SEMA 2014 has begun! We were in the Las Vegas Convention Center today during setup day for the 2014 SEMA show and took an opportunity to run around to shoot photos of cars and trucks, get the inside scoop on new parts, and take in all the insanity that is the final thrash to turn the building into the world’s greatest gearhead paradise. The good news is that because the foot traffic is limited on Monday we were able to get some clear snaps of cars that will be swarmed by people come Tuesday and we were able to shoot the breeze with some industry pals that are normally as swamped as the cars are.
We’re going to slam you with coverage of SEMA this year, especially the live show that starts tomorrow afternoon at 3pm Pacific/6pm Eastern time. Stay tuned for that and hit the link below for our first salvo of photos!
^^^^ What the heck is that….?!!!! I hope one of those wasn’t real steel when the chopping began. It looks like the craftsmanship is top notch, but still leaves me with ‘why’. The wheels look a bit fugly. I get the idea behind them, but something about them just isn’t right. I’m going to mark this one as great skill in completing a fail. They all can’t be awesome. Sorry.
Okay…..thought I was done, but apparently not. Someone please take the keys to that ’64 Mailbu ‘vert away and deliver them to someone who will fix the nose of that car.
The rest of the gallery is pretty cool. I really dig the UA Ram, the Power Wagon, and the Mustangs. Badman ’55 and King Sling are stars on their own level. Toyota monster truck….? Like NASCAR and NHRA…powered by an engine of what design…? That’s why that junk didn’t fly in ProStock. Stick to the mold. Average commuter cars and trucks. Nothing ‘bold’ about boring. Only adding Subaru power to a REAR-WHEEL-DRIVE platform makes for fun.
My guess is that Ford and Dodge will bring their a-game. Still wondering if Chevy has an a-game. Killing Holden will likely stifle exciting development outside Camaro, Cadillac, and the Vette (as long as that doesn’t go mid-engine euro). The folks down under knew how to make a sedan folks want.
Oh wait, my son has named it. ‘No-Camaro’. Perfect name. Also, the craftsmanship on the flat-fender is awesome. I especially like the safety equipment to support having a heavily-nitroused, blown LS in an AWD platform. Its the equivalent to going without a helmet on a massively-modified ‘Busa. I feel my negativity rising because I can’t imagine the microcosm of folks that thought some of these were good ideas and once done, continued to think that way.
That red Mach 1 with the dual quads looks familiar but I can’t place it…
I keep thinking some 1990’s teen horror movie, but I can’t make the connection either.
That red Power Wagon on the link image is just glorious. The wheels are a bit blingy, but otherwise, I love that ruck.
After viewing the gallery, these are my thoughts:
Couple of bro-trucks there that looked just gawd-awful.
It was really cool to see the UA Tug Truck get some love.
The white Bimmer looked absolutely vicious without looking a single bit over the top.
Most of the projects based on the new F-150s looked pretty great. That truck has some great lines that lent themselves well to moderate modification, and enough character to stand up on their own.
I was very underwhelmed by the GM vehicles. Most of them were just stock cars with a shine and blacked out lights, very much more pimp than performance.
The ugly Nova or what ever you think it is is just fugly. I only saw a few trucks that I would really like to have. The rockstar jeep looks like every other jeep out there on the road now.