I really wanted to take a different approach when covering the SEMA Show this year. In the past, it was a bit overwhelming trying to capture all the cool stuff in the many halls of the event so I really wanted to streamline my coverage. Now that we are doing more video than ever, I decided that it would be better if we focus more on that side of content. Being that the show is so busy and often crowded, it is difficult for me to do the long-exposure shots that I like to do for the cars inside the halls. The GoPro wide-angle lens really helps to cover a wider range when doing both film and photos so I decided to just do photo coverage while we did video. Obviously the photos aren’t nearly as good as it would be with a dSLR but the differences aren’t really that noticeable, particularly in digital format. Whenever one of us was capturing video content, the other was taking photos as well. I guess you can say that it was a much more “efficient” way of doing coverage than the past. The biggest difference other than doing more video is I know also have Der doing some photos. He’s not a photographer by any means but he does some pretty good work with the GoPro camera. I think the wide angle makes it easy for him to capture dynamic photos and most of the photos he captures is usually just for himself to play with on his phone. He was able to capture the event from his own perspective so I decided to mix it in with the photos that I shot…

Hopefully you guys have already seen the first two parts of the Vlog coverage of SEMA. If you haven’t I invite you to watch those now because there is still a lot of content coming and I don’t want you guys to be left behind. Getting the content up on the website has been the biggest problem lately because I’ve been busy entertaining some friends from Japan. They had been here since my Year 7 event and did not leave until early this morning. I spent a lot of my time showing them around and making sure they’re having a good experience here in America. They take care of all of us when we are in Japan so it is only right to provide them with the same gratitude. Now that everyone has gone home, I feel like I can lock myself inside the shop again away from the rest of the world to produce more content for you guys to see. I apologize if you guys prefer to see coverage through my usual camera instead of the GoPro but believe me when I tell you that I honestly do prefer doing coverage the old fashion way. It just works out better in times like this to use one camera for everything, especially when it comes to trying to cover an event of this size within the span of a few days…

Overall, Las Vegas was a blast. I hope it translates in the Vlogs but we really did have a great time as always. It is all very tiring of course and we are all getting older, which takes more time for us to recover, but I really wouldn’t have it any other way. The show itself was also great this year. I think this was one of the first years since I’ve been to SEMA where I actually looked forward to seeing a lot of the new builds that debuted within the SEMA Show. In the past, we just went just to go but this year, there was a sense of excitement because there were some pretty great builds that were coming out. The Rywire ITR was also making its world-debut at the SEMA Show so that was a big moment for us. Obviously it was a huge deal for Ryan but I think we as friends and supporters were all very excited and proud to see how the car would be received in a show like SEMA that brings automotive enthusiasts from all parts of the world, who all have different interests and styles. I’ll elaborate more on that when the time comes, but for now, enjoy the photos that Ryan Der and I captured on the first day of the 2015 SEMA Show…

WORDS BY STICKYDILJOE
PHOTOS BY STICKYDILJOE & RYAN DER

The CSF Radiators booth was responsible for hosting the debut of the Rywire Integra build. Ravi from CSF has worked closely with Ryan and Rywire to set-up their ideal display to reveal the Integra to the world. Being that Ryan’s Integra carries over many styling aspects that resemble his own Porsche 997 GT3 RS, Ryan decided to bring the Porsche as well to display alongside his Integra…

The reception of Ryan’s Integra build was pretty incredible and far beyond any of our expectations. We’ll discuss that more in the Vlogs when we get further into the coverage but seriously, it was pretty crazy just how well-received his build was among this melting-pot of automotive enthusiasts…

Ryan Basseri’s Porsche 997 GT3 RS with CSF cooling products installed by GMG Motorsports…

One of the most talked-about builds that debuted at the 2015 SEMA Show had to be “Rusty Slammington”, the old BMW E28 owned and built by Mike Burroughs from Stanceworks. The car was one of the more popular BMW builds of year’s past but many had wondered what had happened to the car after it was involved in a vehicle fire that ultimately destroyed much of it. At the 2015 SEMA Show, the world got to see exactly what happened to the BMW and how it has been resurrected in one-of-a-kind form…

There isn’t a whole lot of the original E28 left other than the rusted panels that have been modified to fit the new frame of the vehicle…

Rust is a big part of this build’s visual appeal and it holds true to its namesake. The panels have been so rusted-out that you couldn’t even make contact with it without taking some of the rust with you. I love how the sponsor logos have also been integrated into the visual aesthetic and have a matching weathered look to them…

Under the hood of the BMW is a race-prepped S38 engine that has been moved further back for ideal weight-distribution. At the SEMA event the motor had yet to be completed and did not fire-up, but Mike is most likely busy at work since the SEMA Show getting it running to quiet his naysayers…

The interior looks incredibly elaborate with pieces of the frame and the cage running everywhere. Even the seats are metal and you can clearly see the engine resting near the floor where one would normally put their legs and feet…

A look inside the trunk reveals a fuel cell that is fully plumbed and mounted onto the frame. The car is just filled with little details that really need to be seen in person to truly be appreciated. The car even has the same broken taillight it had in its original iteration…

The Lexus display area hosted a fleet of orange and blue custom Lexus vehicles. The one that caught my eye immediately was this RC F-Sport built by Lexus-Tuned featuring the new Rocket Bunny “Pandem” kit which offers a different “box flare” instead of the original kit which had a round blister panel…

I personally think the round flare flows better with the lines of the RC but the box flare doesn’t look too bad either….

Lexus GS F-Sport wearing the same orange tone but on black Advan Racing GT wheels…

I was really happy to see Jon Sibal’s new RWB Porsche 964 build in the H&R booth. Sibal is one of the first guys to really bring attention to the Rauh Welt brand years ago and it is only fitting that he finally acquired his own…

I’m also overjoyed to see that he used the Work Meister S1 wheel. I always felt like either the S1 wheel or the SSR Professor SP1 should be used as Nakai originally intended when he put his own Porsches together….

Center-exit exhaust coming out of the rear of Sibal’s 964 along with a plate bearing his name…

Outside in the Achilles Radial booth was Daigo Saito’s R35 GTR Formula D competition vehicle…

Most of you got to see my coverage from last year where we documented the build-up of the first-ever Rocket Bunny NSX. One calendar-year later, the NSX re-emerged at the SEMA event shedding its blue chrome in exchange for an all-white “snow bunny” look. Gone also are the Enkei-made Rocket Bunny 6666 wheels and in its place is a more traditional Volk Racing TE37 wheel…

Arriving at the 2015 SEMA Show all the way from Japan was the KUHL Racing Nissan GTR, with its one-off engraved paint work from ARTIS…

The IForged wheels display featured a slew of Rauh Welt Begriff builds of different generations…

This yellow 911 RS was a RWB build that we had not seen before….

Triple-tiered rear spoiler for this build from RWB LA…

Cool rear-hatched set-up with the vents cut for RWB-appreciation…

Bernard’s 993 RWB that was once owned by Creaminz and assembled by LTMW…

Endless V-Vision SC430 on Work Meister M1 wheels built by IP Auto Design…

Dominic Le’s “Hakotora” which is an old Datsun pick-up truck fused with a Hakosuka Skyline GTR front end by 09 Racing Japan. You can’t see it here but the truck also features a built SR20DET motor-swap…

Wild chop-topped Chevy Camaro laying on the floor of the Toyo Treadpass section…

4-Rotor 26B FD RX-7 with a full Fujita Engineering Afflux Ver. V aero kit…

One of my personal favorites of the 2015 SEMA Show was this Porsche 356 Speedster with full custom interior. Check out that Mcintosh amplifier that has been seamlessly integrated into custom boxes that resemble classic suitcases…

After Year 7 ended, Tom Syhachack took his turbocharged S2000 straight to Las Vegas to be displayed at the Meguiar’s booth at SEMA 2015…

I had a very entertaining and informative chat with Robb Ferguson while he went over his Rocket Bunny Boss S14 build with me. The car has all kinds of cool details to it but the centerpiece was this Tomei KA24DE turbo kit. Also notable are the first set of these particular Work Seeker wheels here in the U.S. as well as a pair of rare, discontinued Bride Histrix seats…

Ken Gushi’s Formula Drift 2JZ-GTE powered Scion FR-S which finished top three in the 2015 FD season series…

Vorsteiner-equipped Porsche 991 sitting on newly-released center-locking Advan Racing GT wheels…

Here is how the center-lock Advan Racing GT wheels look off the car in the Advan display area…

Awesome to see the Ring Brothers full carbon Mustang GT Fastback on display. It’ll be interesting to see just how awesome this build is once it is completed. Love how the custom taillights have a matching weave to the carbon shell of the Mustang…

This supercharged Lincoln Continental also was another great work-in-progress build on display at SEMA 2015…

Custom 1960 Cadillac Series 62 sedan built by Kindig-It Designs with a 454 Ram Jet engine…

1949 Cadillac convertible dubbed the “Golden Empress” featuring a rare vintage Horne intake manifold with four Stromberg carburetors…

1956 Chevrolet Bel Air sedan aka “Boosted Bela” wearing natural patina with a Vortech-supercharged GM LS3 crate engine…

RWB 964 Porsche on Fifteen52 wheels at the ST Suspensions booth…

It was great to finally see the Autofashion “Bluebird240” build debuted at the ENEOS display area. I had only seen this car once when it was in pieces a week before SEMA so I was interested to see how it looked after it was completed…

The main difference between the Autofashion Rocket Bunny S14 and the others that debuted that week was the custom front-end that utilizes E30 BMW headlights to resemble a classic Datsun Bluebird face. The BMW headlights are surrounded by a custom-made frame and grille, along with a custom carbon front lip…

Under the hood is a Vortech-supercharged GM LS engine which is currently in its final stages of being up and running…

Varis Arising II Nissan GTR featuring an HKS 4.1L Stroker Kit, GT1000 turbo kit, and GR6 transmission…

One of Der’s favorites at the 2015 SEMA event was the “Rampage Camaro” built by Roadster Shop…

Powering the 1970 Camaro is a 7.0L GM LS7 engine with Harrop Crossram fuel injection and a Jericho side-mounted 5-speed transmission…

The interior of the Rampage Camaro spotlighted by the MOTEC digital display and button pad…

Chassis-mounted rear wing and custom widebody panels of the Rampage Camaro…

The Roadster Shop build finished in the Top Ten SEMA “Battle of the Builders” competition along with a crazy truck build also from Roadster Shop…

This pristine 240Z build parked in the OS Giken booth featured the U.S. debut of their TC24-B1Z engine…

Tjin Edition 2016 Honda HRV with custom widebody treatment and bright pink paint…

MAD Industries custom Honda Grom…

Closing out the Day 1 coverage with a shot of Ludacris’ Acura Legend which was unveiled after it was restored by Acura of North America. For those wondering why Ludacris has this Legend, it is actually his beloved first car that he owned and has kept over the years since he became a film star and musician. He still drives the car all the time and Acura got a hold of the car after he was involved in an accident. Acura offered to restore the car for him and even added some upgrades for him. Cool to see a guy like Ludacris humble and never forgetting his roots….

Well, that’s all for now. I still have more photos and video to go over so stay tuned for a shit ton more content in the coming days and weeks. Thanks for looking!!