Seen at SEMA
Last week our group was off-site at the SEMA trade show in Las Vegas, working tirelessly to bring Amazon customers the best possible selection of high-quality automotive parts and accessories.
Okay, shill over. One of the many great things about SEMA is the sheer array of gorgeous automobiles--muscle cars, customs, exotics, import street performers, flashy trucks, and various oddities. Many of them are rare, some are heavily modified, all are breathtaking. There aren't nearly enough bad cars at SEMA for my taste; after wading through scores of priceless, perfect rides, I'm craving a faded Maverick Grabber or something.
There are a whole bunch of sites that cover SEMA in-depth--this is not one of them. I had an actual job to do there, and SEMA is much too big for me to cover in my spare time. If you're interested in serious SEMA coverage, I'd check out Autoblog, Jalopnik, or Popular Mechanics (best of show, worst of show).
Still, I grabbed a few pictures when I could, concentrating on some of the more interesting offerings. You won't see many of the identical Porsche 911s or flashy trucks, but there were a few quirky cars around. I take pride in my photography, but this is some of my worst work. The lighting at the show was poor, I didn't have my tripod along, I was having to shoot through a crowd, and I was in a hurry. Now that I've set the expectations appropriately low, on to the content. Thanks to the rest of our contributors for carrying the load this week.
I (Heart) Restomods
Resto-modding, or the practice of dropping modern mechanicals into a vintage muscle car, is a controversial subject in classic car circles. My intellectual faculties are offended by resto-modding; these cars are rare, and should be maintained in original condition whenever possible. Besides, it's just too easy, too gauche.
My emotional centers think that's all bunk. Classic muscle cars have style to burn--there is something about those bluff grilles, muscular lines, and slick fastbacks that modern cars just can't match. The downside, of course, has always been non-existent braking and handling. Dropping a modern, ultra-powerful crate engine into a muscle car, backed up with a real suspension, sticky tires, and large cross-drilled disc brakes, addresses most of those short-comings.
And the style--I just can't resist a resto-modded muscle car cloaked in deep metal-flake paint, sitting on low-profile tires, and with cross-drilled brake rotors peeking through gorgeous five-spoke wheels. I can't help myself.
Resto-modding a muscle car is ridiculously expensive and probably not a great investment. But, again, a nice restomod completely short-circuits my logic centers. If I somehow lucked into several hundreds of thousands of dollars, I would no doubt squander all of that money on a restomod. After loading up on Saabs and Citroens, of course.
Why? Why?
Yes, that's a Toyota Prius modified with Lamborghini-style scissor doors and a gaudy gold-and-orange two-tone paint scheme. Why? I have no idea.
Fistful of Challengers
Several years ago, the new Ford Mustang was the hot ride at SEMA--seemingly every booth had a different take on customizing Ford's newest pony car. The following year it was the Chrysler 300. This year, the Dodge Challenger was the favorite.
I have been a bit lukewarm about the new Challenger--the proportions seem a bit off, and the design seems a little graceless. I am slowly coming around, though. While some of the interpretations at the show were too far over the top, the Hurst Challenger at top was nice and subtle. It's hard to tell from the photo, but the black Challenger had a beautiful stripe treatment. Rather than using stripes with bold color contrasts, this Challenger used a difference in finish to demarcate the stripes--flat black stripes against dark black glossy paint. I enjoy the flat satin finish when used sparingly, and on the black Challenger it was stunning.
As previously mentioned, I am a big fan of the classic Challengers, and so for me the best result of this year's Challenger infatuation was the proliferation of older Challengers in the show. These perfectly restored Challengers are plenty lust-inducing, but ...
... this weathered Challenger stole my heart. SEMA abounds with hundreds of completely immaculate rare and exotic cars, but after a few days all of the relentless perfection wears me down. Yes, yes, another fantastic Lamborghini. Another gorgeous hot rod? Whatever.
This Challenger, modeled after the Hemi Challenger that starred in the movie Vanishing Point stood out because it looks like a real car, not an overgrown Hot Wheels toy. I would love for SEMA to embrace a trend towards older cars that look used--original tires, paint showing the patina of age, and perhaps a well-loved interior.
Chargers Galore
The gaggle of other impressive Mopar products included these three notable Chargers. I've previously raved about the 1968-1970 Charger; well, the red Charger featured up top was a particularly nice resto-modded example of that generation. The 1971-1974 Chargers weren't neglected either. The '71 Charger in the middle photo above was painted in a black so breathtakingly dark and so evilly deep as to bring to mind the inner recesses of Jack the Ripper's heart. If I'm not being clear, let me dispel any doubts--this black Charger is so deliciously sultry that it feels a bit immoral.
The third Charger isn't in the same league; the modern Charger's blocky profile and over-the-top aggression simply can't match the earlier Chargers' elegance of line. Still, as a new Charger with a rear-door-ectomy and a Dukes of Hazzard paint job, its novelty value alone caught my eye. Besides, the Charger is a pretty good-looking car in two-door trim. Isn't it interesting that it takes a great deal of customization nowadays to get a two-door Charger?
Who doesn't need a massive, trailered barbecue grill styled like a train? Me, that's who.
A Tale of Two Infinitis
I'm not normally a fan of lowered, customized, flashy cars. But in this case, the color, the flared fenders, the wheels, and the slight reduction in ride height make this G37 sedan completely gorgeous. In particular, the gorgeous metallic red paint looks about 10 feet deep.
Unfortunately, the pictures don't do it justice--the combination of ambient light plus my flash make it look orange. Blame me for the bad photography, but I'll attest to the fact that, in person, this car is a knockout.
This G37 coupe, by contrast, takes the wildly patriotic path. In fact, I think this car easily is the most pro-American Japanese car I've ever seen. I don't mean this in a snide way--it's incredibly well-executed, and the list of American serviceman engagements on the driver's door is certainly interesting. It includes everything from obvious wars such as World Wars I and II to older and more obscure conflicts such as the Whiskey Rebellion and the French and Indian War. Oddly, the list also includes emergencies such as 9-11 and Hurricane Katrina. Perhaps I'm missing something, but those events don't seem to fit alongside the Civil War and the Revolutionary War. Wouldn't the War of 1812 and the campaign against the Barbary Pirates be a better fit?
Oh, and yes--pluralizing the word "Infiniti" chafes my soul.
I Ain't Afraid Of No Ghost
This is Ecto-1, the converted hearse from the movie Ghostbusters. According to a nearby placard, Ecto-1 is the actual car from the movie, not a reproduction. If so, it has been kept in much better condition than most real movie cars I have seen--it is absolutely immaculate, from the equipment inside the car to the white paint and finish. I would have spent more time near Ecto-1, but the Ghostbusters theme on constant repeat soon drove me away.
Truck Follies
Pickup trucks on this ridiculously gargantuan scale aren't really new; I've been seeing them at SEMA for several years now. But in the context of our cheery and lighthearted discussions about large trucks and SUVs, I figured it would be worth including these pictures.
Pointing out the flaws inherent in a truck of this size is as easy as a major leaguer hitting a baseball off a tee. That said, I'm going to do it anyway--and since this is just one example of the breed, I'm not going to single this truck out by pointing out the manufacturer.
This truck would obviously be awful at car tasks, right? It's not exactly a fuel-sipping commuter. But, despite its size and strength, I don't think this truck would be all that great at truck tasks either. The running boards (not to mention the truck's sheer size) would leave it hapless in any sort of serious off-road excursion. The pickup bed is no larger than that on a normal pickup. It would certainly be fantastic in any sort of towing situation, but what's the deal with the winch on the front? Warn makes a great winch, but I can't imagine that small winch has the weight capacity to pull this rig out of a ditch.
Is it wrong that I'd still love to own this thing?
I know what you're thinking--tracks are just the latest ridiculous accessory for hopelessly overblown trucks. This Hummer H1 was outfitted with an infantry carrier bodystyle and tracks. And, just to add absurdity to excess, flat-screen TVs completely cover the windshield and side windows--apparently in lieu of the usual interior LCDs. Those were just in place for the show of course, but the tracks make this just another ridiculous truck concept, right?
Wrong. Evidently this blue beauty is being prepared for an expedition to the South Pole. In that context, of course, tracks make perfect sense. Compared to tires, tracks offer dramatically increased surface area, providing vastly greater flotation. That will be important on this trip; top-end speed will not.
So, thankfully, nobody is seriously considering tracks as an upgrade for street Hummers.
Um, never mind. The thoroughly irrelevant spare tire might just be the most heinous ingredient of this particular wicked stew.
Awesome Camo
I've never really understood camouflaged trucks. If you're a hunter and you want to remain hidden from your prey, I can see it. But if you're hunting deer, don't you typically walk away from your vehicle? And if you don't, wouldn't the deer smell your truck even if it's camoflaged?
Truck accessories manufacturer Westin showed a vehicle with an intricate camo paint job--not a wrap, mind you, but actual paint applied by an artist. It certainly confuses the eye, just as any good camo should. It's beautifully applied, with a non-gloss satin finish that looks about as classy as a camouflaged pickup truck could possibly look. In other words, while you're likely to get a lot of well-deserved attention in the Bass Pro Shops parking lot, you're unlikely to get a premium valet parking spot at a pretentious Venice Beach restaurant.
The best part? Embedded within the pattern are drawings of a deer, a roaring bear, and--curiously--a hunter. This raises some questions for me. Let's assume the camo truly fools the deer; and it doesn't recognize that there's a truck there. So, assuming that the deer sees the camo instead of the truck, what message does this camo send? Is the inclusion of the deer supposed to lure the actual animal closer to its friend? If so, wouldn't the roaring bear then scare the deer away?
The inclusion of the hunter shooting an arrow at the fictional deer is even more problematic. If the purpose of camo is to put the prey at ease by hiding the hunter, what happens when that camo depicts a hunter shooting prey?
The scenarios aren't analogous, but if I was being hunted by a large predator and encountered a picture of that predator eviscerating me and consuming my remains, I think I'd run quickly in the other direction. Anyway, this is really more about the strange ways in which my mind works. The camo itself is pretty fantastic.
Unlike the abstract art featured above, this camo is photo-realistic. Just check it out; even the windows are wrapped. If the goal is to hide the truck by blending it into the woods, it's hard to imagine more effective camo.
But ... check out the antlers. This truck has antlers mounted on either side of the cab--in the position where antlers would be found on a deer's head. So, is the point to hide the truck or to make it look like a deer? Clearly the former, but, the latter would be an interesting exercise in deer psychology. What if instead of camouflaging a truck, a hunter painted a truck to be a realistic representation of a deer's head? I doubt it would attract deer, but it would be appealingly absurd.
I doubt this Hyundai is much of a hunting vehicle, so obviously in this case the purpose is style. Do the bright red headlights and logo help or hurt in that pursuit? I don't know--and I'm not sure I could drive this car every day--but at least it's interesting.
Camaro Love
I have been decidedly underwhelmed by the new Camaro pictures and concept cars that I have seen, so I didn't expect much from the pre-production Camaros on display at the show this year. I was pleasantly surprised. I'm still not sure it's the most elegant or cohesive design I've seen, but at least I'm no longer dreading sharing the road with the new Camaros. Damning with faint praise, I know.
I'll display no such restraint here. If Chevrolet is trying to lure me into the arms of the new Camaro, there's no better way than to cloak it in the colors of Mark Donohue's famous Sunoco-sponsored Penske Camaro racer. I'm guessing this one wasn't acid-dipped, but at least it's appropriately gorgeous. Bravo!
Ford Flex--From the STREETS!
Ford displayed this Flex crossover painted in an ostensibly hip streetwise manner. Is it enough to make the Flex cool? No.
Genius or Sacrilege?
If dropping a small-block Chevy into a Jaguar XJ-6 counts as sacrilege, installing a 572-cubic inch Hemi into a 1970 Rolls Royce Silver Shadow has to be some form of full-scale heresy. Yet, the idea of nitrous-powered 1,300-horsepower Rolls is pretty interesting, and the custom leather interior smelled fantastic. Naturally, there was a jar of Grey Poupon mustard sitting on the center console.
Wait, Who Makes That Truck?
Subtlety, thy name is Ford.
Scale Issues
If gas prices have forced you out of big trucks and SUVs, don't worry--you can still buy step bars and bull bars for your fuel-sipper. I'm not entirely sure why you would need step bars to get into a car that sits only a few inches off the ground. Nor am I sure why you'd want to ruin the aerodynamics of a car built for fuel economy, but of course none of that is the point.
This human-size hood ornament is pretty cool in its Art Deco extravagance, but now what I really want to see is a car in the same scale.
Genuinely Nice Cars
No sarcasm here--these were genuinely nice cars that caught my eye.
Yeah, okay, so the new Toyota Venza is a crossover--and with a meaningless name, to boot. But I'd prefer to think of it as a wagon--and in show trim, it looked surprisingly good. Perhaps it's just the nice paint or the big wheels, but as a family sedan with a wagon body and all-wheel-drive, I'd certainly consider it.
In a show filled with wildly customized cars and trucks, this pleasantly stock beige 1970 Ford F-100 really stood out. What a sweetheart.
Since most of the exotics on display were brand new, the F40 stood out as as a bit of a quirky favorite. What does it say about the SEMA show that one of the most famous supercars of all time could be considered quirky?
There were quite a few of these little three-wheel motorcycles/go-karts at the show, and I was instantly smitten.
This was the first time I have seen the new Chevrolet El Camino* in the flesh, and it looked pretty good--even with the tonneau cover.
* I refuse to succumb to General Motors' nefarious plan to call this vehicle something other than El Camino. A Pontiac G8? Seriously? How could this not be an El Camino?
The 1970 Camaro is one of my all-time favorites, so I was ecstatic to see this all-original example on display. This 1970.5 Camaro Z/28 came stock with the 360 LT1 engine, the four-speed transmission, is completely stock, and ... wait for it ... has only 12,000 original miles. That's less than 320 miles driven per year.
The Least Comfortable Interior Ever
There is a lot that could be said here, but I'm going to shake my head in resignation about most of the weirdness on display here and move on. But just look at that interior--was it sponsored by Reynolds Wrap and Alcoa?
Tempest in a Teapot
The cut-down windshield and one-seat configuration scream Porsche Speedster; the Toyota Yaris foundation, um, doesn't.
High Rolling Resistance
At first glance, this orange Charger looks like just another custom car with uselessly large wheels. It's actually even more useless than it appears at first glance. You see, this Charger's fenders touch the tires even when the car is stopped. Rolling this thing off the trailer onto the display must have been a chore; I can't even imagine driving it.
Mustang on Mustang Violence
If was the booth manager for the Ford display and I was responsible for the safety of that pretty Mustang, this arrangement would make me very nervous. Gravity is an implacable force, and tempting it is a risky game.
--Chris H.
biff swordbroom on November 10, 2008 at 10:40 AM
hey i just wanted to tell you to double-check the info on the 1970 camaro. otherwise good job. i've read most all other car lusts, and they are great!
That Car Guy on November 10, 2008 at 12:29 PM
At least the dangling Mustang has the decency to be a quad-headlight 1969 model. The gentleman in the photo shows that the dress code at SEMA is, well, relaxed.
Smoke_Jaguar4 on November 10, 2008 at 01:16 PM
I read this entry after the Exner one, which makes this quote even more poignant:
"Beauty existed long before man beheld it or named it. There is good art with its inherent possession of design and there is bad art without form, just as there is the right answer and wrong answer in Mathematics or Physics. Art is only a little more subjective, but too many ignore art education and think that only their own taste is right. Too many people think that anything goes in art, and music as well. Good design can be taught and learned, just as good music."
Amen
Big Chris on November 10, 2008 at 07:34 PM
The idea of the Rolls doing a wheel stand on launch makes me giddy. I WANT TO SEE IT!!
Cookie the Dog's Owner on November 11, 2008 at 07:34 AM
Half of me thinks the Hemi-powered Rolls Royce is an abomination. The other half of me imagines pulling up to a stoplight on a warm summer night, rolling down the window, and asking the guy in the lane next to me, "Pardon me"--VROOOM!--"have you got any"--VROOM-VROOOOM!--"Grey Pupon?"
OldCarGuy on November 11, 2008 at 08:39 AM
I'll take the original red Charger, and the F-100, please.
Oh, and of course, the V-8 Babe.
Nice work, Chris.
That Car Guy on November 11, 2008 at 02:40 PM
We had a very similar truck, a 1968 Ford Ranger, and when we sold it (The truck was 30 years old then), the dash looked better than new. Lemon Pledge will preserve vinyl and rubber like you would not believe!