Sunday, November 20, 2016

SEMA Las Vegas 2016 review

Is big and shiny. The 50th annual Specialty Equipment Manufacturers Association features everything you can imagine in an automotive aftermarket and OEM trade show. Everyone is there with all their products and it's overwhelmingly amazing. Walking ten miles a day to see everything is not an exaggeration. The tag line this election years domestic vehicle dominated event is, "We Built This". One wonders if that isn't a coincidence. 

Attending as a social media ambassador for Shell, I was extremely fortunate to take part of in this bucket list event. Shell had a huge outdoor tent, stage, walk-in display trailer and vehicles with numerous displays and expert staff on hand full of factoids and cool, useful information. Numerous automotive celebrities were interviewed live on stage as well as Sung Kang unveiling his 1972 Ford Maverick, Project Underdog. 

One of the main products promoted is the Shell and Pennzoil synthetic oils with Pure Plus technology. The patented Pure Plus synthetic oil technology makes it the cleanest burning oil due to its purity. Check out pictures my Facebook page of the varnish-free interior engine of the Ford Fusion with 75,000 miles with 5k oil change intervals. Pretty amazing. 

The V-Power Nitro + gasoline display featured a Dodge Charger that had one cylinder bank using Shell V-Power Nitro+ premium gasoline and any available brand on the other side. With the borescope it clearly showed how there were less deposits and corrosion on the valves on the side used exclusively with Shell gasoline. Proven to reduce corrosion, wear and deposits in the engine, up to 60% less deposits on the valves by weight in a single tank full. It's time to switch to Shell. 

The stage featured numerous appearances from notables like Joey Logano, John Hennessy and many more. 
Besides the obvious draw of top notch vehicles on display there were also the Shell/Pennzoil race cars like Joey Logano's #22 NASCAR, Leah Pritchett’s Top Fuel dragster. A brief 4 question quiz won a pair of Mechanics Gloves and there were lots of hat and shirt giveaways. Notably a numerous tool sets, $100 gift cards, a four post lift and a Mini Clubman were featured raffle prizes totaling nearly $70,000 during the event and also a Camaro SS modified by Tommy Pike Customs previewed for next year! Check out the Shell website here: http://www.shell.us/business-customers/lubricants-for-business/sema-experience.html#

Mitchell and Grant, members of the Mater Dei High School team that won the Shell Eco-Marathon Challenge by hypermiling their innovative, aerodynamic vehicle were on hand as well. 901mpg due to light weight of under 210lbs, inboard carbon fiber wheels and more. So well thought out the little Yamaha 50cc scooter engine hardly had to run at all. Brilliant. http://www.materdeisupermileage.com/urban-concept-elroy.html

Ok the cars. And trucks. There were literally fleets of lifted trucks with incredible suspension, wheel and tire modifications along with other equipment and paint/wrap jobs. Despite being miserable street vehicles, they showed spectacularly. Huge, mechanical, the nuts and bolts of automotive-dom. In a way, like the nakedness of a motorcycle except the engines had to be viewed from below. 

The other most frequently seen vehicles overall were stanced and many with bolted on bodywork. Sadly looking like broken-axled versions of their former selves with amateurish bodywork, they nonetheless featured some cool finishes, engine modifications and wheels. Mustangs, Challengers and Subaru BRZs seemed the most popular display cars. Lesser in numbers were Camaros, Nissan GT-Rs and various Lamborghini's. Even rarer were McLarens and Ferrari 458s and 488s. There were two LaFerrari and I believe two Porsche 918s. No P1 or other hypercars. I saw one Toyota Supra. My have times changed. 

Near Shell outside there were notable displays by BF Goodrich, Accuair and many more with the constant glorious sounds of drift vehicles putting on an all-day exhibition. Ken Bock in the Ford Mustang GT350R drifting exhibition was a the best soundtrack ever for a car show. 

The North Hall was mostly accessories, shop tools, lifts, paint and paint booths, wraps, etc. The display cars were top notch including a Ferrari F12tdf and quite a few custom motorcycles. 

The Central Hall is where the big names were. BMW, Ford and Chevrolet had large performance displays along with Toyota. Others like Magnaflow, Paxton, Factory Five and many more were there, far too numerous to list.

The South Hall upstairs was all trucks and truck oriented gear and accessories. If it needed to be lifted, off road, or trail equipped, modified and hit the outback, this was your floor. Weathertech was there with a Singer Porsche too. If I had a truck, this would be the place to be.

There were Booth Babes galore but the South Hall first floor level was where they really showed off their "style". Not coincidentally this was the wheel and tire vendors were. This wasn't just performance and pickup/SUV truck tires, but semi, forklift and other industrial tires. The further back one walked, the brands became totally unfamiliar to the car enthusiast. 

Next to the South Hall were the tents for the overflow of vendors. Carbon fiber wheels ($3000 each), Paasche airbrush where my father, Theodore Eckaus was the Sales Director, car covers, and you name it. Behind those tents was another drift display and exhibition rides, mostly BMWs from what I observed, moving fast but not even remotely as cool sounding as the domestic V-8 machines in the front. 

The Automotive Aftermarket Products Expo had a show at the Sands Hotel convention center which was more of a "traditional" show in this trade show veteran’s opinion. No music, lower key and it was like a show for suppliers to O'Reilly, Pep Boys & NAPA. OEM suppliers for parts you've heard of and some you never had. Shop suppliers, lifts, etc. 

The banquet award dinner was held at Westlake Casino and Hotel. It was enormous with seemingly hundreds of tables. First rate video production, a live band and two professional presenters honored the accomplishments over the last fifty years. The 2016 Hall of Fame inductees were Matt Agosta, Chip Foose and Gary Hooker. Other honorees were recognized as well:
Person of the Year – Tim Martin, K&N Engineering Inc.
Manufacturer of the Year: WeatherTech
GEN-III Innovator Award – Jonathan Mill, Keyway Innovations
Manufacturers’ Rep Agency of the Year – Kunzman & Associates
WD of the Year – Turn 14 Distribution Inc.

Access to the outside displays was open to all, but on Friday bleachers are set up to watch the cars leave, the event is called SEMA Ignited. Somewhat reminiscent of Goodwood but I bet a lot louder…

SEMA 2016 vehicle photos here:

Shell vehicles:

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