Auto Shows Car reviews

The 2020 Ford Mustang Jack Roush Edition is a high-performance version of the sixth-generation Mustang designed by Roush Performance. Unveiled at the 2019 SEMA Show, the Jack Roush Edition is more than just another beefed-up Mustang. This special-edition model celebrates the legacy of its founder, Jack Roush, who was recently inducted in the NASCAR Hall of Fame.

Although it’s not particularly more aggressive than other Roush-made Mustangs, the Jack Roush Edition is the most powerful vehicle created by the American firm. Rated at 775 horsepower, it packs more punch than iconic Mustang nameplates like the Shelby GT500 and the Shelby Super Snake. Let’s find out more about this powerful beast in the review below.

A year after unveiling a tricked-out TRD version of the Avalon, Toyota is back at it with an even more radical setup for its resident full-size four-door sedan. It’s called the Toyota Avalon TRD Pro Concept, and it’s loaded to the brim with track-spec modifications that enhance every detail of the sedan.

From aerodynamic modifications to powertrain enhancements, the Avalon TRD Pro Concept has them all. It’s a fitting homage to TRD’s 40th anniversary, though it would probably be even cooler if Toyota has plans to produce it in some capacity. For now, we can enjoy the Avalon TRD Pro Concept for what it is: a glimpse into what a full-blown, track-spec Toyota Avalon could look like if it was left in the hands of TRD. Maybe someday we can also find out what it feels like to drive.

One of the baddest and meanest trucks to have graced this year’s SEMA Show is this Ford F-250 Super Duty Baja Forged by LGE-CTS Motorsports, a California-based aftermarket company. There is nothing to not like about this truck. It looks vintage, it has the ‘Baja’ identity, and it has the old-school persona attached to it. The Baja Forged Super Duty is an all-in-one mobile command center, workshop, and campsite that will be utilized as a chase truck for the Baja Forged Ford Ranger that was launched by the company at last year’s SEMA Show. Such is the versatility of the truck that even Ford calls this the “Swiss army knife for the modern adventurer.” Need we say anything more about it?

Nissan unveiled a Time Attack-spec Nissan 370Z built by Z1 Motorsport in conjunction with Nissan Motorsport that is bound to take the world of time attack racing by storm. With 750 horsepower on tap thanks to a pair of Garrett turbochargers, this 370Z is one of the craziest you’ll ever see. The widebody is made entirely out of carbon fiber, the interior is bare, and, to shed even more weight, the body was acid-dipped. In other words, the guys at Nissan and Z1 Motorsport stopped at nothing in their mission to turn what many consider an outdated sports car into a record-breaking track beast.

The Nissan Frontier Desert Runner doesn’t have the racing pedigree of the Nissan Global Time Attack TT 370Z or the sheer tuning audacity of the Nissan Kicks Street Sport, but if you’re looking for a rugged version of Nissan’s long-standing pickup with some serious off-road chops, the Frontier Desert Runner should be right up your alley. Developed by the Nissan Motorsports team in collaboration with MA Motorsports, the Frontier Desert Runner is teeming with purpose-specific upgrades that help enhance the pickup’s already impressive form and functionality. Nissan has yet to give any indication of potential production plans for the tricked-out pickup, but that could come soon if there’s decent enough demand for it. For now, though, the Nissan Frontier Desert Runner takes center stage at the 2019 SEMA Auto Show.

The Toyota Supra has arrived at the 2019 SEMA Auto Show, and in true form, we’re not just talking about one Supra at SEMA. Nope. There are multiple Supras in attendance at SEMA, each wearing a different alter-ego. One of these models is called the Supra Heritage Edition. It’s the most subtle of the Supras in SEMA, but it’s also the one that we identify with the most. Part of the Supra Heritage Edition’s appeal is its connection to the aftermarket tuning world. Toyota created it as an homage to the tuning scene, something that past versions of the Supra were all very familiar with. Granted, the Supra Heritage Edition doesn’t boast any of the over-the-top madness that past custom Supras could claim, but as a celebration of the relationship between the nameplate and the aftermarket tuning scene, the Supra Heritage Edition is as good as it gets.

With a modern Ford Bronco just around the corner, TV personality and car collector Jay Leno gave new life to a first-generation Bronco Wagon with help from Ford Performance and various aftermarket tuning shops. Shown to the public at the 2019 SEMA Show, this Bronco retains the looks of the original SUV, but it features modern underpinnings with a supercharged V-8 built by Ford Performance. The story behind the vehicle is quite interesting, as it was left for Jay Leno as a joke by fellow TV host Craig Ferguson. Leno kept the vehicle in his garage unrestored until he decided that it deserves a new life.

Various companies and shops contributed to the project, starting with Ford Performance, FoMoCo’s very own performance division. Kincer Chassis, Dennis Carpenter Ford Restoration Parts, SEMA Garage, and LGE-CTS Motorsports.

Ford teamed up with RTR to tag-team the 2020 Ranger and has brought two fine examples to the 2019 SEMA show. One of those concepts was the Ranger RTR, and the other is the Ranger RTR Rambler. While the Ranger RTR is already up for sale, will the Rambler prove that it has what it takes to makes its way to the showroom floor? Let’s take a look at what the Ford Ranger Rambler by RTR is all about!

The Ford Mustang Mach 1 UNKL is a one-of-a-kind restomod project created by Ringbrothers and showcased at the 2019 SEMA Show. The company’s first Mach 1-based project, UNKL joins a long list of cool Mustang restomods built by the company in recent years. The apparently weird UNKL name has a simple meaning, as this build was made for a customer "who enjoys a close relationship with his uncle" and "pays tribute to his uncle’s influence on his passion for cars." It’s nice to see a meaningful message behind a car name. Well, let’s find out more about this interesting project in the review below.

RAM’s penchant for rolling out special edition trucks has paved the way for the truck brand to introduce a new run of special edition models that pay tribute to the five branches of the United States military. The special edition trucks fall under the RAM 1500 Built To Serve Edition name. Each of the five armed services — Army, Navy, Air Force, Coast Guard, and Marines — will receive their own special edition treatment. It’s unclear which of the five will get rolled out first, but the specific launches will take place every three months, beginning next week when the truck brand hosts its own Veterans Day celebration on November 11.

The 2019 Nissan Kicks Street Sport is a concept car developed by Nissan Motorsports and MA Motorsports for the 2019 SEMA Show. A more aggressive version of the small crossover, it looks a lot like a Nismo-built model thanks to its sportier stance and race-inspired upgrades inside the cabin. It even features a more powerful engine, although specific performance information is not available. Sadly, this beefed-up Kicks won’t come to a dealerships near you anytime soon. Here’s why you should be upset about it.

The 2020 Dodge Challenger Drag Pak is the fourth-generation drag car based on FCA’s two-door muscle car. Based on the modern Challenger, like all its predecessors since 2008, it features drag-specific upgrades and its certified for NHRA and NMCA competitions. In short, it’s a turnkey package that turns the streetable Challenger into an ideal dragster for both amateur and professional racers. Let’s find out what’s new for the 2020 model year in the review below.

The 2020 Ford Escape is well-represented at the 2019 SEMA Auto Show. Three different versions of Ford’s hot-selling crossover are in attendance at the world’s largest auto show, including the Ford LGE-CTS Motorsports Urban Escape. As the name implies, the LGE-CTS Urban Escape is a stylish all-around crossover vehicle designed to tackle both urban and off-road environments. It comes with a smattering of upgrades in the form of new equipment and performance modifications, among other things. It’s not the fanciest tuned version of the Escape that’s at SEMA, but it is the one that a lot of people will no doubt gravitate to, in part because of its functionality and all-around usefulness in the real world.

The 2020 Shelby Super Snake Sport F-150 is a high-performance concept truck that Shelby built for the 2019 SEMA Show. Developed in response to Shelby "enthusiast’s requests for a scorching fast street truck," it’s essentially an F-150-based version of Shelby’s outstanding Super Snake Mustang. Unlike other F-Series trucks modified by Shelby, the Super Snake features a two-door cabin. Power comes from a supercharged V-8 rated at 755 horsepower, backed by a more aerodynamic exterior and exclusive features inside the cabin. Let’s find out more about it in the review below.

Chevrolet brought a very unique pickup truck to SEMA that is a sweet blend of the company’s rich history and the ‘electrifying’ future. Called the E-10 concept, the product has reincarnated from a 1962 Chevrolet C-10 pickup truck. If you’ve been following the concepts at SEMA this year, you will immediately strike a comparison with the Dodge Lowliner. However, this low-slung pickup truck comes with an electric powertrain under the hood. So, does this bold truck live up to the hype it has created over the last couple of days? It sure does!

The 2019 Ford Mustang Lithium is an all-electric version of the sixth-generation Mustang developed by Ford in collaboration with Webasto. Showcased at the 2019 SEMA Show, the Mustang Lithium is just a concept car, but it paves the way toward the Mustang-inspired electric SUV that Ford will launch in 2020. The latter is part of Ford’s plans to invest more than $11.5 billion in electric cars by 2022, so the Mustang Lithium likely features technology that will make it into production vehicles. Is this the future of Ford?

Another year, another Chevrolet COPO Camaro. That’s what we can expect at the 2019 SEMA Auto Show when the Bowtie unleashes its latest drag racing masterpiece. A total of 70 units of the 2020 Chevrolet COPO Camaro will be made, but only 69 will be unleashed to the masses. The other one — this one — is headed to the auction block, and if looks could fetch a million dollars, the one-off COPO Camaro John Force Edition will be drenched in a downpour of benjamins once it hits the auction block at Barrett-Jackson’s Scottsdale auction in January 2020. But before it takes the stage, the one-off Chevrolet COPO Camaro John Force Edition will be in attendance at the 2019 SEMA Auto Show. It’s probably the closest we’ll ever get to seeing it up close and personal before some deep-pocketed fellow brings it home with him next year.

The 2020 Ford Bronco R is a concept vehicle that Ford created to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the first-gen Bronco’s historic Baja 1000 win from 1969. Unveiled ahead of the 2019 SEMA Show, it’s the first real life incarnation of the modern Bronco and it previews a production crossover that will arrive in 2020.

The 2020 Bronco R was unveiled alongside the first-gen Bronco that Rod Hall and Larry Minor drove to an overall win 50 years ago at the 1969 Baja 1000. It features a similar livery, so it makes it easier to draw a design parallel between the two. The concept is fully functional and will be used as a test bed for the Bronco’s production drivetrain. The 2020 Bronco R will also be raced by Shelby Hall, the granddaughter of the late Rod Hall, at the 2019 Baja 1000.

The 2020 Mustang Shelby GT500 is a speed demon in itself but here comes the Shelby GT500 Dragon Snake, a vehicle that Shelby says it designed and developed for blistering performance on the drag strip. The GT500 Dragon Snake packs north of 800 horsepower, is said to be lighter than the regular GT500, and it also puts the power down more efficiently thanks to a retuned transmission and other bits and bobs.

We know the 2020 Shelby GT500 is theoretically capable of blazing from naught to 60 miles per hour in 3.3 seconds and run the quarter mile in 10.7 seconds. Car and Driver, however, estimates that under normal conditions, on regular pavement (i.e. in the absence of a drag race-prepped surface), the Shelby GT500 will need 3.5 seconds to hit 60 miles per hour and about 11 seconds to clear the quarter mile. So, we must ask: can the new 2020 GT500 Dragon Snake accelerate to 60 miles per hour in less than three seconds and match the Demon’s 2.3-second 0-60 sprint? Let’s find out.

Volkswagen will be in attendance at the 2019 SEMA Auto Show, and it’s bringing with it a host of tricked-out SUVs that are built for the American outdoors. Arguably the coolest of these concepts is the Atlas Adventure Concept. It looks the part of an SUV that can handle itself in the Nevada desert with the kind of ease you won’t see from a lot of SUVs offered at SEMA. It comes with a menu of unique equipment, including a clever housing accommodation setup that should make it comfortable for you and yours to enjoy a good night’s sleep under the stars. The Volkswagen Atlas Adventure Concept is one of three Atlas concepts that will be on display at Volkswagen’s booth in the world’s biggest aftermarket auto show.

Aftermarket companies love SEMA. It is the one hot spot that garners attention from all over the world and allows aftermarket companies to highlight their creations without worrying about automakers stealing the limelight. Mopar, one of the biggest aftermarket parts suppliers (and one that is backed by Dodge,) is gracing the show with its presence. The company has worked on two trucks, one being the Dodge Lowliner Concept, and the other one, the Ram Rebel 1500 OTG. OTG, by the way, stands for Off The Grid. Unlike the Lowliner, the Rebel 1500 OTG is a practical concept and could very well make its way into production. Will Ram consider making it a mainstream model?