Dr.Jeff
True Classic
The 2022 SEMA Show was this week. Unfortunately I was only able to make two of the four days due to personal obligations at home. But overall the show was still very slow compared to pre-pandemic years....like about 40% less than normal (last year was down by 60%). Aside from fewer participants in general, most notable to me was two things: a definite lack of hot show girls at the booths, and the fewer number of show cars throughout the event. And that second one surprised me because I figured with the past three years having significantly fewer events and less distractions, a lot of builders would have been creating a plethora of amazing vehicles. Apparently not.
One show car that stood out to me was the Ferrari 308 by Mike Burroughs. Another (non-X1/9) mid-engine Honda K swap restomod:
www.speedhunters.com
Aside from the lack of headliner it was very well done.
With plans to hold a F1 race here in Vegas next year there's been some publicity for F1 in general. This week's show had a few F1 cars on display scattered here and there. Not the current year's cars naturally, but from the past season or two. A friend of mine works for a company that is involved with one of the F1 teams and they had a car on display. He allowed me to play with the car a bit. Very cool stuff to see, feel, experience directly. The steering wheels are amazing. I don't know how the drivers can focus on such a small screen that displays a ton of info while piloting the car around a track.
Another guy I know works at Nitrex. They make the machines that perform gas nitriding heat treatment to surfaces. He was there with a display as they want to grow their presence in the automotive industry. Their aim is to include the treatment process in OEM component manufacturing. But the company has also expanded from just making the equipment to now offering the nitriding services as well. So we discussed several potential applications in the aftermarket segment of the auto industry. He is a real car guy originally from the UK so he has an infinity for vintage cars. One component where he has found great results is with brakes. Not only the rotors but also inside calipers to prevent the pistons/bores from corroding and sticking. The idea that came to my mind is our old school "sliding wedge" brake calipers; treat the caliper/carrier and wedge to keep them from sticking and wearing out. Plus several other areas on the car that typically corrode and wear out. He asked me to send him some sample parts to experiment with.
The whole electric vehicle thing was bigger this year. But truthfully I have no interest in it so I really can't say much about who they were or what they had to show. However I get the feeling the 'vintage vehicle conversion' segment of the EV market is dominated by European companies. It just doesn't seem to be taking off here as it is elsewhere.
One small item to note follows a discussion we had on Xweb some time back regarding engine cooling system thermostats. MotoRad is one of my preferred T-stat makers so I stopped by to say hi. I happened to be talking to the head of product design so I asked him a technical question that has always been on the back of my mind. One of Motorad's specialities is a "high flow" option for many applications. I've often wondered just how much more flow they offer over their standard design units. He told me the vast majority of them give at least a 30% increase in fluid flow through the (fully open) stat over a standard one. That's significant!
I enjoyed meeting with the crews from Elring, Mahle, Brembo, Bosch, Koni, and so many more. Most of these guys I only see a few times a year at trade shows but I've known them for so many years we've become good friends. So it's like a huge family reunion. Sadly this year I was unable to get to many of the people I normally see there.
If I think of more to include I'll add to this later.
One show car that stood out to me was the Ferrari 308 by Mike Burroughs. Another (non-X1/9) mid-engine Honda K swap restomod:
Culture Clash: Mike Burroughs' K24 Ferrari Takes Over SEMA - Speedhunters
But for as long as we’ve covered it on Speedhunters, SEMA has divided opinions. It’s a pretty easy event to parody (I’ve lost count of the number of Bluetooth driveshaft memes I’ve seen over the years…), but I’ve always maintained that it’s an occasion where you can choose to take what you want...
www.speedhunters.com
With plans to hold a F1 race here in Vegas next year there's been some publicity for F1 in general. This week's show had a few F1 cars on display scattered here and there. Not the current year's cars naturally, but from the past season or two. A friend of mine works for a company that is involved with one of the F1 teams and they had a car on display. He allowed me to play with the car a bit. Very cool stuff to see, feel, experience directly. The steering wheels are amazing. I don't know how the drivers can focus on such a small screen that displays a ton of info while piloting the car around a track.
Another guy I know works at Nitrex. They make the machines that perform gas nitriding heat treatment to surfaces. He was there with a display as they want to grow their presence in the automotive industry. Their aim is to include the treatment process in OEM component manufacturing. But the company has also expanded from just making the equipment to now offering the nitriding services as well. So we discussed several potential applications in the aftermarket segment of the auto industry. He is a real car guy originally from the UK so he has an infinity for vintage cars. One component where he has found great results is with brakes. Not only the rotors but also inside calipers to prevent the pistons/bores from corroding and sticking. The idea that came to my mind is our old school "sliding wedge" brake calipers; treat the caliper/carrier and wedge to keep them from sticking and wearing out. Plus several other areas on the car that typically corrode and wear out. He asked me to send him some sample parts to experiment with.
The whole electric vehicle thing was bigger this year. But truthfully I have no interest in it so I really can't say much about who they were or what they had to show. However I get the feeling the 'vintage vehicle conversion' segment of the EV market is dominated by European companies. It just doesn't seem to be taking off here as it is elsewhere.
One small item to note follows a discussion we had on Xweb some time back regarding engine cooling system thermostats. MotoRad is one of my preferred T-stat makers so I stopped by to say hi. I happened to be talking to the head of product design so I asked him a technical question that has always been on the back of my mind. One of Motorad's specialities is a "high flow" option for many applications. I've often wondered just how much more flow they offer over their standard design units. He told me the vast majority of them give at least a 30% increase in fluid flow through the (fully open) stat over a standard one. That's significant!
I enjoyed meeting with the crews from Elring, Mahle, Brembo, Bosch, Koni, and so many more. Most of these guys I only see a few times a year at trade shows but I've known them for so many years we've become good friends. So it's like a huge family reunion. Sadly this year I was unable to get to many of the people I normally see there.
If I think of more to include I'll add to this later.
