Once the province of outback adventurers in Australia and southern Africa, overlanding has gone global since the birth of the 21st century. The term may mean many things to many people, but it’s generally a form of vehicular adventure travel where the journey, not the destination, is the ultimate goal. Regardless of definition, it’s a rapidly expanding component of a $112 billion adventure tourism industry that’s projected to surpass $1 trillion by the end of the decade, according to a recent study published by Allied Global Insights.
The products featured below are from SEMA Data member companies that have attained Gold- or Platinum-level data, which means that their product data is robust and complete—likely to drive customer purchase decisions. SEMA Data members meeting data scorecard requirements are invited to submit product releases for consideration to enews@semadatacoop.org.
If we’re not already at it, we’re likely near the cusp of an electric vehicle (EV) tipping point. Two years ago, the state of California mandated 35% EV sales by 2025 and banned all new non-EV sales by 2035; Washington state’s mandate is even more ambitious: by 2030 it will refuse to license any vehicle made that year or later unless it’s electric, a push that resembles the one in several Western European countries.
An interview format where hosts pitch ads feels a touch anachronistic in this digital-everything age. Podcasts seem more like the kind of medium our grandparents’ generation would’ve invented, had the internet spontaneously appeared in their youth. You just know Milton Berle would’ve slayed.
In a recent issue of SEMA News, we reviewed a SEMA Education seminar that discussed the challenges and opportunities posed to the specialty-equipment market by the proliferation of advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) on OE vehicles (“ADAS and The Art of Vehicle Customization,” May 2022). In the article, we discussed the proper procedures to follow when lifting or lowering a vehicle. This month, we take a look at a recent follow-up session, “Modding Vehicles With ADAS,” which aimed to provide insight for designers and manufacturers of exterior dress-up and bolt-on components who want to make sure their products are ADAS-compatible.
At the 2021 SEMA Show, electrification projects could be found in virtually every hall, with conversion platforms including ’60s sedans and musclecars, early Broncos and square-body Chevys, Bonneville racers, sand rails and Baja prerunners. While still a small fraction of the hundreds of builds at the Show, their presence on the Show floor heralds the beginning of a new era in the specialty-equipment aftermarket—and one that holds great promise for aspiring builders and customizers looking to leverage the new technology to create new revenue streams.
In June 2021, Jake Merrick Sr., the owner of Merrick Tool in Hinton, Oklahoma, had a new product for the automotive industry. He was trying to think of ways to get the word out about his innovative new socket for removing stripped lug nuts.
It’s official: The new SEMA Garage Detroit facility opens its doors to the industry on August 18. In reality, the facility has been undergoing a soft launch for the past several months, with different services coming online through the completion of a series of construction phases. Nevertheless, this month marks a major milestone in the SEMA Garage’s ability to bring cutting-edge research and development programs and technologies to a rapidly changing industry.
Anticipation is building for the 2022 SEMA Show, to be held November 1–4 at the Las Vegas Convention Center—and perhaps a few pre-Show exhibitor jitters, too. For newcomers and veterans alike, creating a successful SEMA Show exhibit takes dedication and planning. There is no abracadabra formula for a profitable Show, but there are tried and true strategies that winning businesses routinely employ to accomplish their goals, many with minimal or no cost.
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