Tabla de contenidos para May 2024 en SEMA Magazine

If you want to understand how to relate to Generation Z, there’s a quick answer. “They want to know that it’s real. They want to know what’s true. It needs to be believable,” said Brandon Scarpelli, founder and CEO of The BMS Brand, a social-media management, content-creation and advertising firm that specializes in the automotive and motorsports industry. Real. True. Believable. In short, that’s the starting place for relating to Generation Z—the population block of nearly 70 million Americans born between 1997 and 2012. This generation embodies a new mentality that starts with authenticity. While pessimists insist kids can’t unglue from their phone screens long enough to bother looking through a windscreen, Gen Z is coming of age and our collective success depends on them. With millions already in the…

STATE UPDATE ALASKA—INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE: Alaska has introduced SEMA-supported legislation to protect consumers’ choice of vehicle powerplants and fuel by preventing a state agency, county or city from limiting access to certain power sources. Under current law, new gas- and diesel-powered vehicle sales may be threatened if narrow energy policies are adopted. ARIZONA—CRUISING: Arizona has introduced a SEMA-supported bill to allow automobile cruising activities to return statewide. Currently, local authorities are authorized to pass ordinances that regulate or prohibit cruising. This effort follows similar legislation that was approved in California last year. Having passed the House Committee on Transportation & Infrastructure, the bill now awaits consideration by the full House. CALIFORNIA—SPEED LIMITER: California has introduced SEMAopposed legislation to require new vehicles to be equipped with speed governors starting in model-year…

On February 9, 1964, the Beatles made their first appearance on “The Ed Sullivan Show,” a performance that kicked off not just Beatlemania in the United States but what was then called the British Invasion. Suddenly, shaggy British music groups became the in, groovy thing. Pop music would never be the same. Nearly a year earlier, another British invasion of sorts took place at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Colin Chapman, founder of Lotus Cars, brought two Ford-powered Lotus 29 race cars to the Brickyard for the 1963 500. One of them, driven by Jimmy Clark, finished second. Indy car racing would never be the same. This was the era when competition at Indianapolis was dominated by Indy Roadsters. Built by Kurtis-Kraft, A.J. Watson, Eddie Kuzma and others, they were constructed…

THE WHEEL GROUP RIDLER 652 WHEEL thewheelgroup.com Introducing the Ridler 652 Vintage Series wheel. It’s available in 17-, 18- and 20-in. staggered fitments for classic cars and restorods. The Ridler 652 features a timeless five-spoke design and features lightweight flow-formed technology. The wheel is available in gloss black with diamond-cut face and lip and satin black with diamond-cut lip. CURT DISCOVERY NEXT TIME-DELAY TRAILER BRAKE CONTROLLER curtmfg.com Introducing the Curt Discovery NEXT, a powerful, compact and intuitive brake controller designed to provide reliable operation of your electric trailer brakes from the comfort of your vehicle’s cabin. With its sleek and modern design and a low-profile bracket for enhanced clearance, this controller offers exceptional control. FLEXTREAD NEXT-GENERATION MOLDED FLOOR MATS flextreadmats.com Designed, assembled and made in the United States, Flextread’s latest-generation…

“Drag racing is such a sensory experience—the sights, the sounds, the smells. Watching it on TV is cool, but being there in person is so much better.” Drag racer and Professional Drag Racers Association (PDRA) Marketing Director Will Smith hit on something important as he contemplated how to protect drag-racing’s future. He wasn’t naive to the headwinds facing the industry. Smith has heard the naysayers’ various arguments—the core demographics are aging, younger generations don’t care about cars, land is too valuable, the future will be all-electric—but he also understands drag racing has unique appeal. Drag racing is meant to be felt. Just as a spectator can feel a National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) Top Fuel car scream to the 1,000-ft. mark at more than 330 mph, a grassroots racer can…

He’s “Uppity” by name, and, let’s say audacious in nature, but Willy T. Ribbs is also an American racing legend. His ability to push a race car beyond its limits was rivaled, perhaps, only by his determination to overcome every obstacle thrown at him during a highly successful racing career. As a young black race car driver simply trying to let his talent do the talking, Ribbs’ racing career saw him head full-throttle through one adversity after another—both on and off the track. And while many might have turned away, an iron-like perseverance combined with astounding skill behind the wheel saw Ribbs reach the top echelon of motorsports. In doing so, the California native helped break down barriers for diversity in global motorsports—placing a level of opportunity and change in…

Staying ahead of future trends is an essential element of any strategic business plan. Unfortunately, discerning those trends is not an exact science. Inevitably, a constant flow of unanticipated events and issues get thrown into the mix. However, solid data can help add clarity and insight to the business decisions we make. Enter the 2024 edition of the “SEMA Future Trends Report.” As questions about economic conditions, automotive-industry trends and consumer sentiment continue to swirl, the report is designed to pinpoint the patterns most relevant to the specialty automotive sector and offer fact-based assessments for the future. This essential planning tool is now available and free to SEMA members at SEMA.org/research. “The U.S. economy saw some volatility and uncertainty in 2023, and some of those questions remain into 2024,” said…

SEMA Garage Detroit has received confirmation from the California Air Resources Board (CARB) that the new location is properly equipped for automotive exhaust emissions testing. A significant achievement for SEMA members, that confirmation was recently made official in a CARB-issued letter naming the Detroit Garage a Recognized Independent Emissions Lab, making it a qualified location for emissions compliance testing. Located in Plymouth, Michigan, just outside Detroit, the facilities are part of a wider SEMA Garage program that includes the original location in Diamond Bar, California, whose emissions compliance program dates to 2015. Beyond emissions testing, both facilities offer a broad range of product-development services to association members, which can be accessed by visiting semagarage.com. “We’re excited to receive this recognition from CARB,” said SEMA Vice President of Garage and OEM…

Southern California is the birthplace of drag racing, but today only three public dragstrips remain—Barona, Irwindale and Bakersfield—serving roughly 24 million people. The reasons are unfortunate but familiar: soaring land values, increasing insurance premiums, and online retailers’ propensity for replacing race tracks with distribution centers. There are no easy answers to this problem, but Andy Marocco has come up with a unique solution. In fall 2023, he officially opened Street Legal Dragway in Perris, California, a 1/16-mi. dragstrip catering to the street-legal racing crowd. “We have a unique opportunity to reinvent a segment of drag racing and bring it back to where it used to be,” said Marocco. With limited space to work with, Marocco drew inspiration from the Hot August Nights Drag Races in Sparks, Nevada. Since 2011, the…

Most businesses serving off-road enthusiasts and outdoor recreationalists will recognize the core characteristics of the current marketplace as consistent with the past years, even decades. That said, evolutionary variations, a few headwinds and emerging trends will shape the off-road marketplace later in 2024 and beyond. The big picture is largely positive. Andy Morgan, senior director of marketing for Keystone’s specialty automotive division, notes that, “Specifically in the truck and off-road space, what we’re hearing from the market is that business is good. There continues to be some concern about if that will continue—inflation, election year and all the normal year-toyear type stuff. But overall, business is pretty healthy.” Keystone is a specialty distributor that services a wide range of resellers, including independent jobbers. “We’re seeing very good results, and we’re…