Hot-Rod Market Trends [1]
Industry stalwarts unanimously agree that the hot-rod market is as healthy as it’s ever been. The economy is stronger than it was at this time last year, and consumers have more discretionary income to spend on their toys, partially due to low fuel prices. Although hot rodding—in the most traditional sense—is predominately embraced by aging enthusiasts, the options are diverse, and getting broader.
“Last year’s Battle of the Builders competition at the SEMA Show represents how healthy the market is,” said Rick Love, Hot Rod Industry Alliance (HRIA) past chairman and executive vice president of Vintage Air. “There were excellent examples of all the different vehicle genres to pick from. Everybody in the hot-rod industry is busy; they have more work than they can do and would like to hire more qualified people.”
Last October, CARB issued a letter recognizing the SEMA Garage Emissions Compliance Center in Diamond Bar, California, as a Certification-Ready Automotive Emissions Testing Laboratory, making it possible for SEMA to assist members in all aspects of securing CARB and federal EPA emissions compliance.
A lot has happened since December, when we first learned of a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposal that would effectively outlaw conversion of street cars into race cars. We filed opposition comments later that month. We then met with agency officials in January asking the EPA to reconsider their position. When that failed, we alerted the public in February.
While e-mail spammers are about as popular as a carnival barker at a wedding, too many of us are being unfairly characterized as spammers simply because our e-mails “look like” spam.
Cap World is a SEMA-member company specializing in truck caps, truck trailers and other truck accessories—or, as the company’s website proclaims, “everything but the truck.” Alongside a recent 30-year anniversary milestone came recognition from the Light Truck Accessory Alliance (LTAA), as Cap World was named Retailer of the Year for 2015. Each of those accomplishments explains how Cap World has stood out as a retail success story.
If you ask average Americans what they love about auto racing, you’ll find a striking similarity in the responses: speed, teamwork and passion. Since the invention of the automobile, Americans have been converting their street vehicles into race cars. Powered by this passion, most professional motorsports leagues, including NASCAR, were founded on that concept. More than a century later, the very core of this tradition is under attack.
SEMA Ignited, conceived as a way for SEMA Show exhibitors to extend their brands to a consumer audience, kicked off Friday night after the weeklong, trade-only SEMA Show ended. The Ignited event, situated just a short walk from the Las Vegas Convention Center, gave thousands of car enthusiasts a magical opportunity to view singular automotive creations on display at the world-famous SEMA Show.