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About 13% of cars on Mexican roads are used cars imported from the United States. New-car manufacturers and distributors have protested the more than 3 million cars entering Mexico over the past two and a half years, leading Mexico's government to curtail the number of imported cars brought into that market.

These restrictions to allow only 10-year-old vehicles (currently 10- to 15-year-old cars are allowed) will be in place only until January 1, 2009, when the Mexican government is required, under the terms of NAFTA, to begin phasing in the removal of barriers on used cars sold in Mexico. At the beginning of January 2009, used cars 10- to 15-years-old will again be allowed.

By 2019, all used cars will be allowed. New-car imports have been allowed without restriction since 2004.

For more information on the Mexican market, including top-selling vehicles, vehicles most often accessorized, a list of top distributors and details on the Salon de SEMA being held this summer in Mexico City, visit www.sema.org/international or contact Linda Spencer at lindas@sema.org.

Four trade shows occurring over the next several months provide an excellent venue for American companies seeking to grow their overseas business:

-Salão de Acessorios 2008, May 14–18, in São Paulo  (www.salaodeacessorios.com.br/)

-Automechanika Middle East 2008, June 1–3, Dubai, United Arab Emirates (www.automechanikagulf.com)

-PAACE Automechanika (Salon de SEMA section featuring specialty-equipment products) is scheduled for July 9–11 in Mexico City (www.paaceautomechanika.com)

-The biennial Automechanika Germany, September 16–21, in Frankfurt, Germany  (www.automechanika.messefrankfurt.com).

SEMA will exhibit at each of these events and is available to provide members information on all these shows and the respective markets. For more information, contact the websites listed or Linda Spencer at lindas@sema.org. 

For more information on various international markets, visit www.sema.org/international.

SEMA members can realize instant savings by participating in the Specialty Equipment Insurance Alliance (SEIA), a collaboration between SEMA and Driver Alliant Insurance Services. The program provides insurance coverage and risk management solutions to the specialty-equipment industry at the lowest possible cost.

SEIA pairs member companies with proven automotive insurance risk specialists to aggregate the knowledge and buying power for the association's members. Some have recorded four- and five-digit savings.

"We have experienced a significant savings in the thousands," said Lisa Chissus, President of Flex-a-Lite Consolidated and Motorsports Parts Manufacturers Council (MPMC) Chairman. "I was speaking to our distributor, and he was telling me that his savings are more than in the 50s.

"The first year of using the program wasn't just a honeymoon either,” Chissus added. “Bob Corwin (SEIA Program Coordinator) offered us additional savings for the second year. He was able to do all that with our current provider. Talk about bottom line savings."

SEIA's products include property and casualty insurance, as well as employee benefits coverage. For additional information and application forms, click here.

John Buttera, 67, died March 2 after a long bout with cancer. 

John Buttera, who left his stamp on the drag racing world in the '70s by building a series of winning Funny Cars and dragsters, created some of hot rodding's most beautiful street rods of the '80s and '90s, and built the first billet wheels, died March 2 after a long battle with cancer. He was 67.

Buttera began his career in his native Kenosha, Wisconsin, when he teamed with Dennis Rollain to form R&B Chassis. They fielded a very light unblown fuel dragster, but a chance meeting with Mickey Thompson in the staging lanes at the U.S. Nationals in the late '60s led him to move to Southern California, changing his life forever.

After initially working for Thompson on his Ford-powered Land Speed Record streamliner, he built Thompson's blue Mustang Funny Car in which Danny Ongais dominated the 1969 season. He then opened his own chassis shop in Cerritos, California, where he built a radical streamlined dragster for Barry Setzer.

His talents soon led such customers as Don “the Snake” Prudhomme, Tom “the Mongoose” McEwen, Don Schumacher and Shirley Muldowney to his door for dragsters and Funny Cars. He built Schumacher's '70 Indy-winning Funny Car, the Hot Wheels entries of Prudhomme and McEwen, the national-record-setting Braskett & Burgin Vega and many more.

Dragsters, Funny Cars, street rods, motorcycles and even Indy cars have all felt the touch of Buttera's innovation. Known for his exceptional craftsmanship, Buttera was involved in all areas of hot rodding.

Buttera brought the high-tech, billet era to street rodding and was the first to manufacture his own wheels and independent suspensions from machined aluminum. He also did extensive development work for Harley-Davidson motorcycles and entered a stock block-powered car in the Indy 500 for which he received the 1987 Clint Brawner Mechanical Excellence Award.

Buttera died just four days after the death of his longtime good friend and hot rodding contemporary, Boyd Coddington, who died February 27 at age 63.

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U.S. Senator Jon Tester of Montana, an avid auto enthusiast, will be the featured guest at the opening reception of the 2008 SEMA Washington Rally. The event takes place on Tuesday, May 13, 2008 at 7:00 p.m. at the Westin Grand Hotel in Washington, DC and kicks off two days of activities on Capitol Hill.
 
In addition to influential SEMA members, council and industry leaders, among those participating in the SEMA Washington Rally will be members of the Congressional Automotive Performance and Motorsports Caucus, consisting of about 100 members of Congress. The Caucus, formed in 1996 is a coalition of federal lawmakers who are car enthusiasts themselves or have racing and performance manufacturers in their districts. The Caucus was created to help raise the profile of the motor vehicle performance industry in Washington and throughout the country.   
 
Sen. Jon Tester was elected to the U.S. Senate in 2006, after a long history of public service in the Big Sky State. He served as chair of the Big Sandy School Board and on his local Soil Conservation Service Committee before running for the Montana Senate in 1997. Tester served two four-year terms in the Montana Legislature and was then chosen to serve as President of the Montana Senate in 2005. He credits his leadership success to the values he learned growing up on the family farm – hard work, straight talk, honesty and integrity.

Under Tester's leadership, the Montana Legislature improved funding for public education and cut taxes for thousands of small businesses. Tester also led the fight to implement a statewide Country of Origin Labeling (COOL) program. In addition, Tester fought to make employee health insurance affordable for small businesses, an issue of critical importance to SEMA members.

Sen. Tester and his son are industry enthusiasts, car collectors and hobbyists, having restored a 1956 Buick, Model-T, '55 Chevy Shortbox Step Side and a Willies CJ2A among other projects. The Senator was a charter member of the SEMA-supported State Automotive Enthusiast Leadership Caucus before his election to the U.S. Senate. 
 
In addition to the opening reception, SEMA members who attend the Washington Rally will meet with their Members of Congress in a one-on-one setting, partake of a political insider session with well known Washington pundits Fred Barnes and Eleanor Clift, tour the U.S. Capitol and celebrate the Victory Junction Gang Camp and the motorsports industry with businessman, philanthropist and respected NASCAR driver Kyle Petty at a Congressional reception.   
 
For more information or to download a registration form for the Washington Rally, please go to:  http://www.sema.org/main/semaorghome.aspx?ID=51667

Kia Motors America is now accepting project-vehicle proposals for companies seeking to build a Kia-themed project vehicle for the 2008 SEMA Show, November 4–7 in Las Vegas. Kia's vehicles offered through the program include the Rio, Rondo, Sportage and the all-new Borrego.  

The deadline to submit project-vehicle proposals to Kia is May 27, 2008.

Kia Proposal Guidelines

Here are the details that should be included in submissions to Kia:

1.   Vehicle/Project Theme: Include target market or description of intended customer 

2.   Modification Plan: A list of specific vehicle modification and system upgrades including partnered sources, if appropriate. 

3.   Promotion Plan: A proposed list of intended events, trade shows, publications, etc., where the vehicle will be promoted.  Availability for the 2008 SEMA Show in Las Vegas, Nevada, is required. Please state where the vehicle will be displayed at the SEMA Show and who will sponsor the vehicle if it is placed in a feature spot.  A booth space is strongly preferred.

4.   Illustrations: Two copies of the proposal and rendering on 8 ½ x 11 paper are required. The color rendering should illustrate front and side appearance (Composite 3/4 views are acceptable) with the intended color and graphic scheme.  If the interior will be significantly modified, an interior sketch is recommended as well. An electronic file in PDF format is also required.

5. Schedule: A proposed reporting process to communicate project status to KMA is also requested.

SEMA members interested in developing a Kia Motors America project vehicle for the 2008 SEMA Show are encouraged to prepare a Project Description Plan and submit it to:

Steve Hirashiki  
Kia Motors America    
111 Peters Canyon Road   
Irvine, CA 92606-1790
E-mail:  shirashiki@kiausa.com
Fax: 949/468-4905

The Exhibit Space Rental Agreement for the 2008 SEMA Show is now available online. Simply go to www.SEMAShow.com and click on the Buy A Booth link located under the Exhibitor headling.

The 2008 SEMA Show will be filled with the buyers you want to see, the media connections you need to make and the networking opportunities that can’t be found anywhere else. Changes that are NEW THIS YEAR are: 

• SEMA has removed the limit on exhibit space. Our effort to make space available to the entire industry has been successful: last year we accommodated over 500 all-new exhibitors at the SEMA Show. This year we are eliminating the space cap to allow all exhibitors the opportunity to purchase additional space. We do reserve the right to reestablish a space cap in the event that demand far exceeds our ability to supply space.
  
  
• There is a new and simple 50/50 payment process. Your first payment (50% deposit) is due by April 4, 2008, and the balance is due by July 11, 2008.
  
  
• The Car Care & Accessories section has been merged with Restyling & Accessories Center and is now called the “Restyling and Car Care Accessories” section.

If you have any questions about your exhibit space, floorplan, seniority or section, call customer service at 702/450-7662, ext. 120. 

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