorporating a substantial amount of custom vehicles, and that’s exactly what the SEMA Show does. Thousands of builders, from big-name shops to small-town ventures work year round to complete custom builds just to debut each year at SEMA. Whether you’re looking for hot rods, muscle cars, imports, exotics, trucks or specialty vehicles, SEMA brings them all to one place.

Inside the exhibition halls, you’ll find customer cars and shop cars alike displayed in booths that range from a part of the build, like a company that supplied the suspension or interior, to the full project.

You’ll also find newly-released vehicles like Chevrolet’s new Hot Wheels Edition Camaro, Factory Five Racing’s Subaru WRX-based 818 sports car and Ford’s “new” 1940 coupe.

The exhibition halls are also home to many celebrity cars built by some of the most famous builders in the industry. This year, Bio Kustumz debuted guitarist for Papa Roach, Jerry Horton’s ‘51 Mercury lead sled named “Reprise” in the Kinetik Audio booth. Hand-built body panels, a custom House of Kolor paint scheme and one-off wheels set this car apart from many of the custom Mercs we’ve seen. Among the other celebrity cars displayed at this year’s show were T.J. Lavin’s ‘51 Ford Shoebox built by Divine 1 Customs featured in the Kicker booth, and fabricator Jimmy Shine’s Bare Nekid ‘34 pickup in the SEMA Action Network booth.

Jerry Horton's 1951 Merc and TJ Lavin's 1951 Ford were both well-executed show cars with their classic lead sled designs and unique touches.

Among the exhibitors are also media outlets and magazines, all showcasing company project cars along side their publications. Outside the main hall, more custom vehicles are lined up for all to see, complete with complex custom paint jobs, layers of chrome, insane body modifications and spit-shined details. All the vehicles that make it to SEMA are high-dollar, intensely fabricated and extremely time-consuming projects. What else would you expect from the best in the industry?

The 1940 Ford coupe may not be a new concept but this vintage looking classic here is surprisingly all brand new.

History In the Making

While the annual SEMA Show makes history each and every year with all the latest and greatest technology on display, the event also pays tribute to some of the greatest cars and technology of the past. Among the most well-known historic cars on display at SEMA this year was the So-Cal Belly Tanker race car displayed by Ford.

This particular race car made its race debut in 1948 at the El Mirage dry lake race and went on to make history breaking speed records at the Bonneville Salt Flats, including four class speed records. The car’s one-way speed record of 198.34mph still stands for normally-aspirated , flathead-powered cars to this very day. Ford also had the So-Cal Indy Speedster and a low-production 1931 Model A roadster pickup sponsored by “Model A Times Magazine” on display.

In addition to the restored, modified and preserved classics on the floor, SEMA also showcased many organizations that aim to keep the hot rod and custom industry safe in the future. Among these organizations were the National Street Rod Association, Goodguys Rod & Custom Association and the SEMA Action Network, which acts like an industry-wide watch dog for legislative affairs that may affect the automotive hobby.

A show vehicle itself, Jimmy Shine's '34 bare metal pickup was at SEMA supporting the SEMA Action Nework. After all, without their efforts, the automotive hobby wouldn't be quite the same.

Events and Demonstrations

SEMA week is full of walking, whether you’re trying to find the perfect part for your customer’s vehicles or the next big trend, checking out all the fantastic cars or just trying to take in the entire event. But not everything that SEMA has to offer is a walking affair. Built into the event are many demonstrations and mini events that all attendees can participate in on some level.

Each year, the finals of the Hot Rodders of Tomorrow Engine Challenge are held at SEMA. This year, a team of students from Loara High School took top honors with a time of just 21 minutes and 24 seconds.

This year, demonstrations included a drift demo with Formula DRIFT driver Ryan Tuerck, a sanding and polishing demo with Chip Foose at the 3M booth, an armored vehicle demonstration and a special demo at the Lincoln Welding booth that also involved Chip Foose and Jessi Combs. Flaming River also had Dennis Gage from “My Classic Car” on hand signing autographs during one day at the show.

Other notable events were the SEMA Awards, Hot Rodders of Tomorrow Engine Challenge, SEMA Cruise, which featured over a thousand SEMA Show vehicles, and of course, the kick off to the Optima Ultimate Street Car Invitational.

The 2012 SEMA Show was an absolute blast, as it is every year. If you’re in the industry and haven’t gone, or even if you have but it’s been awhile since you walked the isles and isles of industry-related booths at the Las Vegas Convention Center during SEMA, the show comes highly recommended as a must see for any automotive enthusiast. Unfortunately, the show is not open to the general public, however, so if you’re not in the industry, you’ll have to play nice with one of your car buddies so you can go (kidding of course).

The SEMA Show has already been set for next year and will be taking place November 5th through the 8th, so make sure to start planning now. We know we’ll be back next year to bring you LIVE coveragefrom the show and all of the new product coverage from the industries best. Hopefully we’ll see you there!