The wheel segment continues to be among the most robust in the automotive specialty-equipment industry, as evidenced by the dozens of wheel manufacturers that exhibited at the recent SEMA Show. Wheel builders continue to refine manufacturing techniques such as laser cutting for high-quality surface finishes and evolving designs that include deep concaves, mesh spokes and revolving caps. The following pages highlight some of the innovations from exhibitors in the Wheels & Accessories section, as seen in the 2013 SEMA Show New Products Showcase.

New product announcements from SEMA member companies, including Astro Pneumatic Tool, Cloud-Rider Designs, BedRug, DefenderWorx and Escort.

90+ Products to Be Unveiled at the 2013 SEMA Show

The SEMA Show is all about innovation and creativity. For a taste of what’s coming at the 2013 event, check out the more than 90 new products previewed here. During the Show, head to the upper level of South Hall for a look at the Ideas Alive: Featuring the New Products Showcase at the Las Vegas Convention Center on November 5–8, 2013.

Classics and Currents for Today’s Marketplace

The restoration market is still embracing the class of vehicles commonly called “restomods.” It’s not a new phenomenon, but it has captured an ever-increasing share of the marketplace, melding stone-stock appearance with modern powertrain and convenience features.

Full restoration also continues to thrive, of course. There is perennial demand for 100% original classic vehicles, and both ends of the spectrum seem to have gained momentum once more as the economy has picked up.
On these pages, you’ll find a complete selection of the restoration products that were displayed in the New Products Showcase at the 2012 SEMA Show held last November.

Leather Therapy, Velvet Cars, Lund International Inc., Design Engineering Inc., Sysonic USA, Rimblades Ltd.

The proper tool makes life easier, but it can also make a job more enjoyable. Whether it’s a diagnostic machine or a ballpeen hammer, a ratchet wrench or an English wheel, a good tool can be a treasure to the person using it. A good tool invites use, inspires confidence and demands care.

And just as with every other aspect of professional life, the tools and equipment used in the automotive world are subject to constant inventiveness, innovation and enhancement. Each year, new or improved industry equipment is introduced at the SEMA Show. The 2012 event held last November was replete with groundbreaking new creations, and we’ve brought them together in these pages for your convenience. Find one that makes your life easier.

Car-Care and Restyling Products From the 2012 SEMA Show

The SEMA Show offers thousands of products to automotive professionals, ranging from performance hard parts to purpose-built off-road equipment. But vehicle accessories—body kits, interior additions and restoration parts—can spruce up nearly any car or truck, and car-care products are used throughout the industry on both new and used vehicles.

The next few pages include dozens of restyling and car-care products that were unveiled at the 2012 SEMA Show. We have also compiled comments from industry professionals at some of the leading car-care companies about changes in technology, the distribution process and the influence of the Internet on both consumers and retailers.

Function Fused With Performance, Comfort and Drivability

The hot-rod market has always been predicated on performance. It’s where the niche—and the entire specialty-equipment industry, really—found its genesis. The listings of hot-rod components and systems unveiled at the most recent SEMA Show and now found on these pages continue in that vein, though there is also an increasing emphasis on making rods not only hot, but also comfortable and drivable.

As in previous years, we’ve interspersed the product listings with commentaries from industry professionals who are in touch with the marketplace. We asked them to focus on overall trends as well as specific vehicle types, and their responses reveal a melding of the traditional and the innovative.

New product releases from Custom Autosound, TruXedo, Prothane, Hypertherm,ExtendMySeat, LED Wheels and other SEMA members.

New Offerings to Make the Automobile Smarter, More Efficient and More Entertaining

Only a few decades ago, most automotive systems were mechanical or analog. Carbureted engines, manual transmissions and knob-tuned AM radios were standard equipment. But even the most basic of today’s cars and trucks offer a cornucopia of electronic controls that improve functionality and the driving experience. New specialty-equipment devices ranging from telemetry for hands-free communications and satellite navigation to powertrain tuning software and radio-frequency links with the home provide an almost dizzying array of options even beyond the sophisticated creations delivered at showrooms by the carmakers.

The mobile-electronics displays housed in the North Hall of the annual SEMA Show have increased in number and scope every year, and many exhibits in other product categories—street performance, off-road, tools and equipment, you name it—derive some portion of their usefulness from high-tech components. In the following pages, we’ve cataloged the electronic offerings that were unveiled in the New Products Showcase during the 2012 event. Retailers in particular might want to examine the listings for items that will draw consumers and boost sales.