Table of contents for January/February 2026 in SEMA Magazine

The 2025 SEMA Show once again proved why it stands as the automotive aftermarket’s premier global event. With more than 2,300 exhibiting brands, 153,000-plus participants from 140 countries, and the strongest OEM presence in years, the Show reaffirmed its role as the industry’s central hub for performance, innovation and culture. Every segment of the market was represented, as tens of thousands of buyers explored emerging trends, new technologies and the world’s largest automotive New Products Showcase. From ADAS and alternative-propulsion systems to cutting-edge custom builds, innovation filled every hall. More than 2,800 media professionals captured and shared the excitement worldwide. The Show’s consumer-facing elements were equally exciting. SEMA Show Friday welcomed more than 10,000 enthusiasts, with thousands more participating in the SEMA Cruise and SEMA Fest, which again blended car…

The SEMA Show represents many things to exhibitors, attendees and media. It’s about business connections; eye-popping vehicle builds and activations; new ideas; demonstrations; and education. But most of all, the Show is about people: passionate individuals whose talent, dedication and innovation make the specialty-equipment industry the exciting $327-billion powerhouse that it is. There are, of course, standouts among the crowd—those who create smart new products, build spectacular project vehicles and raise the bar for trade professionals through their service and achievements. Throughout Show Week, SEMA spotlights such individuals through a series of awards programs. The following pages recap the Show’s numerous awardees, from those announced at the Industry Honors ceremonies, Thursday night, November 6, to the many other awards bestowed throughout SEMA Week. “SEMA proudly congratulates all our 2025 SEMA…

SEMA Education continues to be one of the Show’s most valuable features, giving attendees the chance to deepen their knowledge, gain practical insights and elevate their business practices through sessions led by top industry experts. With courses spanning eight core tracks, plus three partner tracks from Inter-Industry Conference on Auto Collision Repair (I-CAR), Society of Collision Repair Specialists (SCRS) and Tire Industry Association (TIA), there truly was something for every professional looking to sharpen their edge. SEMA Education relocated to the North Hall meeting rooms in 2025, making it easier to access from anywhere in the Las Vegas Convention Center. According to Gary Vigil, SEMA’s senior manager of professional development, “The strong content coupled with the new centralized location resulted in large numbers of attendees taking advantage of this valuable…

NO MATTER HOW CONVENIENT THE DIGITAL WORLD CONTINUALLY BECOMES, CUSTOMERS AND MERCHANTS ALIKE ARE ALWAYS LOOKING FOR THE NEXT BIG CONVENIENCE… Increasing numbers of online merchants are discovering they can expand their customer base by a healthy percentage when they add a “buy-now/pay-later” (BNPL) option for their customers. The financing option—currently offered by numerous payment providers—enables a customer to purchase an item with just a bit of money down and then pay off the rest, typically in three to seven additional payments. While relatively new, a surprising 15% of U.S. customers used BNPL in 2024, according to a 2025 Motley Fool Money report released May 2025 (fool.com/money/research). Moreover, 58% of those customers said the BNPL option—often used by people who either don’t qualify for credit cards or who use the…

Aftermarket companies drive the industry forward with their innovative ingenuity. By directing their out-of-the-box thinking toward creating new parts and tools, they expand the market into different avenues, making it diverse, strong and awesome. SEMA celebrates this innovation and highlights the greatest strides made at the 2025 SEMA Show with the New Product Awards. These new products are divided into 15 categories and are judged for their innovation, manufacturing quality, consumer appeal, marketability and even packaging. These products will go on to shape the aftermarket landscape and, hopefully, inspire new, creative and practical parts and accessories while continuing to drive ingenuity. For now, however, here are the 15 New Product Award category winners. CATEGORY: BEST CAR CARE & PROTECTION PRODUCT WINNER NGENCO USA–PPS NGENCO PAINT PROTECTION SPRAY NGenco Peelable Paint Protection…

Adam’s Polishes Adam’s Cordless Handheld Mini Air Cannon Ultra-powerful, compact blower uses a 20V, 5.0Ah lithium-ion battery, delivering a staggering 80,000 RPM and 160 MPH of pure drying power. Say goodbye to water spots and scratches—this high-velocity air cannon blasts away moisture from grilles, wheels, engine bays and tight crevices with precision and ease—making every detail job faster. PN: MAC1069 adamspolishes.com Current Electric Vehicles CL8 Current Labs 8-PDU The CL8 is a rugged eight-channel solid-state PDU that matches the AEM PDU-8 in size, connector and CAN protocol—at half the price with improved thermal performance. In Input mode, it adds assignable logic, PWM, delays, breakers and more. With 4x10A + 4x20A channels, it replaces relays/fuses and is configurable via the desktop app. current-la.com Bartec TPMS Bartec 365 Bartec 365 is the…

FROM JUNE 1, 2025 TO OCTOBER 31, 2025 ADVERTISING/MARKETING AGENCY The Charis Culture work.thecharisculture.com Deftly Loud deftlyloud.io  DriveShop driveshop.com  Larry Erickson Design Marcosm LLC  Natalie Simon LLC Otey White & Associates oteywhite.com Parthenon Pictures LLC Parthenon-Pictures.com  PRS Expert prsexpert.com Shop Dog Marketing shopdogmarketing.com  TX Media txmedia.org ASSOCIATION A Race Against Blindness araceagainstblindness.org D.R.E.A. Racing drearacing.com  Federation Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA) fia.com Guangzhou Sonsang Automobile Accessories Co. Ltd. gzsonsang.com Smoky Mountain Firefighter’s Foundation smokyfirefighters.org  Wengyuan Henghui Chemical Coating Co. Ltd. mingjupaint.com CAR DEALER Aces Auto Sales acesautosale.com  Action Motorcars LLC action-autos.com  Bell Built LLC bellbuilttrucks.com Chuck Hutton Toyota chuckhuttontoyota.com Classic Cars World LLC classiccarworldllc.com Cloninger Automotive justbetterauto.com Desert Oasis Auto Group LLC desertoasisauto.com Don Pierson Ford-Lincoln Inc. donpiersonford.net Go Big Autos LLC gobigautos.com JE Classics Automotive jeclassicsauto.com  Kind Auto Service International kindoauto.com Rave Auto Sales…

Throughout four dynamic days in Las Vegas, November 4–7, the annual SEMA Show reiterated its role as the automotive aftermarket’s premier business event. With 150,000 industry professionals, 2,300 exhibiting brands—including 500 first-time participants—and media from 140 countries gathering at the Las Vegas Convention Center (LVCC), the 2025 Show once again delivered an unequaled, concentrated environment for innovation, collaboration and growth. “The SEMA Show stands as the global hub for automotive innovation and commerce,” said SEMA CEO Mike Spagnola. “It brings together leaders and visionaries to shape strategies that will define the future of mobility and aftermarket growth worldwide.” Consumer spending on aftermarket accessories reached $52.65 billion in 2024, underscoring the vibrancy of an industry contributing an estimated $337 billion annually to the U.S. economy while supporting more than 1.3 million…

Discerning emerging trends isn’t always easy. New concepts and innovations sometimes require reading between the lines to understand their full significance. At an event like the SEMA Show, you can find thousands of ideas throughout the Las Vegas Convention Center, many representing underlying themes birthed at the Show. That’s the beauty of SEMA. It’s so grand and diverse in scope that it offers multiple perspectives on the trends sweeping the industry. Innovative builds, inventive marketing strategies, new product designs—these are just some of the trend indicators you might pick up on. But the Show’s breadth and excitement can also pull you in multiple directions. It’s sometimes hard to take it all in. In case you missed some of the noteworthy trends hitting the 2025 Show floor, we have you covered.…

STATE UPDATE NORTH CAROLINA—RIGHT-TO-RACE: The North Carolina General Assembly passed HB 926, a bill that protects racetracks from nuisance claims, particularly in cases where a motorsports facility has obtained all required permits, approvals and legally established development rights prior to construction and operation. Governor Josh Stein allowed the measure to become law without his signature. The law took effect October 6, 2025. Throughout the legislative process, SEMA and PRI worked closely with Representative Allen Chesser, chair of the House Standing Committee on Regulatory Reform, to demonstrate industry support, develop strategies to move the bill forward, and emphasize its positive impact on racetracks across the state. SEMA and PRI remain committed to advancing similar legislation across the country to ensure that motorsports facilities, manufacturers, service providers and related businesses are protected.…

In 1965, LeRoi “Tex” Smith traveled to Montana to cover a Ford Model T endurance race for Car Craft magazine. “On several weekends during the summer,” he wrote in the February 1966 issue, “T owners gather at towns like Livingston, Bozeman, Joran, Boulder, White Sulphur Springs, etc. to wring the dickens out of their racing iron.” Ford made the Model T from 1908–1927. Today, even the newest of them is almost 100 years old. In 1965, though, the ’15–’27 models popular on these runs were 40–50 years old. So a Model T rally then would have been like a cruise made up of Malaise-era and RADwood cars today. Classics, yes, but not yet ancient. Ancient they may be now, but Model Ts still enjoy a huge enthusiast and collector following.…