NEWS NUGGETS

COUNTDOWN TO 1: 2008 POWERade SEASON COMES TO AN END IN POMONA: As the sun set through the hazy, smoke-filled skies over Pomona, California, all four champions in the NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series posed for photos near the winner’s circle at the Auto Club NHRA Finals. Though one had been crowned champion two weeks previous, three of the four championship trophies were not awarded until the final event of the season, with one coming Saturday following qualifying and the other two during eliminations the next day.

But when all was said and done, it was Top Fuel pilot Tony Schumacher, Funny Car driver Cruz Pedregon, Pro Stock defending champion Jeg Coughlin and Pro Stock Motorcycle sophomore Eddie Krawiec who stood in the world championship winner’s circle.

Schumacher dominated the Top Fuel class all season. His 15 wins in 18 final round appearances, coupled with his 76 round wins and nine No. 1 qualifiers, helped the U.S. Army dragster pilot clinch his fifth straight POWERade series world championship and sixth overall in Las Vegas, nearly two weeks before the final race of the season in Pomona. While Schumacher mowed through the field in the Top Fuel category, the Funny Car class saw one of the tightest battles for the world championship, with three drivers in contention for the trophy heading into eliminations Sunday.

All three drivers, Pedregon, Wilkerson and Hight, sat on the same side of the ladder and in complete control of their own destiny. When Wilkerson fell to John Force in the first round of eliminations and Pedregon drove past Jerry Toliver to move on to the second round, the battle became one between Pedregon and Hight, with Hight matched up first round against Cruz’s brother and teammate, Tony Pedregon. Tony proved too much for Hight, driving past the Auto Club/L.A. Dodgers Ford Mustang and Cruz Pedregon clinched his second world championship, 16 years since his last.

In Pro Stock, Jeg Couglin entered the event with the championship all but clinched. Coughlin needed to simply qualify for the event to pick up his second consecutive and fourth overall world championship in the class. Coughlin made the field in the lucky No. 13 spot to clinch his championship Saturday evening.

Pro Stock Motorcycle saw its champion crowned in the semifinals of eliminations after defending world champion Matt Smith lost in the second round. Screamin’ Eagle Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson rider Eddie Krawiec clinched his first world championship with a semifinal win over teammate Andrew Hines. Krawiec also became only the second driver in NHRA history to win a world championship without winning a single national event the entire year (Rob Bruins, Top Fuel, 1979). 

FUNNY CAR DRIVER NEFF WINS AUTO CLUB ROAD TO THE FUTURE AWARD: Former crew chief-turned Funny Car driver Mike Neff won the $20,000 Automobile Club of Southern California Road to the Future Award, which recognizes NHRA’s rookie of the year. A panel of the nation’s most prominent motorsports journalists selected Neff as the top performing rookie in 2008. Neff had three runner-up finishes and two No. 1 qualifiers this season behind the wheel of his Old Spice Ford Mustang. Neff was also the only rookie driver who qualified for the Countdown to 1 playoffs.

It was the third time in the last four years that a driver from John Force Racing has won the award as Neff joins 2007 winner Ashley Force and ’05 winner Robert Hight. Other nominees of the prestigious award included Funny Car driver Bob Tasca, Top Fuel pilot Steve Torrence, Pro Stock driver Rickie Jones and Pro Stock Motorcycle rider Junior Pippin. Neff received the award at the 2008 NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series awards ceremony Monday at the Hilton Los Angeles/Universal City.

SCHUMACHER, FORCE, JOHNSON, HINES CREWS WIN FULL THROTTLE PIT CREW CHALLENGE: The NHRA Full Throttle Pit Crew Challenge season awards, which recognize the most consistently quick teams during qualifying throughout the year, were presented Monday during the NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series awards ceremony Monday at the Hilton Los Angeles/Universal City.

In Top Fuel, Tony Schumacher’s U.S. Army team, led by crew chief Alan Johnson, picked up the award, along with $25,000. Ashley Force’s Castrol GTX Ford Mustang team ($25,000) led by Dean Antonelli picked up the award in Funny Car, Kurt Johnson’s ACDelco Chevy Cobalt team ($15,000) grabbed the award in Pro Stock and Andrew Hines’ Screamin’ Eagle Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson team ($5,000) led by Byron and Matt Hines picked up the award in Pro Stock Motorcycle.

O’REILLY ADDS WINTERNATIONALS TO NHRA TITLE SPONSORSHIPS: Beginning in 2009, O’Reilly Auto Parts, which recently acquired Checker, Schuck’s, Kragen and Murray’s, will be the title sponsor of the Kragen O’Reilly NHRA Winternationals in Pomona, February 5–8. The Kragen O’Reilly NHRA Winternationals, NHRA’s traditional season-opening race, will be held at the Southern California home of drag racing, Auto Club Raceway at Pomona, and will mark the official beginning of the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series era.

In addition, O’Reilly continues its existing title sponsorships in Dallas (O’Reilly Super Start Batteries NHRA Fall Nationals), Topeka, Kansas (O’Reilly NHRA Summer Nationals), Madison, Illinois (O’Reilly NHRA Midwest Nationals), Houston (O’Reilly NHRA Spring Nationals) and Memphis (O’Reilly NHRA Mid-South Nationals).

HE SAID, SHE SAID

GETTING A WALLY, ANY WAY YOU CAN: Eddie Krawiec on winning the world championship in Pro Stock Motorcycle before winning his first national event: "I haven’t had a chance to get my first (event) Wally yet, but I’ve got a big gold Wally (for winning the championship). I do have a $75,000 check here, though, so if someone wants to sell a Wally, I could buy one.”

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

5: The number of Top Fuel championships the famed U.S. Army dragster tuned by Alan Johnson and driven by Tony Schumacher have won. Johnson announced plans to start up his own two-car, Top Fuel/Funny Car team for the 2009 season.

DID YOU KNOW…

…that 17 of the last 18 Funny Car world championship has been held by either a Force or a Pedregon (John Force '90–’91, ’93–2002, 2004, 2006; Cruz Pedregon '92, 2008; Tony Pedregon 2003, 2007), with Gary Scelzi breaking the trend in 2005.

Haynes Manuals Inc. hired Gray Hendricks as national accounts manager. This addition will help the company provide additional focus and sales support to all Haynes customers throughout North America. Hendricks will be responsible for calling on national retail automotive chain stores. He was most recently the divisional merchandise manager in the merchandising department of CSK Auto where he was in charge of the back room, repair-parts buyers for the company. Gray was with CSK for 24 years and held many positions in the CSK organization.

Freedom Grill’s Vice President of Marketing Steve Glor has made it to the final five in the Tostitos Beat My Tailgate contest. Glor’s truck, “The Carnivore,” opens up into a complete sports bar and grill with the push of a button. This extreme tailgating truck has bedsides that unfold into wood countertops, four flat screen TVs in the bed, two satellite receivers and two Freedom Grills (one in the front and one in the back). The truck will be judged on overall display of team or school pride, theme of tailgating display and presentation of ideas. For more on the contest, visit  www.beatmytailgate.com/Home.aspx.

The latest edition of the 2009 Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) Pro Racing Rulebook (PRR), containing regulations for the SCCA World Challenge, SCCA Playboy Mazda MX-5 Cup and Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup, is now available on the SCCA Pro Racing website at www.sccapro.com. The PRR has undergone major revisions for 2009. In addition to the new World Challenge Touring Car rules, which have been reworked to cut costs for teams, each section has undergone an extensive review by the SCCA Pro Racing technical department to provide clear and concise language.

Gale Banks Engineering will be honored with a special exhibit at the Wally Parks NHRA Motorsports Museum on Wednesday, December 3, at 3:00 p.m. A number of Banks’ record-setting machines and engines will be on display, including the world’s first diesel road-racing pickup GMC Sierra, the Dodge Sidewinder Dakota and Chevrolet Sidewinder S-10, and the El Mirage dry lakes modified ’53 Studebaker. The exhibit will run through September 2009. 

Adam’s Polishes Inc. announced the launch of its newest dealer, Adam’s Hawaii & Platinum Detailing. Adam’s Hawaii recently launched its complete line of Adam’s detailing products at Ferrari, Audi and Maserati dealerships of Hawaii, Ace Hardware Hawaii and at the flagship store, Adam’s Hawaii & Platinum Detailing. Co-owners of Adam’s Hawaii—Roy Nishimura and Alex Lee—have also created partnerships with Servo Toyota, the Honolulu Fire Department and the Hawaii State Fire Department.

Ultra Axle LLC, an affiliate company of Omix-Ada Inc., has acquired the assets of Alloy USA Inc. and Precision Gear Inc. in a liquidation process. Ultra Axle is currently in the process of moving the Alloy Axle and Precision Gear on-hand inventory to Georgia and upon taking an inventory count, the entire Alloy USA and Precision Gear current inventory will be available for immediate purchase.

The Marx Group received four awards in the 2008 Automotive Communication Awards (ACA) competition. The awards were presented to The Marx Group for work done on behalf of AAEQ Manufacturers and Recyclers.  In the Business-to-Consumer category, The Marx Group received an award for the article “Going Green is Great for the Bottom Line” and another for the AAEQ website at www.AAEQ.net. In the Business-to-Business category, The Marx Group received an award for its ad campaign to a distribution/retail audience titled “Hard to Find Parts” and one for “Ad - Best Use of Graphic” for its "AAEQ Box of Chocolate" ad. Designed to applaud companies/agencies that provide automotive information through outstanding advertising, marketing and PR efforts, the Automotive Communication Awards are sponsored by the Women’s Board and supported by the Automotive Communication Council. The awards were presented during the Car Care Council Women’s Board reception at AAPEX 2008 in Las Vegas.

 
Click on the logo to visit TORA's website.

TORA Booth Draws a Crowd While Raising Money for Victory Junction Gang Camp

The 2008 TORA SEMA Show booth in South Hall featured this vehicle from Dingmaster.


Cap-it International's vehicle on display.

A.R.E. made a $1,000 donation to Victory Junction Gang Camp to display their vehicle.

“I cannot remember any time in recent history that our booth had such a constant stream of traffic,” said TORA Chairman Ron DiVincenzo. “The quality and diversity of our three display vehicles offered something for literally everyone in the light-truck accessories market, from off-road to high-tech electronics to a packaged commercial truck that looks as good as it performs. I cannot thank the owners enough. They really raised the bar on the quality of our booth, all the while making a tremendous donation to Victory Junction Gang Camp. I could not be more pleased.”

Each vehicle represents a $1,000 donation made to Victory Junction Gang Camp on behalf of the vehicle owner. A total of $3,000 was raised for the camp that serves kids with chronic medical conditions or serious illnesses.

“I must also thank our Select Committee members,” said DiVincenzo. “Each one volunteered time during a busy Show schedule to make sure the booth was staffed at all times. The vehicles drew them in, and our Select Committee was there to deliver the message about TORA member benefits.”

TORA Honors Winners of Its Council Awards at the 2008 SEMA Show

• 2008 Best New Product Under $500: Undercover, Swingcase

• 2008 Best New Product Over $500: Roll-N-Lock, E series

• 2008 Retailer of the Year Award: John Chamberlaine, Action Group of Companies

• 2008 TORA Hall of Fame Award: Anne Johnson, Keystone Automotive

• 2008 TORA Chairman’s Award: Todd Yeoman, American Technology Components

• 2008 Best POP Display Award: Agri-cover, EZ Retriever/Stocking Display

• 2008 Ford Styling Awards Best Use of Accessories on a Ford Truck/SUV (presented by Ford): Kelderman Air Suspension

• 2008 Ford Styling Awards Best Use of Accessories on a Ford Truck/SUV (presented by Ford): Westin Automotive Products

TORA Column in SEMA Member News

Read TORA's column featured in the November/December issue of SEMA Member News by clicking here.

For more information about TORA, contact Jim Skelly at jimsk@sema.org.

Click on the logo to visit ARMO's website.

ARMO Honors Winners of Its Council Awards at the 2008 SEMA Show

• Hall of Fame Award: Dennis Gage, Bradley David Productions/"My Classic Car"

• Hall of Fame Award: Randy Shannon, Source Interlink Media

• Hall of Fame Award: Steve Ames, Ames Performance Enterprises

• Person of the Year Award: Ernie Silvers, Egge Machine Co. Inc.
  

• Business of the Year Award: Carlisle Events

• Restoration Vehicle of the Year Award: 1958 Chrysler New Yorker Convertible; owned by Tom Gerrard; restored by American Classic Auto Restoration Inc.

New products shown and judged at Spring Carlisle:

• Original Restoration Category: 1969 Yenko Camaro Continuation Series, Classic Automotive Restoration Specialists 

• Resto Mod Category: Roller-Hoop Body Rotation System, DSK Auto Products LLC, Doug Kielian

ARMO Column in SEMA Member News

Read ARMO's column featured in the November/December issue of SEMA Member News by clicking here.

Click on the logo to visit HRIA's website.

HRIA Honors Winners of Its Council Awards at the 2008 SEMA Show

• Hall of Fame Award: Debbie Walls, Lokar Performance Products
  

• Hall of Fame Award: George Lane, Motor State Distributing

• Business of the Year Award: Speedway Motors

• Industry Recognition of an Individual Award: Bret Voelkel, Air Ride Technologies
  

HRIA Column in SEMA Member News

Read HRIA's column featured in the November/December issue of SEMA Member News by clicking here.

For more information about HRIA, contact Jan Desma at jand@sema.org.

Click on the logo to visit MPMC's website.

MPMC Awards Winners of Its Council Awards at the 2008 SEMA Show

• MPMC Media Person of the Year Award: Ed Zinke, Source Interlink Media

Media Registers for Annual MPMC Media Trade Conference

Media who wish to attend the 12th annual MPMC Media Trade Conference may register online now at www.sema.org/media. The MPMC Media Trade Conference provides media attendees the opportunity to have up to 42 individual, 30-minute, face-to-face meetings with various manufacturers to gather technical and new-product content.

During the registration process, attendees are asked to prioritize each of the 100 exhibiting manufacturers as “must meet with,” “okay to meet with” or “do not wish to meet with.” Following the close of registration on December 5, individualized schedules are produced for each attendee and exhibitor, utilizing the prioritizations as much as possible. 

The MPMC Media Trade Conference is widely regarded by both manufacturers and media as a “must attend” event. Now in its 12th consecutive year, the conference has grown to an extent that the number of exhibitor spots is capped at 100, due to time and space constraints. Even so, many media attendees report that they gather enough editorial and technical content in three days to last them an entire 12 months.

Likewise, exhibiting manufacturers acknowledge that the Media Trade Conference gives them exposure to media that is not available at any other venue. Only MPMC member manufacturers are eligible to apply for an exhibitor suite, making the conference a true council member benefit.

MPMC Column in SEMA Member News

Click on the logo to visit MRC's website.

MRC Project Brainstorming Session at the PRI Show
 
MRC will be conducting a Project Brainstorming Session at the Rosen Plaza Hotel on Wednesday, December 10, 2008, 11:30 a.m.–3:30 p.m. Lunch will be served. All reps are welcome and encouraged to participate in this open forum and address issues faced daily by reps in all segments of the automotive industry. Bring your ideas and suggestions to raise the bar for all manufacturers reps. So we can accommodate attendees with food and beverage, we ask that you take a moment and contact Staci Bostock at 909/396-0289 x104 or stacib@sema.org by December 1, 2008.
 
Manufacturers Seeking Rep List Now Available

Manufacturers’ representatives are encouraged to contact Staci Bostock at stacib@sema.org to request the Manufacturers Seeking Rep List, which is available at no cost. Compiled using information collected from manufacturers prior to the 2008 SEMA Show, the listing contains details on manufacturers currently seeking the services of manufacturers’ representatives along with the lines available and company contact information. The list was originally available in the Manufacturers’ Representatives Council (MRC) Rep Center during the week of the 2008 SEMA Show.

MRC Honors Winners of Its Council Awards at the 2008 SEMA Show

• Hall of Fame Award: Bill Perry, Bill Perry & Associates

• STAR Award (Sales Team Annual Recognition): Winfield Consumer Products/Husky Liners
  

MRC Column in SEMA Member News

Read MRC's column featured in the November/December issue of SEMA Member News by clicking here.

For information about MRC, contact Staci Bostock at stacib@sema.org.

Click on the logo to visit PRO's website.

PRO Honors Winners of Its Council Awards at the 2008 SEMA Show

• Jim Borre Lifetime Achievement Award: Bob Nardine, Bob’s Top Shop

• Restyler of the Year: Diana Braschler, Dealer Source Ltd.

• Truck Accessory Specialist of the Year: Charlie Pruitt, Auto & Truck Restylers

• Trimmer of the Year: Eric Browner, Auto Mat Co.

PRO Business Development Guidebooks Now On Sale

In today’s ever-changing marketplace, staying ahead of the competition is more important and challenging than ever. To be successful, you not only need an effective business strategy, but also the tools and resources to help your company excel and stand out from the pack. The PRO Business Development Guidebook is your handy reference guide.

Beginning with an overview of the importance of having a business plan—including tips on how to develop a business plan and the many purposes it can serve—the manual offers chapter-by-chapter strategies for making your business a success. From understanding the basics of business finance and the importance of quality and service and how to make them hallmarks of your business to building knowledge and skills among your employees to branding your restyling business as a market leader, the guidebook offers information critical to the day-to-day and long-term operation of your business.

Whether you’re starting your own restyling business or already own one—be it mobile or brick and mortar—you’ll find the answers that you’ve been looking for in the guidebook. PRO Council members contributed much of the information contained in the guidebook, drawing on their experience and knowledge to present a valuable business tool.

Click here to download the business guidebook order form, or contact Jim Skelly at jimsk@sema.org.

PRO Column in SEMA Member News

Read PRO's column featured in the November/December issue of SEMA Member News by clicking here.

For information about PRO, contact Jim Skelly at jimsk@sema.org.

Click on the logo to visit SPC's website.

Find Out Where the Performance Market Is Headed

You are invited to attend SEMA’s Street Performance Council Jobber/Retailer Focus Panel during the PRI Trade Show. The panel will be held on Friday, December 12, 2008, from 7:30 a.m.–9:00 a.m., at the Orange County Convention Center, meeting room S230F on the third level.

To RSVP or if you have any questions about the Focus Panel, contact Paul Moritz at 909/396-0289, ext. 112 or paulm@sema.org.

SPC Honors Winners of Its Council Awards at the 2008 SEMA Show

Filler for eNews

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

 SEMA Webinar, "Fast Track Product Development with 3-D Design Technology," November 20, 2008 10:00 a.m. (PDT)
SEMA Webinar, "How to Make Money with the Right Social Media Tools," December 4, 2008 10:00 a.m. (PDT)
SEMA MRC Project Brainstorming Session, December 10, 2008 11:30 a.m.–3:30 p.m., Orlando, Florida
SEMA Webinar, "Telematics: Vehicle Technology that Will Change Your Business," December 11, 2008 10:00 a.m. (PDT)
SPC Jobber/Retailer Focus Panel, December 12, 2008 7:30 a.m.–9:00 a.m., Orlando, Florida
SEMA MPMC Media Trade Conference, January 20–22, 2009, El Segundo, California
SEMA Technical Skills & Training Conference, March 27–28, 2009, Orlando, Florida
PAACE Automechanika Mexico, July 15–17, 2009, Mexico City
SEMA Show, November 3–6, 2009, Las Vegas, Nevada

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?
Publicize your events through the SEMA Online Calendar of Events located at www.sema.org/calendar. The calendar is stocked with information on events taking place throughout the year, broken down by month. Examples of events featured in the calendar include consumer shows and club events, educational and training workshops, conventions and trade shows, races and more.

To submit your event details for the calendar, e-mail company name and the date(s), location and name of the event to Shirley Presecan at shirleyp@sema.org.

In general, consumers are feeling less optimistic about purchasing specialty equipment in the coming months, according the October SEMA PADI, but this does not apply to all age groups.

The SEMA Performance Parts and Accessories Demand Index (PADI) fell 12 points, or 26%, going from 48 in September to 36 in October. However, by age, 25–44-year-old consumers were the only group to actually hold steady as far as overall specialty-equipment purchase plans from September to October.

Analysis of J.D. Power and Associates' 2008 Initial Quality Study data reveals that 25–44-year-old consumers are also more likely to purchase import vehicles over domestic. The study also shows that import-vehicle buyers earn a higher median household income, possibly making them more likely to purchase specialty equipment over the next few months.

Consumers planning to purchase import vehicles are also feeling more confident about the economy in general, according to CNW’s report on confidence of import vs. domestic new vehicle intenders. While domestic-vehicle intenders are starting to feel less confident about their economic standing, according to CNW’s October survey, potential import-vehicle buyers are growing more confident, as shown by the chart below.

The specialty-equipment industry typically experiences seasonal fluctuations in sales, and the anticipated consumer demand illustrated by the July–September SEMA PADI increase demonstrates the seasonality of the industry. Last year, the PADI began to decline in September after the April–August growth period.

This latest SEMA PADI index value translates to around 10% of adult U.S. drivers (or approximately 10-plus million households) indicating that they have plans to purchase specialty-equipment products sometime within the next three months.

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

Each year for the last several years, SEMA has conducted an industry consumer study based on the subscribers to automotive enthusiast magazines. The following is a summary of key factors found by comparing trends in the data for the 2005, 2006 and 2007 Automotive Lifestyle Surveys. SEMA has been conducting these surveys on an annual basis in partnership with major automotive enthusiast magazine publishers. 

• The aging of performance parts and accessory buyers is a trend to watch. The data shows respondents who were age 40–51 grew from 17% of the total in 2005, to 20% in 2006, to 23% in 2007. Significantly more respondents were ages 59–65 than U.S. licensed drivers. The number of respondents who are retired has also increased significantly over the three years.

• We did a snapshot profile of respondents based on the vehicle they owned from 2007 data. Owners of small and midsize cars were younger, had a lower household income and primarily some college education. Owners of sports cars were older with a higher household income and spent less on aftermarket parts and accessories. Pickup owners were heavier purchasers of parts and accessories than other vehicles and most had $95,000 or less household income. SUV owners were concentrated in the 31–48 age group, generally had higher than a $95,000 household income and spent less on aftermarket parts and accessories

• “I Personalize/Modify my vehicle to increase performance” (i.e. go faster, etc.) was the most popular reason for purchasing a vehicle in the 2005, 2006 and 2007 surveys, and the percentage of consumers who gave that answer has increased across all three years, suggesting it has increased in importance. “I Personalize/Modify my vehicle to make it more efficient” (i.e. save gas, etc.) dropped from 2005 to 2007, however, these results may no longer be relevant until 2008 data is gathered in light of $4-plus per gallon gas.

• When purchasing parts and accessories, quality, price and warranty remained the top three results across the 2005, 2006 and 2007 surveys, although the data suggests they have dropped in terms of importance across the three years. 

• There are significant differences in what channel consumers use to buy parts and accessories, especially when you separate out the consumers who purchase 1%–50% of all parts through a channel from consumers who purchase 51% or more. For example, the under 24 age group was not the highest when it came to purchasing “any” parts from chain auto parts stores, they were third; however when you look at the age groups that purchase “51% or more” parts from that channel they were number one. There are interesting differences when you compare these results to the chart showing where consumers go for information; automotive magazines are the largest sources of information, yet magazine mail order is the eighth most popular channel.

• 65.9% of total consumers who took the survey reported using the Internet to gather information, and 51.6% reported using the Internet to make a purchase.

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

If you are planning to target the growing population of small and midsize car owners, here is some demographic information that should help. A snapshot of the small and midsize car owner shows the biggest age group is 16 to 30 years old, earning $55,000 per year or less and having some college education. They are moderate purchasers of aftermarket equipment, with 60% spending between $0 and $2,500 per year on accessories and parts. The survey used examples of small and midsize cars, such as the Toyota Corolla and Camry, Honda Civic and Accord and other comparable models.The above references use the “Percentage without ‘Declined’” column in the charts below.

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

Last April, one of the speakers at the SEMA National Education Conference was Alan Beaulieu, a principal of The Institute for Trend Research. His presentation, “SEMA, Planning for Change,” gave attendees a glimpse into the future of the U.S. economy. It is uncanny how much of what he said was right on the money and has unfolded in the months since April.  

Each month his firm issues an update called EcoTrends. The November issue has some interesting insights that may be useful to the specialty-equipment industry.

“Although it remains undeclared by the government, the U.S. recession began in the third quarter of 2008," states the publication. "The downturn will essentially encompass all of 2009. It will be the worst downturn since the early '80s, perhaps even every bit as severe as the early '80s. We don’t see the current business cycle recession shaping up to be anything like the Great Depression in magnitude.

"We are forecasting a 7.2% peak-to-trough decline in the U.S. Industrial Production 12 MMA (12 month moving average) data trend; the 1929–1932 leg of the Depression had the 12 MMA go down 48.1%."

Another publication, Trends Magazine, also builds the case that what we are going through now is nowhere near what the country experienced in 1929:

“More importantly, America’s economy is far bigger, more diversified, more productive, more innovative and more resilient than it was in the '30s or even the '90s. Unlike the 'tight money' and protectionist policies of the Depression Era, the government’s current Wall Street rescue efforts are helping to stabilize our credit system and economy. As a result, the prices of oil and other commodities have topped, interest rates are being lowered and efforts are being made to reinvigorate consumer and investor confidence." 

The EcoTrends report continues: "We think the recovery for the economy at large begins in 2010. Stock prices will partake in the business-cycle ascent. The question that begs to be answered at this juncture is perhaps: 'Will the eventual stock prices recovery be like each of the last two rising trends?'

"If it is going to be that good, the best strategy is to hold on to what you have and simply wait for the market to rebound and recoup all of your losses. Please understand that each of the last two rising trends were abnormally bullish and betting on another abnormality is not prudent, especially in light of the economic changes we see coming at us based on recent economic and political events.

“The Automobile Retail Sales 12 MMT has dropped to 14.169 million units, which means dealers have not seen this low a 12-month sales volume since 1994. The rates of change are clearly negative, and we do not see any signs that the consumer will be coming to the industry’s rescue anytime soon. Expect 2009 to come in 14.6% below 2008.”

Trends Magazine sees things a little different than the authors of EcoTrends.

“The Trends editors expect a sharp, one- to two-quarter slowdown in economic activity, followed by a relatively quick recovery in 2009. The basic economy remains strong, and many opportunities for innovation and profit still remain. Markets have gone down many times in the past, but the general trend remains 'upward and onward.'"

Click here to access the SEMA Research & Information Center.

As with all other performance parts and accessories, mobile electronics is all about the consumer. To help SEMA members identify the habits of the mobile-electronics consumer, SEMA conducted a 2007 survey of individuals who subscribe to any of 23 automotive enthusiast magazines. 

Of the responses, SEMA selected those that indicated the respondents had installed or planned to install mobile electronics in their vehicle. The resulting data pool consisted of 2,150 responses. In this case, the responses represent enthusiasts who have selected mobile-electronics products to modify their car or light truck.

The majority, nearly 67% of these individuals, begin modifying their cars or light trucks within the first two months of ownership (both new and used). Other modifications were performed over time, which may be a function of the budget of the vehicle owner.

The survey also explored these enthusiasts' thought process when making a purchase. Specifically, SEMA asked them about the importance of certain factors when they were making their selections.

Today, the number-one factor considered at the time of purchase is quality. More than 86% of automotive enthusiasts ranked quality as very important. Price came in a distant second at 62.5%.

For more original SEMA research, click here.