The Vodafone McLaren Mercedes MP4-24 Formula One car wears a set of very special wheels from the Japanese rim manufacturer Enkei. By the very nature of the sport, components must be extremely lightweight and resilient in order to give the teams every competitive edge possible while standing up to spinning at 200 MPH and hitting FIA curbs at triple digit speeds. The wonderful thing about the SEMA show in Las Vegas is that you have a chance to get up close and personal with these types of items, as well as the wide assortment of their everyday offerings. As the Enkei representatives turned their backs, we took the opportunity to lift the wheel from its stand, and because of its size and shape considered playing a game of football with it. The wheel was so surprisingly light, and being significantly wider than it is tall makes for a rare sight to see. To get this kind of contact with a piece of a Formula One race car you would have to risk being shot in the paddock by a mechanic, however in SEMA up close and friendly atmosphere, anything goes.
The world’s greatest aftermarket car show would not be complete without a wide variety of scantily clad women walking around the exhibition halls posing for photos and promoting their patron’s product. These car show girls fill in the voids between the automotive works of art, keeping attendees eyes moving from one item to the next and act like magnets attracting hoards of slack jawed males to their respective booths, like sirens marooning ships full of men. People then wait in endless lines for a little more than a wink and an oversized poster complete with the signature of a women they have most likely never heard of, but it is well worth it because she is so hot. So in addition to featuring everything from high end American hot rods to some of the nicest import tuner cars in the world, the 2009 SEMA show is also chock full of females.
As you know SEMA is all about customizing and letting your imagination free. But the guys from MotionLite went a bit too far with this! Or maybe not, depends on everyone’s taste no?
Their illumination system lights wheels from the outside, switches between seven colors, and includes strobe and morph functions.
Mazda came at SEMA Show with two customized models: a Mazda3 and a MazdaSpeed3. Both models are painted in a Crystal White Pearl base coat with soft gray tone graphics to mimic the new MAZDA3 World Challenge race car.
The pearl white is combined to a black paint on the grille inserts, side mirrors, fog lamp bezels, the roof panel, and the formerly chrome interior of the front lamps. Besides that the cars get tinted windows, dark red taillight lenses and 19x8-inch wheels.
The Mazda3 uses a 2.5-liter MZR engine with a Tri-Point turbo kit and a rugged cast iron turbo manifold. This way the output was raised to 250 hp. On the other hand, the Mazdaspeed3 is already using a AEM cold-air intake that is increasing the output with 20 hp.
The Subaru WRX STI by SPT is a demonstration of what a WRX STI owner can build at home using just the SPT catalog as a source for bolt-on parts. The WRX STI by SPT offers more power along with even sharper handling response, making it the ideal machine for high style street performance or track driving.
It is powered by a 2.5 liter DOHC, 16 valve, turbocharged and intercooled 4-cylinder Subaru Boxer engine with Dual Active Valve Control System. The engine delivers a total of 315 hp @ 6,000 RPM (up from the stock 305) and a peak torque of 290 lb.-ft. @ 4,000 RPM.
The concept also features 19 x 8.5-in. Prodrive GT2 wheels finished in Glitter Gold, STI performance springs, an SPT strut tower brace and an SPT lower chassis brace. On the interior there is an SPT boost gauge, a media hub digital music integration system and an auto-dimming mirror.
Chevrolet’s special edition Jay Leno Camaro was unquestionably one of the highlights of the SEMA auto show in Las Vegas and rightfully so. As one of the coolest cars to hit SEMA this year, the buzz surrounding the Jay Leno Camaro was more than justified thanks in part because of the added touches Chevrolet put on it. This includes a pair of Turbonetics T-3 turbochargers the 3.6L direct injected V-66 delivering a total of 425 hp, which if you don’t know, is around 40% more powerful than a standard Camaro LS or LT.
Here’s a video of Jay Leno himself taking a closer look at the car Chevrolet named after him.
Subaru unveiled at SEMA Show the Legacy 2.5GT VIP ("bippu") Concept. Based on a 2010 2010 Legacy 2.5GT, the concept features a 265-hp turbocharged/intercooled engine teamed exclusively to a new 6-speed manual transmission and the Continuous Symmetrical All-Wheel Drive system.
The turbo Boxer engine is equipped with custom full engine bay cover, SPT billet oil cap v2.0 and SPT billet battery hold-down v2.0. The concept also gets an air suspension system from Universal Air, 20" MC3 Enterprises Trinidad wheels, hood, bumper faces, sport grille, front and rear under spoilers, HID headlights and fog lights.
The concept’s exterior is painted in Shinjuku Black Plum and adds a chrome trunk garnish and door handles, along with puddle lights.
After a short preview, the Saleen S281 made its official debut today at SEMA Show. Based on the 2010 Ford Mustang, the S281 will be offered as a limited edition model, like most of the Saleen cars.
The exterior features an elegant design with an understated yet imposing grille and front fascia, and a refined treatment of the familiar Saleen extended rear fascia and trunk lid with a simple, elegant, integrated wing. The car sits on 20-inch, 7-spoke alloy wheels with Pirelli P-Zero Rosso high-performance tires.
The same elegance is being continued on the interior: new, leather sport seats with Ultra-Suede inserts, highlighted by chevron-like Ultra-Suede red tabs in the seatback bolsters, and unique treatments of the gauges, steering wheel, center console and shifter.
But that’s pretty much with the elegance, as under the hood there lies a real beast: a 4.6-liter V8 engine equipped with a Saleen Series VI.5 twin-screw supercharger and dual-stage intercooler that delivers a total of 485 hp and 460 lb.-ft. of torque.
As you might be used by now, every year at SEMA Show Funkmaster Flex comes with a customized Ford. And this year’s show was no exception; he came with a customized version of the all-new 2010 Taurus SHO.
The Funkmaster SHO is painted in a two-tone black and metal grey paint job and features a lowered ride height, 22" wheels and Pirelli tires, custom door handles, a one-off front spoiler and rear window wing. The interior remained unchanged, with the exception of adding a black suede headliner and the signature FMF logos on the headrests./p>
"Here’s a vehicle that has so much history and stands on its own in terms of design and attitude," said Funkmaster Flex. "It’s definitely different from anything that I’ve ever done before. It’s much more subdued and doesn’t scream at you in terms of its paint job and overall effect. I really took a vehicle that already had everything in terms of its styling and design and gave it a real stealth-like feel."
The last customized SOUL Kia presented at the SEMA Show is the Gogogear SOUL. The car will be the official peace car at the 2010 US Touring Car Championship (USTCC) season.
"Building on our involvement in the GRAND-AM KONI Challenge Series and in an effort to introduce the Kia brand to even more racing fans, apparel maker GoGoGear.com has created a highly modified version of the popular Soul urban passenger vehicle which will serve as the official pace car at several races throughout the 2010 US Touring Car Championship (USTCC) season."
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