There have already been two really good picture posts on SEMA '13 so far by Harrison and also by Tom Davison. While it's probably true that there was less of the 100% 'HAMB friendly' hot rods or customs present this year, I would argue that there... <BR><BR>To read the rest of this blog entry from The Jalopy Journal, click here.
I couldn't get the Tom Davison link to work so I went and found it http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=844111
It's nice to know they're de-evolving into our realm.Like the saying " You can't know where you are going unless you know where you've been". SEMA is becoming my new favorite thing to do
The UP coupe in the Ford booth was very nice to see...............especially the 21 stud Evans heads! Tried to talk the guy in the NSRA booth into opening the hood on the Mumford roadster so folks could enjoy the V8-60 Ardun, but all he could say was "....it would ruin the lines of the car." Okay bud................
Here's my 2 cents: SEMA is nothing more than a meat market, and we are the meat. It has been and will always be a place to show people just how much money they can spend on a car. They are not in it to enjoy Hot Rods, they are in it to make money. When I buy an aftermarket whatever, I am almost always disappointed. SEMA should be MONEY-MONEY-MONEY! When the real parts are gone, I will quit Rodding. I'd rather spend a month making a part than buy an aftermarket piece of junk. Anybody can bolt a bunch of "model car" stuff together. I believe they ruin the true meaning of being a Hot Rodder. I get much more attention in my home built Roadster (that I don't have even 5 grand in) than some chromed up 10,000 dollar paint, SBC powered glitter-mobile with 3 deuces.
Most businesses participating in a trade show ARE in it to make money and want to showcase what they have to offer on a vehicle that stops people in their tracks. If I'm a vendor with a new steel Deuce coupe body or the latest wheel offerings, SEMA is the place to be. If you're making parts in your own backyard and running wheels you found at the junkyard, that's cool. Doesn't mean you have to hate on those who choose to do it differently. Without the aftermarket this would be a pretty ****ty hobby. JH
Me too!!! That's why I'm makin' a mold right now to make my own tires. Those *******s aren't getting any of my money! Tri power ****s! Money ****s!
Having been involved with SEMA for 40 plus years, I'm always amazed at the ignorance of people like boneheads and Paint. As Fred Offenhauser (a charter member of SEMA) once said, "I'll sell it to you at cost as long as you understand that cost includes a fair profit for me". For the record, this month's SEMA magazine has four pages outlining the pro hot rodding legislation that SEMA has promoted on a state by state basis as well as on the national scene. There is SEMA, an organization dedicated to promoting the hot rod industry and there are SEMA members that are in business to make a profit. I say to the SEMA bashers; "Get Over It".
Thank God it is a big world with room for everyone, even though some a**** us would rather shut out anyone who does not think exactly like them! And yes, this hobby would be a tiny fraction of what it is without the aftermarket folks.
Yeah, the Max Grundy involvement in the show blew me away! One of the first booths i ran into, out in the mezzanine, was his booth. My thought is, how does this great, humble, low-key, "seemingly anti-everything SEMA stands for" artist wind up with such a great location with his booth? Am I in a parallel universe? Then I took about ten more steps before I realized that every sign, banner, souvenir merchandise booth, including the 50' x 100' banner hanging on the outside of the hall for everyone driving down Paradise Road to read, and every step of the way throughout the show, literally hundreds, if not thousands of his graphics permeated the place!! He owned the show it seemed. Very cool.
So I ***ume Coker's gonna be selling those engines... If they're actually usable/durable for street use - like 3000-mile-oil-changes and reasonable valvetrain maintenance and 75K+ miles between teardowns on alcohol-laden pump 91AKI - it'd be perfect for what I'm starting to splice together now. Even four or five degrees of separation to a Leo Goossen work is dreamland. Spur-gear cam drive...oh man. It'd be nice to have some dimensions on the thing. Alas, by the time you pay for the hardware up front and the inevitable low-volume QA guinea-pig expenses I'm sure it's a long way over budget for this project. Absent something more correctly 'period' the 454 Chevy in the shed already runs, but the Ford FE in parts next to it is the emotional choice.
It's a TRADE show, not a car show. What do you expect it to be? The audience isn't the "general public", even though the public craves the coverage and wants to be able to attend. What "we" think of it doesn't matter, nor should it.
It's a TRADE show, not a car show. What do you expect it to be? Good point!!!!!!!! and something to remember. Times are changing and sometimes not always for the better!!!!!!!! Jimbo
It is a TRADE Show. It is not meant for the general public, never has been. the automotive business is just that - A BUSINESS, and believe it or not Businesses are there to make Money! Just as I'm sure whatever you did for a living was to make money - so you could spend it on your cars. And those comments about it being about money seem pretty ironic coming from a guy who has only started threads trying to sell stuff.
Even a****st the builder community very few people could ever finish a project without buying something from someone, and if no one could make enough money to justify tooling and building a product to sell, then that stuff wouldn't exist. SEMA is an exercise in sorting wheat from chaff - not everyone will agree on what's grain and what's garbage, and some of it's junk no matter how you cut it.
That Max Grundy artwork on the ***le page is way cool. I love his art work.....sorta like art deco armageddon.
I never understood the negative reviews about SEMA. As already stated here, it is what it is, a place to showcase what is available for all of us to buy.........of not to buy. This is still America and I didn't see one booth with a salesman holding a gun and shaking you down for your wallet before letting you continue. You're in the drivers seat along with thousands of other customers. Don't buy his product, and enough others do the same, he won't be there next year. Couldn't be much simpler than that. Frank
Well stated. I really wonder how many of the negative comments are coming from people who actually attended. SEMA is not open to the public, nor is it a car show. Its a place to showcase your products. If a person doesn't like a particular booth, keep walking.
Without SEMA there would be a lot more grave markers! Just go way back and look at what we used to run before SEMA.....it will scare the you know what out of you... Have worked with SEMA people for years when I was a NHRA Tech Official......
I was there,all I can say is WOW!. never seen anything like it before,already planning to go back next year,true there were a lot of "spectators",but that is what helps to drive sales.It is very good exposure for any company looking to expand,we walked for 3 straight days and only seen about 1/2 of it,next year we are going early and get a start on it. Harvey
Is there any way to get into the show if you aren't in the business? My wife and I were Vegas on vacation and phoned to get tickets, were told it isn't open to the public.
You pretty much answered your own question. It's open only to those in the automotive industry with actual credentials stating they are. But that's how all big industry trade shows are run, they only let folks with working credentials of that particular trade have access to it, whether its art related or industrial, etc. They only want to meet face to face with the people that are going to be potential distributors and wholesalers of their products, not the looky-loos seeking to see how many catalogs they can score or all the free promotional items that are given away.
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