Fall can mean a lot of things to different people–cooler air, a time for holidays and family, leaves beginning to turn, even a tell tail for the oncoming winter. For those of us deeply rooted in the automotive world, more specifically the world of car customization and tuning, we all think SEMA. SEMA stands for Specialty Equipment Market Association and has been in existence since 1963. Now consisting of almost 6.5 thousand companies worldwide, the SEMA show held in Las Vegas, Nevada brings together car lovers from all corners of the globe.

There are vehicles of all sorts present, both old and new, lowered, lifted, road racing, off-road, and the like. If you can think of it, it’s probably there along with all of the companies that produce the products to build these awesome creations. For Corvette Online we naturally focus on the Corvettes and the products geared towards America’s sports car.

Featured Vehicles

GM has done a great job over the years with the Corvette, and many people believe the car is best left in this condition, and we believe every Corvette owner is correct in what suits their own car. That being said, SEMA showcases a lot of great products for the Vette owners who prefer to make some changes to their cars.

We have two small car features generated from SEMA about these two awesome examples, the red C2 – Optima Ultimate Street Car, as well as the blue C7 – Magnuson Superchargers car. These are very interesting builds and deserve a look.

Chevrolet’s Contribution

In the main hall, on the floor in Chevrolet’s area, were four Corvette’s that managed to draw quite a bit of attention. Luckily, a few of us were invited to see an early viewing of these cars Monday night with great food and drinks thanks to both Chevy and Chevrolet Performance.

The red and silver Stingray had been restyled with the help of KISS member, Paul Stanley. Along with black metallic wheels, the roof, grille, and mirrors were done in silver, while the logos over the rear fenders were sprayed in a dark red tone. 
The Stingray was also fitted with a new cream-colored leather interior, accented with a tall diamond pattern in the seat stitching.

Up next was NASCAR driver Jimmy Johnson’s personal project, a 1971 Corvette Stingray. This C3 looks almost stock on the outside aside from a few styling updates, but has the brakes, driveline, and motor of a more modern car. Along with the new LT1 crate motor.

Another car that we were more then enthralled to see reappear was the infamous ZR1 “Blue Devil” that took a hellward plunge that night at the National Corvette Museum. This car looks, and we assume drives, just as well as it did the day it rolled out of the plant and has since returned to its proper home at the NCM for all to enjoy.

Lastly, and most popular as you can see by the crowd trying to get an up-close peek, was the 2015 C7 Z06 convertible, shown here equipped with the Z07 package. The Z06 is highly anticipated, and with GM’s announcement of surpassing 5,000 preorders several weeks ago, it is sure to be a big seller.

Cool Vettes and Car Control

Between the bright yellow paint and custom carbon fiber tastefully adorning their C7, we couldn’t help but notice the Stingray parked in the booth belonging to TruFiber. One of the first things we noticed was TruFiber’s logo in the hood which we later learned was actually woven into the cloth before production. Between the ground effects and accent pieces, this car really took on an even more exotic look. Well done.

The Ron Fellows Performance Driving School was showcasing their excellent car control paired with C7 Stingrays by taking folks for a hot lap around a little course positioned behind the main hall. As you can see here, all three drivers were happy to hang the rear end out, and we could even hear a few of the passenger’s reactions. Good times!

Shown here is a car very familiar to Corvette Online and hopefully will be surfacing again for future projects. As you can see the car is now a wide-body sporting some rather large fenders, nicely filled by some wild, hollow spoked wheels. While this car has its share of customizations, we were to quick to notice the “flux capacitor” pictured above which remarkably runs on 12 volts.

Thank you SEMA

While the level of aftermarket accessories for Corvettes could not nearly amount to those available to the off-road and import car scenes, the stuff we did find looked to be built with pride and care for the consumer. If you get the chance, we all would recommend that you visit at least one SEMA Show in your lifetime, just don’t forget to wear comfortable shoes!