By SEMA Washington, D.C., Staff
New data released by the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) shows that in 2021 outdoor recreation generated $862 billion in economic output and 4.5 million jobs. This equates to 1.9% of GDP in the U.S. economy and highlights the record-setting growth that the outdoor recreation industry has seen over the past few years.
“From the creation of jobs and increased profit for small businesses in local economies, to larger boons to our national economy, this sector is a consistent driver, even in times of economic uncertainty. The strength of the outdoor recreation economy reflects what many in the industry have long known to be true: there are infinite benefits that come from more people spending time outdoors, and they’ll only grow with continued investment” said Jessica Turner, president of the Outdoor Recreation Roundtable (ORR), of which SEMA is a member.
ORR is America’s leading coalition of U.S. outdoor recreation trade associations. It represents more than 50,000 businesses that produce vehicles, apparel, equipment and services enjoyed in our nation’s parks, waterways, trails and outdoor spaces. SEMA’s focus within ORR is on motorized recreation (four-wheel, ATVs, UTVs, etc.), along with all the equipment that makes it possible to tow RVs, trailers, boats and off-road vehicles (suspension, wheels, tires, increased horsepower, etc.).
Click here to view the ORR press release on the BEA data.
For more information, contact Caroline Fletcher at carolinef@sema.org.
By SEMA Washington, D.C., Staff
As part of the statutorily required four-year review of Section 301 tariffs on Chinese goods, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) issued a questionnaire seeking comments on the economy-wide, industry-specific and individual impacts of the tariffs.
The USTR previously announced the comment period and requested “comments on the effectiveness of the actions in achieving the objectives of the investigation, other actions that could be taken, and the effects of such actions on the United States economy, including consumers.” It has now released its questionnaire to be filled out by companies impacted by the tariffs. The form is broken into three sections. Section A requests information about the economy-wide impact of the tariffs. Section B delves into the impact at the industry/sector level. Section C requests product-specific information including HTSUS numbers and reasons why the tariffs should be maintained, eliminated or modified. It is an opportunity for companies that benefitted from a product-specific exclusion to request a permanent exclusion.
SEMA encourages companies to share feedback on how they have been impacted by the tariffs including the USTR’s consideration of product exclusion requests. The docket will open for comment on November 15, 2022, and close on January 17, 2023.
If your business has been impacted by the Section 301 tariffs, contact Caroline Fletcher at carolinef@sema.org to be incorporated into SEMA’s comments.
As the company has confirmed a couple of months back, Porsche’s third EV model and first electric two-seater will be the next 718 Boxster and Cayman. While the 911 isn’t expected to adopt EV technology until the end of the decade, the next-generation Boxster and Cayman will be exclusively battery-powered when they arrive as ’25 models in late 2024.
“We are stepping up our electric offensive with another model,” Porsche boss Oliver Blume said in March. “By the middle of the decade, we want to offer our mid-engine 718 sports car exclusively in an all-electric form.”
Porsche went on to say that it is currently developing high-performance battery cells with the Cellforce Group that are expected to be ready for series production in 2024, presumably just in time to appear in the new 718 Boxster and Cayman twins.
Porsche had already dropped a huge hint about the future of the 718 when it released the Mission R concept last year—and these exclusive spy shots prove the production car takes massive influence from the concept. Though allegedly a study looking into a possible future racing car, the concept showcased the styling of the next-generation production car and primed us for the fact that it would come only as an EV.
The all-wheel-drive concept promised 1,073 hp in qualifying trim and 626 hp in race tune, thanks to a 429hp front motor and a 626hp rear-motor setup. However, expect a less-powerful, single-motor, rear-wheel-drive version to be offered alongside the first-ever all-wheel-drive 718 when production starts in late 2024.
Although Porsche is investing in clean-fuel technology that could extend the life of the combustion engine, almost 40% of Porsche’s 2021 output was electrified in some way, and it wants fully electric cars and PHEVs to account for 50% of its global sales by 2025, rising to 80% by 2030.
Photo credit: Brian Williams, SpiedBilde
B. Force, Capps, M. Smith Clinch World Titles; Prock Pedregon, Anderson and A. Smith Get Wins at Auto Club NHRA FinalsBrittany Force captured her second career world title last Sunday, wrapping up a spectacular season with a Top Fuel world championship after a first-round victory at the 57th annual Auto Club NHRA Finals at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona. Ron Capps (Funny Car) and Matt Smith (Pro Stock Motorcycle) both clinched world championships at the 22nd and final event in the 2022 NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series season. Austin Prock (Top Fuel), Cruz Pedregon (Funny Car), Greg Anderson (Pro Stock) and Angie Smith (Pro Stock Motorcycle) also won the sixth race in the Countdown to the Championship playoffs to cap off a spectacular 2022 season.
Force qualified No. 1 in her 11,000hp Monster Energy dragster and then earned the championship with her run of 3.701 seconds at 334.90 mph in the opening round of eliminations.
Capps earned his second straight world title by finishing as the runner-up on Sunday in his 11,000hp NAPA Auto Parts Toyota GR Supra. It is his third world championship, which was helped by a shocking second-round loss from Robert Hight on Sunday, who finished second overall on the strength of eight wins.
Matt Smith earned his third straight world title in Pro Stock Motorcycle and sixth overall with a victory in the first round on his Denso Auto Parts Buell.
In the Top Fuel final round, Prock finished off his impressive run in the Countdown to the Championship playoffs, winning for the second time in the postseason by going 3.641 seconds at 336.23 mph in the final round in his 11,000hp Montana Brand/Rocky Mountain Twist dragster. The career-best run sent him past Antron Brown and to his third career victory, also vaulting him to third in points to finish off the year.
Pedregon won his first race of the year and set a string of career-bests along the way. The topper was a 3.839 at 335.65 in his 11,000hp Snap-On Tools Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat in the final round against Capps.
Anderson didn’t grab a championship this year in Pro Stock, as Erica Enders rolled to her fifth title, but he did close out 2022 with a victory in Pomona, getting past Enders in the final round with a pass of 6.516 at 210.31 in his HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro.
In Pro Stock Motorcycle, Angie Smith helped the team finish the season with a victory for the third straight year, knocking off Joey Gladstone with a 6.749 at 199.55 on her Denso Auto Parts Buell.
The 2023 NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series season begins March 9–12 with the 54th annual Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals at historic Gainesville Raceway.
MAHLE Motorsport Introduces 2023 Application GuideMAHLE Motorsport has announced the availability of the company’s new 2023 Application Guide. The 38-page application guide features all of the company’s high-performance PowerPak piston sets and Pro Series Race pistons, and provides complete product information for seven new PowerPak sets in addition to multiple new rings, pins, and rails.
The PowerPak sets featured in the guide include a broad selection of SBC, LS, BBC, SBF, Ford Modular PowerPaks, and a growing list of Hemi, Powerstroke, and Diesel PowerPak sets. MAHLE Motorsport also offers PowerPak sets for many imports and sport compacts, including Mazda, Subaru, Nissan, Ford EcoBoost, BMW, Audi, VW and Toyota applications. The guide also includes a section on ring gap instructions with illustrations and samples based on the high-performance street, circle track/drag racing, turbo/supercharger, diesel turbocharged and more.
The new application guide is available to download now, or can be picked up at the 2022 PRI Trade Show at booth #1601.
For more racing news, visit Performance Racing Industry’s (PRI) website.
Ringbrothers was presented several top awards at the 2022 SEMA Show in Las Vegas for two out of four of its most recent unveiled custom builds—a ’48 Chevrolet Loadmaster dubbed “ENYO” and a ’72 Chevrolet K5 Blazer code-named “BULLY.” The Wisconsin-based team’s build “ENYO” took home top honors for a variety of custom builder categories, including winning SEMA’s Battle of the Builders Presented by Mothers Polish as the 2022 Best Overall Build while also winning its class of Hot Rod & Hot Rod Trucks en route to being crowned the competition’s Grand Champion.
The custom builders’ 1948 Chevrolet pickup “ENYO” wins SEMA’s Battle of the Builders Presented by Mothers Polishes 2022 Ultimate Builder Award.
“Year after year, the SEMA Show gives us the opportunity to showcase what we are most passionate about,” said Mike Ring, co-owner of Ringbrothers. “This year, we had the opportunity to unveil four of our most extreme builds, both in design and execution. With the support from our partners and the enthusiast community, we continue to push the boundaries of custom car building which is what we originally set out to do.”
Bearing the name of the Greek goddess of war, the 1,010hp ’48 Chevrolet pickup “ENYO” was nearly 10 years in the making. Built through 10,000 laborious hours, the “anti-street rod” is chopped, channeled and sectioned to redefine the American classic. ENYO features CAD-designed trim and parts that were all cut in-house at the Ringbrothers machining facility to the way they seamlessly managed to mate a big-box truck cab and massive drivetrain successfully on a low-slung, Indy Car-style chassis. The pickup is powered by a Goodwin 1,000hp tall-deck racing engine and crafted using extensive carbon-fiber components.
“BULLY,” on the other hand, expresses extensive restomod build features with a 6.8L LS3 V8 topped with a massive 2.9L Whipple supercharger and heavy-duty off-road suspension. The four-wheel-drive Blazer makes 1,200hp. Other highlights of the labor-intensive build include a new chassis, four-link suspension, bespoke interior, heavy-duty drivetrain and many unique parts. This one-of-kind Blazer also won its class of 4 Wheel Drive & Off-Road in the Battle of the Builders Presented by Mothers Polish competition.
The “SEMA: Battle of the Builders” TV program is set to air on Saturday, January 28, 2023, at 9:00 a.m. (EST). Visit www.semabotb.com for updates on TV airings.
By Ashley Reyes
SEMA members are invited to connect with Jarod DeAnda—notable industry host, presenter and ambassador of motorsports—during the SEMA Future Leaders Network (FLN) Facebook and Instagram live chat on Wednesday, November 16, at 12:00 p.m. (PST).
DeAnda recently emceed the SEMA Show Kick-Off Breakfast, Industry Awards Banquet and SEMA Ignited, and will be going live to share his favorite moments. He’ll also share details on his career journey and how he got started hosting events for leading brands, such as Formula DRIFT, Snap-on Tools, Harley-Davidson, Hot Wheels, Nitro Rallycross and the global launch of the all-new ’24 Ford Mustang.
DeAnda has attended the SEMA Show since 1998 and met his wife at the 1999 SEMA Show. His history and knowledge are far and wide, and just like him, his tattoos tell a story. Don’t miss out on his industry expertise and what he has to share. Tune in on November 16.
Live Chat Location: FLN Facebook page and FLN Instagram live (@fln_sema)
Are you hunting for a new job? The SEMA Career Center has a comprehensive listing of automotive-related job openings around the country. Here are some of the latest jobs posted to the website.
Head of Sales and Dealer Operations
Enthusiast Auto Holdings
Enthusiast Auto Holdings (EAH) is hiring a head of sales and dealer operations responsible for leading a team of 30+ sales associates to serve enthusiast customers and drive sales and margin growth for ECS Tuning, Turner Motorsports and EVAnnex. This position will be responsible for driving sales performance by capitalizing on sales leads, retaining existing customers, and driving basket size and profitability initiatives, while providing customers with outstanding service. Candidates should have general knowledge and understanding of automotive/off-road parts.
QA1 is hiring a seasoned manager of motorsport sales with a comprehensive understanding and passion for the motorsports industry to be part of the management team. You will be responsible for leading all channel sales activities for QA1 motorsports products, including strategy, planning, organization and team development to deliver business goals. Candidates should be big-picture thinkers who develop the sales channel and key account strategies to be executed on by the sales team. A bachelor’s degree from four-year college or university and 10 to 15 years related experience in the automotive or powersports aftermarket are required.
Part-Time Bookkeeper
Advanced Fuel Dynamics
Advanced Fuel Dynamics is hiring a part-time bookkeeper and administrative assistant. Primary responsibilities include using various software tools to categorize revenue and expenses based on a preset chart of accounts, provide monthly reporting, generate invoices and make payments to vendors. In addition, the position will import sales transactions from the Shopify web site, process return requests and help with some incoming customer calls. Candidates should have a background in bookkeeping.
By SEMA Editors
Dates and locations have been scheduled for several upcoming SEMA-sponsored shows, measuring sessions and activities.
For association-related travel, contact Manya Petropaki (manya.p@travelstore.com) at Travel Store USA, 949-930-9268.
In 1963, before there was even a SEMA Show, a group of small business entrepreneurs who made parts for early hot rods organized to support the hobby, the enthusiasts, and the motorsports lifestyle. One of their original goals was to have a voice at the table when it came to negotiating with state, federal and regulatory agencies that often proposed overly broad restrictions—failing to perceive less-obvious, often detrimental side effects.
Now, 60 years later, it’s clear that SEMA’s watchdog role on behalf of its members in the legislative and regulatory arena continues to be of critical importance to everyone in the industry—hobbyists and motorsports participants included.
In today’s environment of rapid innovation and technological change, adding expert government affairs staff to help the association step up its government affairs activity has been a top priority. The recent hiring of a senior vice president of public and government affairs represents an important step forward in the association’s ability to raise visibility of the specialty-equipment industry among policymakers.
The new senior vice president, Karen Bailey-Chapman, will work to ensure that SEMA has a strong voice in regulatory and policy discussions at both state and federal levels. She is a seasoned public affairs executive who excels at understanding complex policy issues. And her extensive experience in government relations, plus solid relationships on Capitol Hill, will be instrumental in the effort to educate lawmakers, regulators and the public about the specialty-equipment industry, which employs large numbers, fosters innovation and is a major sector of the country’s economy. She will work in close collaboration with SEMA’s communications and legal departments.
The tasks ahead are not insignificant.
Among the challenges is the need to ensure enthusiasts, aftermarket businesses and repair shops have access to the information and tools needed to repair and upgrade today’s more complex vehicles. This “right to repair” effort goes hand-in-hand with the need to make sure that SEMA members can safely modify vehicles with advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS) technologies that assist drivers and automate vehicle systems. SEMA and industry partners are currently working to develop tests to confirm that vehicles remain in compliance after customization, but the need to convince Congress to consider the aftermarket when pursuing ADAS legislation remains clear.
Another top priority is maintaining off-highway vehicle (OHV) access to public lands, a topic of keen interest to off-road enthusiasts and SEMA-member companies that support the outdoor recreational community. SEMA supports policies that expand responsible OHV recreational opportunities, and opposes land use policies that unnecessarily limit access.
And then there is the 2015 Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) provision making it illegal to convert street vehicles into dedicated race cars. SEMA has been working with allies in Congress to pass the Recognizing the Protection of Motorsports (RPM) Act, which clarifies that it is legal to make emissions-related changes to a street vehicle for the purpose of converting it into a race car used exclusively in competition.
Other ongoing legislative initiatives involve protecting members’ intellectual property rights, addressing warranty denial, eliminating tariffs that impact American consumers and businesses, and coping with electric vehicle mandates that threaten to change the landscape in the coming decade.
The recent Washington Rally provided an opportunity for SEMA members to remind their lawmakers that decisions they make are being closely monitored by the specialty equipment community. Even if you could not attend this year, you can help support your industry by signing up for the SEMA PAC and by defending the hobby through the SEMA Action Network (SAN). Visit www.semasan.com to join SAN, stay up-to-date on important state and federal bills, and help advance our automotive freedoms.
By Drew Hardin
Photography: Bob D’Olivo, Petersen Publishing Company Archive
The Shelby American booth featured a prototype GT40, speed parts for the Cobra and GT 350 hanging on the wall, and a Paxton-supercharged 302 on an engine stand.
Fifty-five years ago, during a cold and blustery week in early January 1967, 120 members of the performance aftermarket manned 98 booths on the Stadium Club level of Dodger Stadium for what was billed as the First Annual High Performance and Custom Trade Show.
More than 3,000 people attended the show and took part in numerous activities set up to complement the event, from an exhibitor’s banquet held at the famous Coconut Grove nightclub inside the Ambassador Hotel to guided tours of the area’s many performance parts manufacturers.
Today the SEMA Show is a fixture in the performance industry. In 1966, it was just an idea.
“It was Mr. Petersen who had the idea in the first place,” recalled GiGi Carleton, longtime executive assistant and personal manager to publishing magnate Robert E. Petersen (and now President of the Margie and Robert E. Petersen Foundation). In the fall of 1966, Petersen launched Hot Rod Industry News (HRIN), a trade magazine devoted to the business of automotive performance and a sibling title to his then-nearly-20-year-old Hot Rod magazine. He believed a trade show “was a ‘must’ activity for the new magazine,” as he said in HRIN’s January 1967 issue. In charge of the endeavor was Dick Wells, who was then working in Petersen Publishing’s Special Events department. He was aided by Carleton and Alex Xydias, Publisher of HRIN and, years before, the founder of the original SO-CAL Speed Shop.
In the B&M booth, Bob Sparr talked transmission adapters with Oscar Karamanian and Ed Stone from New England Speed Equipment of Boston.
“I believe we had six months, or possibly less, to plan for that first show,” Carleton said.
Selling the show “fit me to a T,” said Xydias, who recently celebrated his 100th birthday. “When I was at the speed shop, I knew every manufacturer in town. I bought stuff from all of them, so it was easy for me to talk to them about a booth in the show.”
Dodger Stadium wasn’t so much chosen for the venue as it was inevitable. “It was the only venue available at the time in early January with a big parking lot,” Carleton said. “The Anaheim Convention Center was in the process of being built. We looked at the Hollywood Palladium and even the Great Western Arena near downtown L.A. The idea was to have it in Los Angeles near the two airports, LAX and Lockheed,” as the Burbank Airport was called then.
As for the show itself, “we just kind of patched it together,” Xydias recalled. “Booths were pretty much a card table and two chairs, with an eight-foot drape behind. We gave them a sign with their name on it, and that was pretty much it for everybody. Nobody had much experience with it.”
Dodger Stadium’s Club level turned into a trade show January 10–12, 1967. That’s Vic Edelbrock Jr. manning the Edelbrock booth, which is next to a large display for Ansen Automotive.
That lack of experience was evident when Xydias walked the show’s aisles and found the exhibitors sitting in their booths. “I told them, ‘Stand up! You’re not here to rest. This is your business. If you’re sitting down, nobody is going to come over and make you get up to talk about your product.’ Those were the kinds of things we tried to do in the first show, to educate ourselves and also our exhibitors and the people who came to the show.”
Nevertheless, “the show did pretty well, under the circumstances,” Xydias said. Coverage in the February 1967 issue of HRIN called the show “a complete success.”
“We were so surprised at the attendance, which far surpassed what we had hoped for,” Carleton said. “I remember driving to Dodger Stadium on the first day of the show after our set-up day. I saw so many cars parked in the stadium parking lot, I thought there must be another event taking place. I was wrong. All those cars were there for the first SEMA Show.
“Many of the first exhibitors were leery about this show and wondered if they would meet their expenses for airfare, hotel, and so on,” she added. “But they all went home with a fistful of orders, more than they had ever anticipated.”
“Was it a success?” Xydias asked. “It was a success because we had the second one.” The following year, the show moved to the newly opened Anaheim Convention Center, where some 3,800 attendees did business among nearly 200 booths.
“And look at it now,” Carleton said. “Wow.”