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2003 SEMA Automotive Show
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| From tuners to trucks, this year's aftermarket showcase is the stuff of dreams |
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| Updated |
Jun 10, 2004 22:28:59 |
| Rating |
 184 ( 46 +25% ) | | Author | Brian Chee |
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Description:
This is where cars turn into culture. Where sheet metal gets a personality; where engines, previously built to behave, learn about rude manners and uncouth behavior.
This is SEMA. Otherwise known as the 37th annual Specialty Equipment Manufacturers Association trade show, it is an automotive carnival stretching across 2 million square feet of convention space, celebrating the art of sheet metal, iron, combustion and paint. If it transports, it's here, in Vegas, surrounded by sexy models and bathed in luminescent show lights. Since 1967 - '76 in Vegas -- this is where pipe and drum guys have come together and turned your 1990 Chevy Cavalier into a dream come true, sitting right there on the trade show floor.
If you don't like it here, well, you don't like cars. The automakers, of course, love cars and really love it when enterprising gear heads take their cars and turn them into dreams. That's why they come here - to kibosh, to entice and to gain support from the companies and people who do special things to ordinary metal. And judging from this year's unveilings, there are plenty of new vehicles with which car dudes can play, and some that promise to be fun right out of the box.
Toyota
Toyota, for example, is not leaving it up to the aftermarket. They announced a new, sport version of the Corolla, to keep in step with the current craze of compact sporty vehicles. The Corolla XRS is a sport-tuned answer to what consumers are saying about the current version Corolla. According to Toyota, 26% of new Corolla sales were of the S variety. According to Don Esmond, Toyota Motor Sales senior vice president and general manager, the XRS "not only walks the walk, but talks the talk, with a newly tuned version of the 2ZZ dual overhead cam engine and six-speed manual transmission, found in the Celica GT-S and Corolla Matrix XRS." The new vehicle will produce 170 horsepower and 127 lbs of torque. The XRS also features a sport-tuned suspension that includes a front connecting rod damper.
Mitsubishi
Not to be undone, Mitsubishi debuted the Lancer Evolution RS a race and tuner-ready version of the sedan. The Father of Evolution's effort to keep Evo-mo moving forward includes less sheet metal and a limited-slip differential. According to Dan Sims, Mitsubishi Motors of North America design director, "the RS is a Lancer Evolution on a lean diet…ripe for customization." The RS will be priced below $27,000, with an initial sales goal of 700 vehicles.
Honda
Honda also had tuners on their mind - and why not, given the general scope of the SEMA show. New for Honda is an A-Spec performance package to go with its Acura marquee. A-Spec will offer several performance upgrades, including track-tuned shocks, performance brake, alloy wheels and the requisite badge kit and steering wheel.
General Motors
Though General Motors did not debut a youth-oriented tuner sedan, their presence was large at the show. First, they introduced a pickup-style Hummer H2, named SUT and featuring a cargo bed, midgate and window that's similar to the 2004 Envoy XUV. The H2 SUT, at more than 203 inches in length, is longer than the standard H2. Other notable vehicles among the more that 30 displayed by GM included the Saturn ION Red Line, a performance ION that set a new G/Blown Fuel Altered speed record of 212.684 mph. Also on display was perhaps the coolest future vehicle - the Ecotec Lakester. Built in collaboration with GM's Advanced Design Team and the SO-CAL Speed Shop, the Ecotech Lakester features a composite body, urethane tires. It's powered by a 2.0 Ecotec motor, the same engine used in the Saturn ION Red Line, but with an intercooled supercharger instead of the ION's turbo.
Ford
Ford, this year's SEMA sponsor, had enough to display without making any new announcements, though that didn't stop 'em. Ford, in fact, may have made the biggest automaker splash at the show with the news that they are planning to offer three high-performance engines as kits, and a rear-wheel-drive kit for its Focus SVT cars. Ford also debuted a Ranger and Focus hatchback, complete with performance gear all the way around. On display were the new Ford GT, 2005 Ford Mustang concept and 14 customized F-150s. |
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