It's been said that the true mark of fame is when only one name is necessary. Shaq and Britney need no intro in popular culture. Likewise, say SEMA to those in the performance parts industry, and you don't have to say Specialty Equipment Market Association or denote you likely mean the major-league parts-show shindig in Las Vegas every November.
The huge, four-day, four-hall SEMA show can no longer be seen by a single person-there are too many booths and too many parts to eyeball. With a bit of specialization, however, it's possible to bypass the neon light ven-dors and the pickup bedliner folks and zero in on Mustangs and Fords, as we do. Then SEMA becomes a great way to see what's up for next year as manufacturers trot out their new stuff.
For Ford fans, 2003 was a mixed bag. There were definitely interesting parts debuting-especially for the Focus-but there was also some restraint in the market in anticipation of the '05 Mustang. And, as the SEMA show is all about the newest stuff, there were few Mustang show cars on hand (just wait until next year). Also remarkable was the immense footprint Ford corporate has chosen to make at SEMA. With booth area at least three times larger than anyone else and a rumored budget of $2 million for the show, Ford was determined to completely outclass the competition, which it did with new show cars, a couple transporter loads of his-torical Fords, and the expected Ford GT turning away on its lazy Susan.
We hate to throw stones at Ford (again), but last year it cut back its parts on display from FRPP in favor of show cars. While this year's display did devote considerable high-quality real estate to the parts program, it was still mainly devoid of parts, at what is a parts-oriented show. Maybe next year.
As an in-between year for Ford parts, there was no real theme to the new aftermarket offerings. BBK and Trick Flow brought out significant new 5.0 intake manifolds, '03-'04 Mustang Cobra heat exchangers were a hot topic, and Focus parts continue to multiply (the exhaust market finally seems established, so we're seeing more hard parts such as camshafts and connecting rods).
But as the photos and captions show, there was plenty of new stuff to go around. And just wait until next year!
AFCO
We know the factory intercooler cores on the '03-'04 Cobras and current Lightning trucks are quite efficient, but an easy way to improve their ability to chill inlet air temps, thus compensating for big boost, is to add a high-capacity heat exchanger. Afco Racing Products [(800) 208-2121; www.afcoracing.com] was offering direct-replacement aluminum units for the aforementioned vehicles with prices in the mid-$400 range. The company doesn't promise huge temperature decreases, rather a lower stabilized temperature across the board, which should allow a bit more timing with big boost. And that means even more power from these amazing rides.
ATI-ProCharger
Jim Summers at ProCharger [(913) 338-2886; www.procharger.com] pushed the idea of swapping an ATI blower for the '03 Cobra's stock Eaton supercharger. The resulting Stage 1 prototype drew large interest at the show because it was unexpected, seemingly extravagant at first glance, yet clearly capable of big numbers and making good sense thanks to the purpose-built blower engine in the Cobra. According to Dan Jones of ATI, a P-1SC2 self-contained blower head blowing through the stock aftercooler is used in Stage 1 and is good out of the box for 575 rwhp, with an upper limit of 650 rwhp. The Stage 2 version uses an F-Series blower and an air-to-air intercooler in addition to the stock water-to-air unit, to provide 22 pounds of boost and all the power desired. The Stage 2 was in development at show time, so details were few. Expect mid-$3,000 pricing on Stage 1 kits and a mid-$5,000 tag for the Stage 2.