In April, the SEMA Performance Parts and Accessories Demand Index (PADI) dropped to an all-time low, going from 30 in March to 26 this month. This time last year, the SEMA PADI reading came in at 56 points. In April, 7% of adult American drivers indicated that they had plans to purchase specialty-equipment products sometime within the next three months.


The SEMA PADI dropped to 26 points in April, 30 points less than in April 2008.

The percentage of consumers intending to purchase appearance and accessory products over the next three months, however, showed a slight increase over last month for consumers aged 25 years or older. Overall, 3% of consumers surveyed said they plan to purchase appearance and accessory products. As consumers opt to hold on to their vehicles longer, they are looking to specialty-equipment products to maintain, if not enhance, the appearance of their aging cars and trucks.

About 4% of consumers said that they were likely to purchase wheels, tires and suspension components, while 3% said they were likely to purchase racing and performance products. In both cases, this is a decline from both March purchase intentions and those from this time last year.


About 4% of consumers said that they were likely to purchase wheels, tires and suspension components, while 3% said they were likely to purchase racing and performance products. 4% said they were likely to purchase specialty accessories and appearance products.

Over the last three months, on average, fullsize cars (22%) were the most common target vehicles for enhancement or modification, followed by midsize cars (20%), pickups (13%) and compact cars (11%).


By vehicle type, fullsize and midsize cars were most often targeted for modification by consumers planning to purchase.

When specialty-equipment buyers were asked what form their vehicle would take after customization, this month the most common answer was “general personalization” or restyling (46%), followed by “street performance” (15%) and “off-road” (10%). Fewer consumers planned to perform “restyling” modifications compared to last year, but in several cases they chose a more specific type of modification. This may be attributed to fewer “mainstream” consumers planning specialty-equipment purchases, leaving a higher ratio of “enthusiasts” making purchase plans.


Over the past three months, after restyling, street-performance-, restoration- and offroad-type moderations were most planned. — SEMA Research & Information Center

In April, the SEMA Performance Parts and Accessories Demand Index (PADI) dropped to an all-time low, going from 30 in March to 26 this month. This time last year, the SEMA PADI reading came in at 56 points. In April, 7% of adult American drivers indicated that they had plans to purchase specialty-equipment products sometime within the next three months.


The SEMA PADI dropped to 26 points in April, 30 points less than in April 2008.

The percentage of consumers intending to purchase appearance and accessory products over the next three months, however, showed a slight increase over last month for consumers aged 25 years or older. Overall, 3% of consumers surveyed said they plan to purchase appearance and accessory products. As consumers opt to hold on to their vehicles longer, they are looking to specialty-equipment products to maintain, if not enhance, the appearance of their aging cars and trucks.

About 4% of consumers said that they were likely to purchase wheels, tires and suspension components, while 3% said they were likely to purchase racing and performance products. In both cases, this is a decline from both March purchase intentions and those from this time last year.


About 4% of consumers said that they were likely to purchase wheels, tires and suspension components, while 3% said they were likely to purchase racing and performance products. 4% said they were likely to purchase specialty accessories and appearance products.

Over the last three months, on average, fullsize cars (22%) were the most common target vehicles for enhancement or modification, followed by midsize cars (20%), pickups (13%) and compact cars (11%).


By vehicle type, fullsize and midsize cars were most often targeted for modification by consumers planning to purchase.

When specialty-equipment buyers were asked what form their vehicle would take after customization, this month the most common answer was “general personalization” or restyling (46%), followed by “street performance” (15%) and “off-road” (10%). Fewer consumers planned to perform “restyling” modifications compared to last year, but in several cases they chose a more specific type of modification. This may be attributed to fewer “mainstream” consumers planning specialty-equipment purchases, leaving a higher ratio of “enthusiasts” making purchase plans.


Over the past three months, after restyling, street-performance-, restoration- and offroad-type moderations were most planned. — SEMA Research & Information Center

It’s no secret that specialty-equipment sales declined in 2008 as a result of our economy taking a turn for the worse during the latter half of last year. Despite this market contraction, 37% of SEMA members recently surveyed noted that their company’s sales actually increased in 2008 over 2007.

By market segment, however, this percentage fluctuates quite significantly. Around 54% of companies who say most of their sales go toward the compact-performance niche reported increased sales in 2008, compared to only 23% for those that target the restyling market. When asked about how much sales grew, survey respondents indicated averages between 12%–28% growth over 2007, depending on market niche.


By market niche, SEMA members that target the compact-performance market indicated that 2008 sales were higher than 2007 more often than those that target other market niches.

This year also holds some promise for many surveyed. Around 23%–41% of those surveyed, depending on market niche, said that 2009 will be a better year than 2008. One reason for this growth is the need for continued vehicle personalization by consumers.

"Vehicle 'look' will be very hot. People will be keeping their vehicles longer and will want to put their stamp on whatever they drive, be it bolt-on body panels to stereos, people will want to make the vehicle somehow different from all the others," noted one survey respondent. "Cost of modifications will govern how consumers spend more now than ever," another wrote.

SEMA members can take advantage of the data in the table above in multiple ways, from benchmarking their company’s own sales activity to that of the industry as a whole, to looking at higher-performing niches as potential opportunities for business diversification.

More than 500 survey responses were collected when the survey was administered to SEMA members during the beginning of April. The highest percentage of respondents (37%) indicated that they were manufacturers. How does your business compare to the results presented above? E-mail your response to Ty Michael at tym@sema.org. — SEMA Research & Information Center

It’s no secret that specialty-equipment sales declined in 2008 as a result of our economy taking a turn for the worse during the latter half of last year. Despite this market contraction, 37% of SEMA members recently surveyed noted that their company’s sales actually increased in 2008 over 2007.

By market segment, however, this percentage fluctuates quite significantly. Around 54% of companies who say most of their sales go toward the compact-performance niche reported increased sales in 2008, compared to only 23% for those that target the restyling market. When asked about how much sales grew, survey respondents indicated averages between 12%–28% growth over 2007, depending on market niche.


By market niche, SEMA members that target the compact-performance market indicated that 2008 sales were higher than 2007 more often than those that target other market niches.

This year also holds some promise for many surveyed. Around 23%–41% of those surveyed, depending on market niche, said that 2009 will be a better year than 2008. One reason for this growth is the need for continued vehicle personalization by consumers.

"Vehicle 'look' will be very hot. People will be keeping their vehicles longer and will want to put their stamp on whatever they drive, be it bolt-on body panels to stereos, people will want to make the vehicle somehow different from all the others," noted one survey respondent. "Cost of modifications will govern how consumers spend more now than ever," another wrote.

SEMA members can take advantage of the data in the table above in multiple ways, from benchmarking their company’s own sales activity to that of the industry as a whole, to looking at higher-performing niches as potential opportunities for business diversification.

More than 500 survey responses were collected when the survey was administered to SEMA members during the beginning of April. The highest percentage of respondents (37%) indicated that they were manufacturers. How does your business compare to the results presented above? E-mail your response to Ty Michael at tym@sema.org. — SEMA Research & Information Center

It’s no secret that specialty-equipment sales declined in 2008 as a result of our economy taking a turn for the worse during the latter half of last year. Despite this market contraction, 37% of SEMA members recently surveyed noted that their company’s sales actually increased in 2008 over 2007.

By market segment, however, this percentage fluctuates quite significantly. Around 54% of companies who say most of their sales go toward the compact-performance niche reported increased sales in 2008, compared to only 23% for those that target the restyling market. When asked about how much sales grew, survey respondents indicated averages between 12%–28% growth over 2007, depending on market niche.


By market niche, SEMA members that target the compact-performance market indicated that 2008 sales were higher than 2007 more often than those that target other market niches.

This year also holds some promise for many surveyed. Around 23%–41% of those surveyed, depending on market niche, said that 2009 will be a better year than 2008. One reason for this growth is the need for continued vehicle personalization by consumers.

"Vehicle 'look' will be very hot. People will be keeping their vehicles longer and will want to put their stamp on whatever they drive, be it bolt-on body panels to stereos, people will want to make the vehicle somehow different from all the others," noted one survey respondent. "Cost of modifications will govern how consumers spend more now than ever," another wrote.

SEMA members can take advantage of the data in the table above in multiple ways, from benchmarking their company’s own sales activity to that of the industry as a whole, to looking at higher-performing niches as potential opportunities for business diversification.

More than 500 survey responses were collected when the survey was administered to SEMA members during the beginning of April. The highest percentage of respondents (37%) indicated that they were manufacturers. How does your business compare to the results presented above? E-mail your response to Ty Michael at tym@sema.org. — SEMA Research & Information Center

It’s no secret that specialty-equipment sales declined in 2008 as a result of our economy taking a turn for the worse during the latter half of last year. Despite this market contraction, 37% of SEMA members recently surveyed noted that their company’s sales actually increased in 2008 over 2007.

By market segment, however, this percentage fluctuates quite significantly. Around 54% of companies who say most of their sales go toward the compact-performance niche reported increased sales in 2008, compared to only 23% for those that target the restyling market. When asked about how much sales grew, survey respondents indicated averages between 12%–28% growth over 2007, depending on market niche.


By market niche, SEMA members that target the compact-performance market indicated that 2008 sales were higher than 2007 more often than those that target other market niches.

This year also holds some promise for many surveyed. Around 23%–41% of those surveyed, depending on market niche, said that 2009 will be a better year than 2008. One reason for this growth is the need for continued vehicle personalization by consumers.

"Vehicle 'look' will be very hot. People will be keeping their vehicles longer and will want to put their stamp on whatever they drive, be it bolt-on body panels to stereos, people will want to make the vehicle somehow different from all the others," noted one survey respondent. "Cost of modifications will govern how consumers spend more now than ever," another wrote.

SEMA members can take advantage of the data in the table above in multiple ways, from benchmarking their company’s own sales activity to that of the industry as a whole, to looking at higher-performing niches as potential opportunities for business diversification.

More than 500 survey responses were collected when the survey was administered to SEMA members during the beginning of April. The highest percentage of respondents (37%) indicated that they were manufacturers. How does your business compare to the results presented above? E-mail your response to Ty Michael at tym@sema.org. — SEMA Research & Information Center

It’s no secret that specialty-equipment sales declined in 2008 as a result of our economy taking a turn for the worse during the latter half of last year. Despite this market contraction, 37% of SEMA members recently surveyed noted that their company’s sales actually increased in 2008 over 2007.

By market segment, however, this percentage fluctuates quite significantly. Around 54% of companies who say most of their sales go toward the compact-performance niche reported increased sales in 2008, compared to only 23% for those that target the restyling market. When asked about how much sales grew, survey respondents indicated averages between 12%–28% growth over 2007, depending on market niche.


By market niche, SEMA members that target the compact-performance market indicated that 2008 sales were higher than 2007 more often than those that target other market niches.

This year also holds some promise for many surveyed. Around 23%–41% of those surveyed, depending on market niche, said that 2009 will be a better year than 2008. One reason for this growth is the need for continued vehicle personalization by consumers.

"Vehicle 'look' will be very hot. People will be keeping their vehicles longer and will want to put their stamp on whatever they drive, be it bolt-on body panels to stereos, people will want to make the vehicle somehow different from all the others," noted one survey respondent. "Cost of modifications will govern how consumers spend more now than ever," another wrote.

SEMA members can take advantage of the data in the table above in multiple ways, from benchmarking their company’s own sales activity to that of the industry as a whole, to looking at higher-performing niches as potential opportunities for business diversification.

More than 500 survey responses were collected when the survey was administered to SEMA members during the beginning of April. The highest percentage of respondents (37%) indicated that they were manufacturers. How does your business compare to the results presented above? E-mail your response to Ty Michael at tym@sema.org. — SEMA Research & Information Center

It’s no secret that specialty-equipment sales declined in 2008 as a result of our economy taking a turn for the worse during the latter half of last year. Despite this market contraction, 37% of SEMA members recently surveyed noted that their company’s sales actually increased in 2008 over 2007.

By market segment, however, this percentage fluctuates quite significantly. Around 54% of companies who say most of their sales go toward the compact-performance niche reported increased sales in 2008, compared to only 23% for those that target the restyling market. When asked about how much sales grew, survey respondents indicated averages between 12%–28% growth over 2007, depending on market niche.


By market niche, SEMA members that target the compact-performance market indicated that 2008 sales were higher than 2007 more often than those that target other market niches.

This year also holds some promise for many surveyed. Around 23%–41% of those surveyed, depending on market niche, said that 2009 will be a better year than 2008. One reason for this growth is the need for continued vehicle personalization by consumers.

"Vehicle 'look' will be very hot. People will be keeping their vehicles longer and will want to put their stamp on whatever they drive, be it bolt-on body panels to stereos, people will want to make the vehicle somehow different from all the others," noted one survey respondent. "Cost of modifications will govern how consumers spend more now than ever," another wrote.

SEMA members can take advantage of the data in the table above in multiple ways, from benchmarking their company’s own sales activity to that of the industry as a whole, to looking at higher-performing niches as potential opportunities for business diversification.

More than 500 survey responses were collected when the survey was administered to SEMA members during the beginning of April. The highest percentage of respondents (37%) indicated that they were manufacturers. How does your business compare to the results presented above? E-mail your response to Ty Michael at tym@sema.org. — SEMA Research & Information Center

It’s no secret that specialty-equipment sales declined in 2008 as a result of our economy taking a turn for the worse during the latter half of last year. Despite this market contraction, 37% of SEMA members recently surveyed noted that their company’s sales actually increased in 2008 over 2007.

By market segment, however, this percentage fluctuates quite significantly. Around 54% of companies who say most of their sales go toward the compact-performance niche reported increased sales in 2008, compared to only 23% for those that target the restyling market. When asked about how much sales grew, survey respondents indicated averages between 12%–28% growth over 2007, depending on market niche.


By market niche, SEMA members that target the compact-performance market indicated that 2008 sales were higher than 2007 more often than those that target other market niches.

This year also holds some promise for many surveyed. Around 23%–41% of those surveyed, depending on market niche, said that 2009 will be a better year than 2008. One reason for this growth is the need for continued vehicle personalization by consumers.

"Vehicle 'look' will be very hot. People will be keeping their vehicles longer and will want to put their stamp on whatever they drive, be it bolt-on body panels to stereos, people will want to make the vehicle somehow different from all the others," noted one survey respondent. "Cost of modifications will govern how consumers spend more now than ever," another wrote.

SEMA members can take advantage of the data in the table above in multiple ways, from benchmarking their company’s own sales activity to that of the industry as a whole, to looking at higher-performing niches as potential opportunities for business diversification.

More than 500 survey responses were collected when the survey was administered to SEMA members during the beginning of April. The highest percentage of respondents (37%) indicated that they were manufacturers. How does your business compare to the results presented above? E-mail your response to Ty Michael at tym@sema.org. — SEMA Research & Information Center

It’s no secret that specialty-equipment sales declined in 2008 as a result of our economy taking a turn for the worse during the latter half of last year. Despite this market contraction, 37% of SEMA members recently surveyed noted that their company’s sales actually increased in 2008 over 2007.

By market segment, however, this percentage fluctuates quite significantly. Around 54% of companies who say most of their sales go toward the compact-performance niche reported increased sales in 2008, compared to only 23% for those that target the restyling market. When asked about how much sales grew, survey respondents indicated averages between 12%–28% growth over 2007, depending on market niche.


By market niche, SEMA members that target the compact-performance market indicated that 2008 sales were higher than 2007 more often than those that target other market niches.

This year also holds some promise for many surveyed. Around 23%–41% of those surveyed, depending on market niche, said that 2009 will be a better year than 2008. One reason for this growth is the need for continued vehicle personalization by consumers.

"Vehicle 'look' will be very hot. People will be keeping their vehicles longer and will want to put their stamp on whatever they drive, be it bolt-on body panels to stereos, people will want to make the vehicle somehow different from all the others," noted one survey respondent. "Cost of modifications will govern how consumers spend more now than ever," another wrote.

SEMA members can take advantage of the data in the table above in multiple ways, from benchmarking their company’s own sales activity to that of the industry as a whole, to looking at higher-performing niches as potential opportunities for business diversification.

More than 500 survey responses were collected when the survey was administered to SEMA members during the beginning of April. The highest percentage of respondents (37%) indicated that they were manufacturers. How does your business compare to the results presented above? E-mail your response to Ty Michael at tym@sema.org. — SEMA Research & Information Center