Mere steps away from the fabulously un-trendy Las Vegas Hilton hotel, the Las Vegas Convention Center is normally a drab place, a grand hall that will never appear on any "must visit" tourist lists. But for four short days in early November, the LVCC comes to life. Porsches, Hondas, Camaros, Silverados and Nissans join forces and mix it up in one of the greatest annual gatherings of automotive love. New concept vehicles, brand new product releases, company debuts, and technology advancements were the name of the game at this year's SEMA Show.
Title manufacturer sponsor American Honda Motor Company Inc. came to the show featuring a host of new 2006 Civic Si's modified by the likes of Skunk2 Racing, Nitto Tires, K&N Air Filters, Motegi Wheels and GReddy. Representing the non-Honda side, GReddy and Cusco both sported new 4th-gen Mitsubishi Eclipse's, with the former running a 3.8L turbocharged V6 engine. The SEMA Proving Ground provided the showcase for drift demonstrations and gut-wrenching ride-alongs, while numerous booth angels provided a much needed saliva-inducing break from the show. New project vehicles from APR Performance (WRX STi), TEIN (S15 Silvia), K&N Air Filters (G35), and Power Enterprise (RX-8) made their debut, while SEMA's outer halls had more modified cars on display than a police impound lot.
From turbochargers to car audio (and everything in between), you better visit SEMA if you love modifying your ride. Seeing and touching products first-hand, such as Project Mu two-piece brake rotors, Power Enterprise's 2006 WRX bolt-in V-mount intercooler kit, the Kumho concept scented Ecsta SPT tire, HKS' bolt-in xB turbo kit, Quaife's new 350Z LSD and Exedy's triple-plate Impreza clutch kit is something you can't do anywhere else under one roof. Just don't get sucked into the Las Vegas excess mentality, if you open your wallet for everything at SEMA that you want to buy, you'd better get used to being in Vegas. Or else you'll be selling your body downtown for years just to pay everything off.