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Written by Rowan Horncastle
This year marks the 50th anniversary of the first ever SEMA show. And boy have things moved on since 1967. Back then, just five cars graced the basement floor of LA"s Dodger Stadium for the first Speed Equipment Manufacturing Association convention.But now, 50 years and a little naming revamp later (it"s now the Specialty Equipment Market Association), SEMA is one of the biggest trade shows in the world. Each November, when the Las Vegas Convention Center isn"t playing host to middle-aged men dressed as superheroes, its fluorescent strip-lit halls are filled with the most outlandish creations the tuning community has to offer. With more than 40 miles of stands in two massive, double-decked halls plus vast outside expanses of show and event space it"s one of the densest and mind-boggling car meets on the planet. But, unfortunately, it"s doors aren"t open to the public. That"s because the SEMA organisation was set up as a guild to help regulate and progress the aftermarket industry.Ever since the Ford Model T, mankind has been modifying cars to try and make them quicker, louder or look a bit shoutier. But in the early 1960s, a group of individuals felt that a set of rules and regulations were necessary in order to keep the car mod scene moving forward, so they formed an organisation to make sure everyone in the trade was singing off the same hymn sheet. This handful of industry heads has now turned into 6,500 members worldwide. They come from all manner of weird niches and sectors of the aftermarket world and cover pretty much every part of a car down to the nuts, bolts and floor mats.It"s a sector that generates a revenue is in excess of $31 billion annually. So it"s big business. No wonder, then, that mainstream car manufacturers have jumped onboard so readily and set up superstructure stands at SEMA in the last few years.Gone are the days of seas of laughable Dimma bodykits, neon lights and scantily clad girls in shopping centre car parks. Tuning has matured into a somewhat classier scene, that manufacturers themselves now want a piece of. Saying that, the scantily clad women remain. Over the years the SEMA show has got bigger and better. Just click through the retrotastic gallery above to see what we mean. It"s become the spine of the tuning world and gives the scene somewhere to litmus-test ideas. As you can see from the pics, these days it"s more snapbacks and vape pipes than suits and cigars. But the idea and mentality of the SEMA show hasn"t changed.Walking around the show floor, it feels like the car industry has clocked off from work early, put on some slacks and cracked open a beer. For a few days, Vegas" two million square foot Convention Centre reeks of automotive creativity and sheer why-the-hell-not?" Apart from lunchtime, where it smells of brisket and pizza.However, this jovial and relaxed approach to car design does sometimes lead to the Great Pendulum of Taste swinging drastically from one extreme to the other but that"s why we love it.So once again, we"re heading out to Sin City to see what"s on trend in 2016. Because if they"re happening now or going to happen soon, chances are there will be some car or product at SEMA pointing the way as to what"s cool. So stay tuned this week for all the action when it kicks off on Tuesday.
Date written: 31 Oct 2016
More of this article on the Top gear website
ID: 5614
This year marks the 50th anniversary of the first ever SEMA show. And boy have things moved on since 1967. Back then, just five cars graced the basement floor of LA"s Dodger Stadium for the first Speed Equipment Manufacturing Association convention.But now, 50 years and a little naming revamp later (it"s now the Specialty Equipment Market Association), SEMA is one of the biggest trade shows in the world. Each November, when the Las Vegas Convention Center isn"t playing host to middle-aged men dressed as superheroes, its fluorescent strip-lit halls are filled with the most outlandish creations the tuning community has to offer. With more than 40 miles of stands in two massive, double-decked halls plus vast outside expanses of show and event space it"s one of the densest and mind-boggling car meets on the planet. But, unfortunately, it"s doors aren"t open to the public. That"s because the SEMA organisation was set up as a guild to help regulate and progress the aftermarket industry.Ever since the Ford Model T, mankind has been modifying cars to try and make them quicker, louder or look a bit shoutier. But in the early 1960s, a group of individuals felt that a set of rules and regulations were necessary in order to keep the car mod scene moving forward, so they formed an organisation to make sure everyone in the trade was singing off the same hymn sheet. This handful of industry heads has now turned into 6,500 members worldwide. They come from all manner of weird niches and sectors of the aftermarket world and cover pretty much every part of a car down to the nuts, bolts and floor mats.It"s a sector that generates a revenue is in excess of $31 billion annually. So it"s big business. No wonder, then, that mainstream car manufacturers have jumped onboard so readily and set up superstructure stands at SEMA in the last few years.Gone are the days of seas of laughable Dimma bodykits, neon lights and scantily clad girls in shopping centre car parks. Tuning has matured into a somewhat classier scene, that manufacturers themselves now want a piece of. Saying that, the scantily clad women remain. Over the years the SEMA show has got bigger and better. Just click through the retrotastic gallery above to see what we mean. It"s become the spine of the tuning world and gives the scene somewhere to litmus-test ideas. As you can see from the pics, these days it"s more snapbacks and vape pipes than suits and cigars. But the idea and mentality of the SEMA show hasn"t changed.Walking around the show floor, it feels like the car industry has clocked off from work early, put on some slacks and cracked open a beer. For a few days, Vegas" two million square foot Convention Centre reeks of automotive creativity and sheer why-the-hell-not?" Apart from lunchtime, where it smells of brisket and pizza.However, this jovial and relaxed approach to car design does sometimes lead to the Great Pendulum of Taste swinging drastically from one extreme to the other but that"s why we love it.So once again, we"re heading out to Sin City to see what"s on trend in 2016. Because if they"re happening now or going to happen soon, chances are there will be some car or product at SEMA pointing the way as to what"s cool. So stay tuned this week for all the action when it kicks off on Tuesday.
Date written: 31 Oct 2016
More of this article on the Top gear website
ID: 5614
