SEMA Show Offers Toyota Opportunity, Insight

For an automaker like Toyota, the annual Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) Show in Las Vegas offers a unique opportunity.

After all, it’s not just a place to put its vehicles and concept creations on display — it’s a one-stop shop to meet with suppliers, scope out industry trends, and gauge interest and enthusiasm for some of the potential products it’s planning. Remember the days before black wheels were all the rage? We can’t, either, but there’s little doubt the trend took off thanks in large part to the SEMA Show.

It was a particularly packed show floor for Toyota this year, and not just because of the number of vehicles that were sharing space in the brand’s display. The parts and accessories scattered throughout — including on the vehicles themselves — offer all kinds of insight into the various directions Toyota is looking as it bolsters the enthusiast focus of its entire lineup.

“There’s really a handful of reasons why we’re here,” Nicholas Miller, senior marketing manager with Toyota Motor North America (TMNA), said of the company’s presence at the SEMA Show. “One of (them) is to show the auto enthusiast community that we’re just as crazy about cars as they are.”

To prove it, Toyota brought a broad spectrum of products ranging from absolutely wild — the quintuplet of Snowhunter concepts sporting tracks rather than wheels, for example — to comparably mild, all of which provide a chance to invoke a response. And according to Miller, there’s intention behind all of it, not all of which is measurable through data and spreadsheets.

“It gives us a lot of research opportunities,” he said. “But not only that, we have the opportunity to inspire people.”

Beyond the visual impact of the tracks, the majority of the changes made to the Snowhunter concepts were accomplished using existing parts and accessories available directly through Toyota dealers. Those include suspension lift kits, control arms, roof baskets, and more, while others are in the exploratory stages.

Among them is the internally developed TrailLift Pro rack system — a conceptual truck cap that can be lowered for easier access to cargo like bikes. It also features side compartments with integrated MOLLE panels and more.

“Whatever your outdoor adventure, this really has an application that’ll work best,” Miller said. “Again, it’s a concept, but … if there’s enough of a positive response, it’s something we might entertain bringing to market.”

And, of course, there are entire vehicles that are just as creative, including the Crown Signia GT-S concept. Long among this author’s personal picks for practicality and efficiency, the purpose-built SEMA Show concept cranks up the cool factor with a performance focus — a stark contrast to the Crown Signia Woodland that was also on display.

It’s certainly a head-turner, with a wide and low stance, the latter of which was created using a custom coilover kit that drops the ride height by about 127 mm (5.0 in) compared to the stock Crown Signia. Beyond the custom bodywork and big wheels, the one-off version borrows its brakes from the Canadian-made Lexus RX 500h F Sport.

“This is one of the cool parts about SEMA, is we can come in and build something like that and gauge the response from the public,” Miller said of the Crown Signia GT-S concept. “If there’s enough positive feedback … it’s something we may see a couple years down the road.”