Just when you thought bling bling and dubs were all played out, along comes the SEMA show with even blingier, bigger dubs. Manufacturers showed off their wildest wares, and Mitsubishi even made an important product announcement.
SEMA 2004, which takes place in Las Vegas from November 2 to 5, is the car show that kids care about. SEMA, the Specialty Equipment Manufacturer Association show, is all about excess; wheels, body kits, clear bras, and spokesmodels number in the thousands.
The Ralliart Endeavor that Mitsubishi is showing is so low we thought it was a Lancer wagon. It rides on 20" Enkei wheels complemented by a SuperAutoBacs lowering kit. Inside you will find a Pioneer navigation system and Sony Playstation 2 connected to a Mitsubishi (how about that?) 30" LCD screen.
Also at the Mitsubishi display is a Ralliart Galant powered by a 260-hp 3.8 liter mated to a 6-speed manual gearbox, both of which will be available on the upcoming 2006 Eclipse. Mitsubishi squeezed 19" Racing Hart wheels under the car and added 4-piston Brembos for extra stopping power. This concept hints at a production Ralliart Galant that will likely appear in 2006.
Sport Ute Splendor
With their prevalence in popular culture, it's not surprising that this year's show had its share of pimped 4x4s. Here are some of our favorites.
This silver TechArt Porsche Cayenne has been lowered to station wagon-like heights. Which is fine with us. It features black wheels, a trend at this year's show as some companies inch away from bling.
Caroll Shelby featured a number of vehicles at the show, including this extreme Expedition. The flared wheel wells give it an almost Mustang-like charm. Almost.
"That's a Volvo?" was something commonly asked as people walked by this red Volvo-modified "Power Utility Vehicle" XC90, adorned with a widebody kit and Ferrari Challenge Stradale-like front fender badges. Except that isn't a stallion, it's a moose.
Ford modified this Super Duty with treads in place of tires. While this might be practical at ski resorts, we wouldn't want it in our driveway.
The Best of the Rest
Some things can't be grouped into categories, but are still worth a look. These are a few of our favorite "others."
Just a few months after its official release, the new Porsche '997' 911 has found itself a new pair of shoes from 9ff.
The Realtime Acura TSX race car finds a place next to its RSX brother at the Honda display.
This Legacy has a Bosal exhaust, and it appears to be a favorite of the Subaru girls.
Alpine showed off this highly modified Mini speedster. They got rid of the doors and roof and installed seating for one. Every imaginable Alpine component resides within.
With the CXT, International is taking another stab at the consumer market (remember the Scout?). Here, it is dressed in the most intricate camo we have ever seen. It has a winch in the bed to hoist your daily kill into the back effortlessly. Look for a full review in a few months.
Wheel vendors were showing off the latest technology they could squeeze into a spinning piece of metal, such as this one with LEDs built into it. The photo doesn't show it well, but these MHT wheels can show off patterns or even text as they spin. Next year, watch for streaming video on MHT wheels. Unreal!
What better way to top off your new Phantom than with a nice set of diamond wheels from Asanti? No, they aren't real, but would you really want to get brake dust all over millions of dollars of diamonds? And would you even buy multi-million-dollar wheels?
The diamonds in these Porsche Cayenne wheels are a bit less in-your-face, perhaps even classy.