Editor’s Note: A version of this story originally appeared on Hot Rod. Visit HotRod.com for more stories like this one.
The SEMA Show, Las Vegas’ biggest show of the year, is full of fun and misadventure. There are some really great builds and new components filling the Vegas Convention halls from one end to the other. You’ll also see plenty of fantastical creations, new trends, and general weird stuff. Here are just a few we scooped up before the show even started.
Diverters, Deflectors, Vents, and Holes
As mentioned last year, we continue to see every variation of tin diverters, canards, and also vents beyond your wildest dreams. For the road race look it would seem more isn’t quite enough. Any semblance of cohesion with the design of the car is secondary to more and more vents and wind splitters. This is not a criticism but merely an observation, so behold our quick take on the vents, diffusers, and splitters of SEMA.
Tire Trends
Though colored tire stripes have been around for decades, we have seen maybe half a dozen applications of this on low-profile, big-diameter tires. And not to be outdone, the brands of the tire manufacturers, similar to the raised-letter tires of the 1970s, are also gaining traction, no pun intended. Maybe this is Firestone’s road race tire or Goodyear’s NASCAR tire identification finding its way onto street tires, nevertheless we’ve seen countless examples this year—especially with yellow lettering.
Pipe Porn
Tubing used for frame reinforcement, as bumpers, or just for the heck of it—SEMA 2016 has become the pipe porn capital of the world. Rather than trying to explain, we’ll just show you, and then you be the judge.
Show Me Your Chops
Welding is an art form, there’s no denying that. But now we’re seeing cars that have chopped tops or other major body mods with the welds left exposed, rather than ground down and finished. Maybe this is an expansion of the Steam Punk/Rat Rod/Patina trends, or maybe not?
The Death of the Truck Bed
For 100 years the bed of a pickup truck was the functional end of what amounted to almost a farm implement you could also drive on the street. It was always left empty, unless it was carrying a load of dirt, hay, saddles, or a million other things. As a lifestyle vehicle, it became the place to haul your skis, Seadoos, bikes, and boards. But at SEMA 2016, it is apparent that the bed no longer is used for hauling, or anything. It’s there, but it’s covering something secret that we haven’t figured out what that might be. Now you have to haul your stuff on top of the bed, not in it. Or you eliminate it altogether and rig up a flatbed-type attachment for special needs, which we’re not sure what needs this fulfills that the original truck bed didn’t.
Parts Printing
No, not the 3D printing of components, but more like the water transfer you see on Facebook posts where the part is dipped into the vat and is slowly pulled out covered with skeletons or wood grain or fancy prints. You knew it was coming to wheel and air cleaners and such, and indeed the 2016 SEMA Show has lots of examples.
Got It? Flaunt It
You used to see water cans or gas cans hung onto the back of Jeeps. Remember? Well now we are seeing components, oil coolers, and who knows what appendages tacked onto the outside of vehicles. Mostly seen on trucks, we are stymied as to what is taking up the space inside of the truck bed that warrants hanging stuff outside of the vehicle.
Free the T
For decades T-bucket builders followed a rather rigid approach to building a Fad T. But we have seen a few at this year’s show that have completely thrown out all of the rules and done their own approach to T-bucket bliss.
More Dore
Rick Dore, out of Encinitas, California, has been on a roll building these Fagoni and Falacshi-type convertibles for rocker James Hetfield. We found two new ones so far at the 2016 SEMA Show, and are expecting him to conjure up a few more while the show is going on. With Marcel and Luke Delay pounding out the handmade bodies, we are surprised at how prolific Dore has become for such a labor-intensive project, or projects.
Freaktasticness!
And finally, we have some of the first freaks of the show. One thing we notice is that there are more and more of the Ford Model A-type sedan bodies being used for these builds, and why not. Let’s be honest; these bodies are fairly cheap, and as bare bodies without the rest of the car, they are worth even less. Why not take them and make something fun and freakish? So check out what we’ve assembled and see if you agree.
The post 10 Trends Stumbled Upon at the 2016 SEMA Show appeared first on Motor Trend.
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