From everyday products to specialty items, the Internet has changed the way customers research and buy. To meet the needs of the more empowered consumer, businesses need to take advantage of opportunities through the Internet to deliver product messages and drive sales. Whether your company is ready to learn the fundamentals or prepared for focused Internet solutions, take advantage of the 2008 SEMA Internet Symposium on July 25, in Irvine, California.

The SEMA Store is running a series of promotions through the end of August on merchandise from the 2007 SEMA Show.

The current promotion: From July 2 through July 8, the SEMA Store is offering 50% off on all Official 2007 SEMA Show T-Shirts, plus free shipping on orders of $50.00 or more. The shirts are premium-quality, short-sleeve, all-cotton T-shirts. This is the 2007 commemorative Show shirt. Quantities are limited.

For more information, visit www.semastore.com.

Dates and locations for several upcoming SEMA-sponsored shows and activities have been announced. Details are:

>> PAACE Automechanika Mexico, July, 9–11, 2008, Mexico City
>> SEMA Webinar: "Selling Has Nothing To Do With Selling," July 10, 2008
>> 2008 Aftermarket eForum, July 14–16, 2008, Hyatt Regency O'Hare, Chicago
>> SEMA Webinar: "Leverage Your Company's Strengths In A Difficult Market," July 17, 2008
>> SEMA Internet Symposium, July 25, Irvine, California
>> SEMA Installation Banquet & Gala Fundraiser, Friday, July 25, Irvine, California
>> SEMA Show 2008, November 4–7, 2008, Las Vegas

For association-related travel, contact Manya Petropaki (manya.p@travelstoreusa.com) at Travel Store USA, 949/930-9268.

Looking for Some Extra Publicity for Your Industry Event?

Filler for eNews

The 2009 Dodge Ram pickup, expected at dealerships this fall, will get a 4% bump in fuel economy along with a 13% rise in horsepower, according to the Automotive News. The automaker announced the improvements to reporters at a preview of Chrysler’s 2009 lineup near Detroit.

Dodge engineers have rebuilt the Hemi engine, adding variable valve timing, bumping up compression, improving air and fuel flow efficiency, and tweaking the cylinder shutoff system to operate in a wider rpm range. Dodge designers have also improved the Ram’s aerodynamics as an additional fuel-saving measure.

The horsepower increase puts the Ram at 390, which Chrysler claims is best in class. Chrysler officials didn’t release mpg estimates. The 2008 Ram pickup, outfitted with 5.7L engine and automatic transmission, gets 13 mpg city/19 highway, according to EPA estimates.

Dodge also announced that a light-duty, Cummins diesel-powered pickup is scheduled to launch after the 2009 model year, with an expected 25% gain in fuel economy over a conventional gas engine. Chrysler says the Cummins V6 is clean enough for 50-state certification. The automaker also confirmed plans to launch a gas/electric hybrid Ram outfitted with a 5.7L Hemi V8 with cylinder cutoff. The Two Mode system is the fruit of collaboration with General Motors, BMW and Daimler engineers.

As rising gas prices squeeze its fullsize truck sales, Ford Motor Co. is thinking of keeping the popular Ranger around for a little longer, according to sources close to the company’s future product plans.

Bryce G. Hoffman writes in The Detroit News that Ford may tack on another two years to the Ranger's life, continuing its production until 2011, when a new global version of the truck manufactured outside of the United States is expected. Ford is currently scheduled to end Ranger production next year and close the Twin Cities Assembly Plant in St. Paul, Minnesota, where the compact pickup is built.

Debuting in 1982 as a 1983 model, the Ranger is the most fuel-efficient compact pickup on the market today, getting 21 mpg city and 26 mpg highway. Ford sold 36,421 Rangers by June of this year, a 2.3% increase over the same period last year, in stark contrast to the 18.7% beating that its fullsize F-series trucks have taken.

One downside to the Ranger rethink, for enthusiasts anyway, is an indefinite delay for the rumored high-performance F-150 SVT Raptor. The Hemi-fighter 6.2L V8 “Boss” engine is likely to be another casualty.

A Ford spokesman could not confirm the plans for The Detroit News.

Last year, truck enthusiasts who own Rangers spent more than $2,100 on specialty-equipment parts for their trucks. The top components purchased included high-flow air filter replacements, performance tires, custom wheels, bed liners (spray-in and/or drop-in) and exhaust kits.

For more specialty-equipment market research, please visit www.sema.org/research.

Typically characterized for making appearance-focused purchases, the urban-lifestyle enthusiast is now expanding into the performance market as well, indicating that these days beauty alone doesn’t cut it.

Although their performance modifications have yet to include products like high-dollar turbo kits, urban consumers are embracing luxury by exploring the different avenues in which performance can affect their rides. The number of urban-lifestyle enthusiasts who say they modify their rides to increase performance jumped 35% over the past two years, according to SEMA research.

"The urban market continues to embrace an increasing number of performance-based modifications,” SEMA Market Research Analyst Zack Krelle states. “At the same time, however, consumers are balancing their decisions while keeping an eye on fuel prices. At a recent SEMA-hosted focus panel, enthusiasts made it clear that fuel prices impact their buying habits and they are warming up to the notion of paying more for parts that have either no effect or an increase in fuel efficiency while offering the same performance benefits."

The urban market is also redefining itself by adopting features of the sport-compact market, with some enthusiasts leaning towards the Japanese VIP style—an aggressive take on premium luxury sedans. The Americanized VIP market segment relies heavily on trends found in Japan, but has also incorporated a high-end European luxury following. SEMA research reveals that 57% of urban-lifestyle hobbyists have an interest in VIP cars.

Overall, the urban-lifestyle market remains loyal to its roots. Custom wheels and audio systems are the top customizations, but there is no doubt that performance products are gaining a presence. Even as 20-inch-plus-size wheels remain the defining modification trend, performance parts come into play as more urban enthusiasts continue to learn that engine modifications, such as performance exhausts and air filters, help restore horsepower often robbed by these super-size wheels.

“The urban market, which at one point was primarily concerned with aesthetic modifications, is now beginning to embrace performance as well,” said Brian Scotto, executive editor for the urban-lifestyle magazine RIDES. “Sure, rims are still the main focus, but now you see our audience putting on exhausts and other power mods.”

Scotto notes that the urban-lifestyle Donk sub-segment has embraced performance even further, similar to modifications seen within the musclecar market.

“We’re starting to see everything from simple engine tweaks to crate motors and forced induction surface in cars that would be classified as part of the urban scene,” Scotto remarked.

To read the full report on the urban-lifestyle market, click here.

For more original SEMA market research, visit www.sema.org/research.

SEMA is hosting a CEO-Leadership Roundtable event to discuss a new forecasting study being developed by the Center for Automotive Research. Part one of the study focuses on trends in automotive electronic systems, trends toward reduced accessory content at the OEM level, length and volume in vehicle runs and the aftermarket as an enabler for the “connected car.” Topics of Part Two and Part Three include advanced powertrain and consumer trends, respectively.

The SEMA CEO-Leadership Roundtable on Saturday, July 26, 2008, in Irvine, California, will focus on part one of the study. The discussion will be moderated by David Cole, Chairman of Center for Automotive Research, and will include a panel consisting of Paul Brubaker from the Research and Innovative Technology Administration, U.S. Department of Transportation; George Dettloff from SKF USA Inc.; and Brian Smith from the Lexus Division of Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Inc.

CEOs, company presidents and company leaders who are interested in taking part in the event can register by https://sema.org/ceo_roundtable/ceo_roundtable.aspx, before the July 11 deadline. Seating is limited so don’t delay.

The checkered flag for SEMA's inaugural Pinewood Drag Race Sponsored by Fellers and DUB Publishing drops in one month, and if you've been wanting to join the fun but find yourself short on time, consider sponsoring a team.

More than 80 children from Victory Junction Gang Camp and Childhelp, the two charities SEMA is supporting through the fundraising activities of the Installation Banquet & Gala Fundraiser, will help build and race cars sponsored by generous patrons. For a modest fee, a child will build and enter his or her car in the Pinewood Drag Race, held in conjunction with the SEMA Installation Banquet and Gala Fundraiser, prior to the Hall of Fame recognition and fundraising activities. 

CLICK HERE to get involved as a team sponsor!

More than 30 racers are tuning up their pinewood dragsters and filling out the brackets in the event's three classes: Stock, Modified and Unlimited. Some of your industry peers seeking bragging rights include:

STOCK
Cameron Evans, Red Line Synthetic Oil Corp.
Dennis Overholser, HRIA/Las Vegas Rod & Custom
Dennis Overholser, HRIA/Vintage Air Inc.
Alise Miner, SEMA Business Technology Committee
Sam Mandlin, EGGE Machine Company Inc.
Matt Agosta, Steele Rubber Products
Eric Hoffend, Freeman
Ronald DiVincenzo, Cap World
Tony Thacker, NHRA Museum
Bob Johnston, Auto Etc. Neon
Peter MacGillivray, SEMA
Alise Miner, SEMA, Alise and the Postettes
Donnie Eatherly, P&E Distributors Inc.
Tom Brooks, Truckin' Thunder

MODIFIED
Alex Tainsh, TrimParts Inc.
Franco Ganino, Alliant Insurance Services
David Toyota, New Zealand Australian Companies Inc.
Chris Kersting, SEMA
Robert Rice, Cotton Fever
Dan Peterson, Gotta Show Products
Dave Williams, Rampage Products
Joel Ayres, Truck Accessories Group
Bob Price, Prairie Wolf Partners
Joey Granatelli, Granatelli Motor Sports
Brian Breslin, Bowdoin Marketing
John McLeod, Classic Instruments Inc.

UNLIMITED
Eric Hoffend, Freeman
Andy Wadhera, CalTrend Automotive Products
Scott O'Toole, Motor State Distributing
Jerry McNair, CMTC
Jim Cozzie, Zoom Performance Products
Mitch Williams, Pilot Automotive
Mike Spagnola, Street Scene Equipment

Those interested in building a Pinewood Drag Race car with the children from Childhelp can join SEMA for a special trip to The Village of Childhelp West in Beaumont, California, where participants can help the kids sand, paint and assemble cars that will run in the Pinewood Drag Race. Contact Race Director Mike Spagnola at mike@streetsceneeq.com for details.

For further information about the race and its rules, click here.