The Car Show for the Pros

Professionals from all facets of the automotive specialty-equipment industry will gather once again at the Las Vegas Convention Center on November 5–8 to see the latest product innovations, attend in-depth educational seminars and make business connections. They’ll also be witness to one of the most spectacular custom auto shows in the world.

Many of the products that will be introduced by the exhibiting companies—more than 2,000 of them this year—will be showcased on the vehicles for which they are intended. Over the past few years, SEMA News has previewed dozens of these automotive artworks, and we’re doing it again for 2013. The feature vehicles shown in this listing will appear in exhibitor booths and in display areas throughout the Las Vegas Convention Center and the adjacent outdoor grounds. Be sure to check them out in person, and enjoy the Show!

Connecting Buyers, Sellers and Media at the SEMA Show

If you’re a SEMA Show exhibitor, product exposure is the name of the game. Your number-one goal is attracting buyers and media to your booth, where you can discuss and demonstrate your new and featured products in person. If, on the other hand, you’re a buyer or media attendee, your priority is saving time and legwork in discovering the latest and greatest product innovations amid more than a million square feet of booths and exhibits vying for your attention. Fortunately, there’s an efficient solution for everyone: The SEMA Show’s New Products Showcase.

The First-Time and Featured Exhibitors areas include hundreds of exhibitors representing a variety of market segments.

In addition to 11 designated floor sections, the 2013 SEMA Show will include three different areas where First-Time and Featured Exhibitors can be found. While the Show has included First-Time and Featured Exhibitors areas in previous years, 2013 marks the first time that the Show will include three such areas:

One of the newest attractions added to the 2013 SEMA Show is Cars & Coffee–SEMA Edition. Showgoers can get a jump-start each morning from 8:00 a.m.–9:00 a.m. with a cup of coffee and some cool vehicles. Cars & Coffee—SEMA Edition will be located in the outdoor patio on the south side of the Las Vegas Hotel (LVH), which is adjacent to the Las Vegas Convention Center North Hall.

After enjoying Cars & Coffee, attendees can take advantage of the early start by visiting...

A Sprawling Panorama of Automotive Excellence

The SEMA Show is the world’s most impressive automotive trade show. It draws industry professionals from around the globe to stunning exhibits of innovative and sought-after specialty-equipment products. It attracts more than 135,000 industry leaders from more than 100 countries to Las Vegas, all seeking business opportunities in the automotive, truck and SUV, powersports and RV markets. And the 2013 SEMA Show—the year of the association’s 50th anniversary—will eclipse all previous gatherings. In fact, exhibit space in the Las Vegas Convention Center (LVCC) is sold out, and new display areas have been created in the Las Vegas Hotel and in other parts of the Show grounds to help accommodate the surplus.

The SEMA Show Director Provides Tips for Exhibitors, Buyers and Media

Tom Gattuso is the director of the SEMA Show. With more than 18 years in the field of automotive-event production—both consumer and trade—he is well versed in ensuring that attendees and exhibitors of every stripe receive the greatest return on their investments. The 2013 SEMA Show will be his third as director, and SEMA News was pleased to talk with him about his insights.

Take Advantage of the Programs, Promotions and Tools

The SEMA Show is the world’s most valuable automotive specialty-equipment trade show. More than 2,100 companies have already secured space for the 2013 event, including more than 415 first-time exhibitors. And while the information provided here is particularly urgent for those who are new to the SEMA Show, it is also must-know content for all exhibiting manufacturers.

More than 130,000 industry professionals are expected at the Show, which is open only to those individuals who are employed in the automotive industry. It is designed to provide manufacturers of automotive products and accessories with a venue to connect and do business with buyers from throughout the world, so the better informed exhibitors are, the more successful their experience will be.

To help attendees at the 2013 SEMA Show obtain low-cost hotel rooms and support throughout the entire housing process, SEMA has partnered with Travel Planners—the official housing service for the 2013 SEMA Show.

Travel Planners provides Showgoers with its Lowest Rate Assurance, meaning that the company negotiates lowest-rate guarantees into all of its hotel contracts and then works with hotels to meet or beat the reduced rate and pass the savings on to attendees. Even if reservations are set, the rate will be lowered automatically and the savings will be confirmed by e-mail. All attendees and exhibitors have to do if they find a lower rate is contact Travel Planners. As long as the rate is for all of the dates of the stay, Travel Planners will get a price that is as good or better.

Function Fused With Performance, Comfort and Drivability

The hot-rod market has always been predicated on performance. It’s where the niche—and the entire specialty-equipment industry, really—found its genesis. The listings of hot-rod components and systems unveiled at the most recent SEMA Show and now found on these pages continue in that vein, though there is also an increasing emphasis on making rods not only hot, but also comfortable and drivable.

As in previous years, we’ve interspersed the product listings with commentaries from industry professionals who are in touch with the marketplace. We asked them to focus on overall trends as well as specific vehicle types, and their responses reveal a melding of the traditional and the innovative.