Best in Show

Best in Show

               It used to be that car designers and makers shunned custom car shows, but today they flock to events like SEMA in Las Vegas. Mazda is leading the way with production-ready concepts. Parkway Family Mazda realizes that not long ago, any car designer worth their salt wouldn’t have been caught dead at a custom car show like SEMA (Specialty Equipment Market Association), but at last November’s show in Las Vegas, you couldn’t move for car designers rubbing shoulders in their thousand-dollar suits, statement glasses and Italian loafers. Car designers, it seems, have fallen in love with the custom scene, making their attendance at this annual event almost obligatory. It’s becoming a similar story for carmakers, with Mazda at the forefront. Mazda has been a regular exhibitor at SEMA since 2001. Lately, the task of overseeing the company’s booth has fallen to Derek Jenkins, Mazda U.S. Head of Design at its California studio. At the latest show, Mazda unveiled not one but four all-new concepts-a clear signal of how serious the brand is taking the biggest custom car show. What’s the thinking behind this?

                Jenkins explains: “SEMA has always been a show where anything goes. A place where customization, personalization, and, hell, bastardization is celebrated and that’s why I’m personally attracted to it. SEMA is a place where people feel free to experiment and create without boundaries. It’s inspiring.”

                “Of course, occasionally it does go very wrong,” he admits, referring to some of the more personal projects that can be politely described as an “acquired taste.”

With the influx of car designers joining Mazda to exhibit at SEMA. Jenkins is eager to stress the very different approach that Mazda takes in preparing for the show. Some of the new kids on the block slap together design sketches, but hand over the customizing process to one of the many independent car shops that have sprung up in recent years in California. “Mazda does it differently,” says Jenkins.

“When we create a concept to SEMA, we do everything at our design an R&D center in Irvine. That makes a huge difference. A shop might be great at interpreting a design, but it will never be able to reflect the brand intent. Our customers know everything that goes into the design and quality of every Mazda so they can distinguish between our SEMA offering and an aftermarket job.”

The Mazda concepts have production levels of build and quality, and have even spent time in the wind tunnel, a crucial stage of the process that many others skip. These concepts look production ready, because they are production ready. That said, Jenkins can appreciate why a wilder-at-heart customer goes aftermarket, especially when it comes to big wheels. Some people simply can’t resist putting 21-inch rims under their Mazda3-although Jenkins doesn’t recommend it.

Since it first appeared at custom car shows in the ‘90s, the big wheel is one trend that has shaped car design. Other trends, like matte finishes, underscore the importance of shows like SEMA. “SEMA might sometimes feel like a circus, but it remains a pulse check of what’s going on at the grassroots level,” says Jenkins, who’s already preparing for next year’s show.

Parkway Family Mazda has been proud of the production ready concepts that have been unveiled so far. We realize that Jenkins’ process is proven and we look forward to what’s in store for next year’s show in Las Vegas.