SEMA Announces Design Awards

Three new vehicles and one new Hybrid vehicle were recipients of the 2007 SEMA Vehicle Design Awards announced today at the SEMA Show.
The awards are presented to the most accessory-friendly vehicle in four separate categories, Car, Truck, SUV and SEMA’s newest category, Hybrid. The Toyota Tundra took top honors in the Truck category, the Ford Shelby GT 500 won in the Car category and the Jeep Wrangler won in the SUV category.
The newest award for the most accessory-friendly Hybrid vehicle went to the Chevrolet Silverado Classic.
Each SEMA Vehicle Design Award recipient was part of a selection process that encompassed SEMA member companies and automakers who regularly participate in technology sharing programs.
These programs consist of various data sharing, measurement sessions and technology transfer initiatives which provide valuable information for each specialty equipment manufacturer to be in sync with the launch of new vehicles.
The SEMA Vehicle Design Awards were established to honor those newly introduced vehicles that best exemplify the alliance between the OEMs and SEMA-member companies.
The awards recognize and celebrate the vehicles that a select group of voting members has chosen as the most accessory-friendly vehicles of the year.
“This is a very exciting time for the specialty equipment industry because there are so many accessory-friendly vehicles available this year, including several new Hybrids, which allowed us to create the new category,” said Carl Sheffer, SEMA vice president, OEM relations.
“The competition this year was intense and with so many new Hybrids on the market, the future is especially bright for the industry.”
SEMA, the Specialty Equipment Market Association founded in 1963, represents the $34 billion specialty automotive industry of 6,817 member-companies.
It is the authoritative source for research, data, trends and market growth information for the specialty auto parts industry.
The industry provides appearance, performance, comfort, convenience and technology products for passenger and recreational vehicles.