Light Truck and SUV Blogs

Another SEMA show has come and gone. My body has recuperated (both mentally and physically) from not only the four days of SEMA, but from finishing the customization of Project Tundra in the week before the show (can you say, “crunch time?”) and ferrying the truck from Wisconsin to Vegas and back. 

SEMA was a huge success for the Light Truck and SUV team. I came away with some great editorial ideas and a lot of new product information. The debut appearance of Project Tundra created quite the buzz in the truck and SUV hall. Dean Loucks, the artist who created the custom paint job for us, says on his website, “Can you handle the attention?” Well Dean, we were quite pleased with the attention your paint job created. It was likely responsible for quite a few neck sprains and dead digital camera batteries at the show.

We would like to thank everyone who participated in our SEMA Squares contest at the show. The winners of the contest were:

• Flat-panel Plasma HDTV — John Sayler, Phaster Motorsports, Henderson, NV
• TruXedo Tonneau Cover — Stephen Buntich, Caruthers Auto Supply, La Canada, CA
• Freedom Grill — Dan Major, Tube Service Co., Phoenix, AZ
• TruckBedz truck bed mattress — Rena Garcia, Rena’s Signs, Brentwood, CA

It doesn’t seem like a whole year has passed since last year’s SEMA show. Last year was my first SEMA, and I made a few rookie mistakes. My first mistake was scheduling appointments 30 minutes apart during the show. My second mistake was wearing dress shoes at the show (even though they were well broken in). Another mistake was not getting enough rest at night (an easy mistake to make in Vegas).

Well, I did learn from my mistakes. I scheduled my meetings in one-hour intervals this year. This gave me plenty of time to make it from one meeting to the next without having to sprint from one meeting to the next. I wore my black Nike sports shoes instead of dress shoes (and my feet thanked me for it). As far as adequate rest goes, I only spent one late night (ahem, early morning) out on the town. It was Halloween night, and I couldn’t pass up spending Halloween on the strip with Dean and Mark from The Art of Design and a couple of coworkers.

Be sure to read each issue of Light Truck and SUV magazine as we bring you product news from the show and highlight our Project Tundra customization.

As far as highlights from Halloween night, all I have to say is, “What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas.”

Thanks for reading!

Joe Escobar

Where has the time gone? It seems like just a few months ago that I was at my first SEMA, walking around with numb, blistered feet. For a first timer, it can be an overwhelming experience. Heck, it can be overwhelming for a veteran as well. I came back from my first SEMA with a lot of news and product information and a digital camera loaded with pics of products and some awesome project vehicles.

Here are a few tips I learned from my first SEMA show:

• Wear comfortable shoes.
• It is impossible to walk the whole show floor — have a game plan and stick to it.
• Get plenty of rest.
• In the absence rest, at least make sure you have comfortable shoes.
• Drink plenty of fluids (and no, adult beverages do not count).
• Did I mention to wear comfortable shoes? 

So, with less than two weeks left to go until this year’s SEMA show, we are very busy here at the magazine. In addition to the usual activity centered around planning for SEMA, we have additional projects to keep us busy, namely completing our vehicle customization – Project Tundra. We picked up the truck from The Art of Design this morning, and it is in Chicago at FlexFuel U.S. for an E-85 conversion. From there, it goes to Maxxsonics for completion of the sound system. We get it back to the office on Thursday for completion of the installs. It’s crunch time.

If you are going to be at SEMA, be sure to stop by our booth (31921) and see the completed project. You can also read more about Project Tundra in upcoming issues of Light Truck and SUV and on www.LightTruckAndSUV.com.

Thanks for reading,

Joe Escobar

Project Tundra is coming along nicely. With just under a month to go before the SEMA show, everything seems to be falling into place.

I delivered the truck two weeks ago to Elkhart, Indiana-based The Art Of Design (TAOD). Dean Loucks is the owner of the company (or artist in residence as he likes to say). He has designed the paint scheme for Project Tundra that is based on multi-layered paint applications and true flame techniques. The truck will sport a custom-designed paint job using Akzo Nobel paints. Of course, the Light Truck and SUV logo will be incorporated and prominently displayed on the truck.

You can see some of TAOD’s work at www.taod.org

I pick up the truck from TAOD later this week to continue the installs for the truck. If you will be at SEMA later this month, be sure to stop by booth 31921 to see the finished vehicle!

Thanks for reading,

Joe Escobar

Forrest Gump liked to use the phrase, “Stupid is as stupid does.” Well, a news item I just read fits that statement to a tee.

Trucks and SUV owners often have shops install alarm systems in order to protect their investment. And for a good reason — it appears some dregs of society enjoy taking joy rides in stolen trucks and SUVs.

Newsnet5.com reported yesterday that a truck was stolen from Sheffield Lake, Ohio (in the Cleveland area) the other day. The truck was later recovered in Westlake, about 14 miles from Sheffield Lake, where an SUV had been reported stolen.

Seems the truck thief wanted to upgrade to an SUV and swapped vehicles.

The SUV was later found in Sheffield Lake – right back where the first truck was stolen.

Oddly enough, the thief put gas in the stolen SUV before abandoning it. What the heck was he thinking? If the SUV was low on gas, why steal it in the first place? If it was running out of gas, why not just abandon it and trade up once again?

It gets even better. You see, police knew that the thief had put gas in the SUV because he left a receipt from the gas station in the vehicle. The police went to the store and reviewed security tapes. There, in plain view, was the thief waiting to pay for the gas he put in the stolen SUV.

Stupid is as stupid does.

You can read the news story and see a picture of the idiot here.

Thanks for reading.

Joe Escobar

If you keep up with current events, you are aware of the sub-prime mortgage problems affecting the U.S. You see, a few years ago, lending institutions were luring potential homeowners (with lower than average credit) special “sub-prime” mortgages. These would allow people with lower credit scores to get into a house. The benefit? The ability to get a mortgage. Lower payments during the first few years. The drawback? Everything else. High interest. Higher payments once the introductory period ends.

Now, many of those sub-prime mortgages are maturing and transitioning over to higher payments. As a result, economists are expecting a record-number of foreclosures in the upcoming years. Already, 2007 has seen a skyrocketing number of foreclosures.

So, you may be thinking, “Joe, what the hell does this have to do with my truck and SUV accessory business? I don’t sell houses.”

Well, I’m glad you asked.

This sub-prime crisis has started an avalanche. Markets (even international ones) have declined. Credit companies are tightening their belts on who can now get a loan. People with less-than-perfect credit are now having a harder time getting approved for loans.

This definitely affects aftermarket accessory businesses. You see, August new vehicle sales figures have just been released (and the market overall has seen a decline). Just about every report you read mentions two factors affecting declining sales. Number one, a lot of people have less disposable income because of increased mortgage payments. Second, because of the tightening of the credit belt, less people are being approved for new car loans.

Less loans being approved means less new vehicle sales.

Less new vehicle sales — less new vehicles to accessorize.

And that affects the sales in truck and SUV accessory shops.

What do you think? How do you think this will affect your business?

Joe Escobar

A friend of mind who passed away recently used to tell people, “You don’t know what you don’t know.” I have found that to be very true in the last nine months as we have attempted to launch a Light Truck and SUV project vehicle.

The road began in November of last year after the SEMA show. I asked my publisher, “Why can’t we coordinate a project vehicle?” He couldn’t give me a reason, so I got the ball rolling. I didn’t know what a long process it would be.

Within a couple of weeks, word had leaked out about the proposed vehicle. Aftermarket manufacturers already wanted to be involved with the build. The list of products was growing, and we didn’t even have a vehicle yet — we were still trying to figure out how we could acquire one. I didn’t know how quickly it would snowball and almost obtain a life of its own.

I happened to be talking to a PR professional about one of her customer’s products. I mentioned how I needed to acquire a vehicle soon so that we could start our project. She told me she might be able to talk one of the aftermarket manufacturers she works with into donating a vehicle to us. Thanks to her, we got an offer for a donated Ford F-150. But there was a small problem — the truck had been used by a sales guy and was three years old with almost 200,000 miles on it. That wouldn’t work for a show-quality project vehicle. I didn’t know I should have been more specific on what we were looking for in a vehicle.

So we re-grouped and tried to figure out another path. Low and behold, I received SEMA’s newsletter announcing that Ford was accepting applications for 2007 project vehicles. I thought, “This is just what we have been waiting for.” I put together a proposal and sent it to Ford. That was in January. The second week in May, we received our answer. It basically said our proposal didn’t fit into Ford’s marketing plan, and there were others that were “more closely aligned with this year’s program objectives.” After talking to several of our advertisers, I came to the realization that I didn’t know Ford is one of the tougher OEMs to work with when it comes to project vehicle donations.

Thanks to a tip from one of our advertisers, we ended up contacting Toyota about acquiring a Toyota Tundra for our project. I didn’t know about Toyota’s prototype vehicle program. Had I known this nine months ago, and how relatively painless the application process would be, I would have submitted our proposal to Toyota to begin with.

Well, we got an e-mail yesterday from Toyota. We have been approved for a 2007 Toyota Double Cab 4×4. We should be taking posession of it in a few weeks. Now the race to SEMA starts.

 Light Truck and SUV’s Project Tundra is now rolling. We have a lot to coordinate between now and SEMA. We won’t have the truck completely customized for the show (it will be a two-year project). But we should have the paint job and a few other projects completed by SEMA.

This whole process has been a learning experience for us. I didn’t know what we were getting into when I came up with this idea nine months ago. Now that it is underway, I am excited to begin installations and writing about them in the magazine and here on the website.

Based on what I have experienced so far, I would have to say that patience and persistence are two good traits to have when working on a project like this. What words of wisdom would you give to someone thinking about launching their first project vehicle?

Thanks for reading!

Joe Escobar

Well, the June new vehicle sales statistics are out, and it doesn’t look good for Detroit’s big three. All three manufacturers reported a decline in June sales compared to a year ago.

GM had its worst month in nine years as its sales of automobiles and light trucks fell almost 25 percent. Its market share dropped to 21.7 percent (its lowest since August 1998 according to Autodata).

Sales at Ford fell 8.2 percent to 245,939.

DaimlerChrysler’s sales declined 1.8 percent to 202,966.

While the big three reported losses, it was exactly the opposite for Japanese auto manufacturers. All three Japanese manufacturers reported increases in sales.

Several things appear to have helped this recent surge in Japanese new vehicle sales. The yen is weak (it costs less US dollars to buy a vehicle that was manufactured in Japan). Gas prices are high (consumers are looking more into more fuel efficient vehicles – and Japanese manufacturers have more vehicles in this category).

What was most alarming for Detroit was light truck and SUV sales. GM reported a drop in truck and SUV sales of 22.9 percent (a drop of 23.5 percent for Silverado sales). Ford F-series sales remained flat. By contrast, Toyota reported that it more than doubled sales of the full-size Tundra pickup.

It appears that incentives will increase this summer as auto manufacturers fiercely compete for truck and SUV sales. Although increasing incentives to help boost sales would mean less profit margin for the automakers, it could mean more new vehicles (that can be accessorized) being sold.

And wouldn’t we all like to see that happen?

Thanks for reading!

Joe Escobar

Last week, General Mills announced that it would be increasing the price of their cereals. The company says the reason for the price is increased costs of ingredients and fuel.

General Mills will be raising the price in an interesting way. It will lower the cost per box.

Yes, that’s right — it is lowering the cost per box.

One might wonder how decreasing the price per box increases the price of the cereal. Simple — the company will make the boxes smaller. So, even though the customer will be paying less per box, they will actually be paying more for the cereal.

I wonder if any other manufacturers will pick up on the price game General Mills is using. What if this concept were applied to trucks and SUVs? Think about it. What do you think the average truck or SUV owner is more sensitive to — how far he or she can get on a tank of gas, or how much it costs to fill it up? My bet is the latter. So, why not make the gas tanks a little smaller? That way even though the customer is having to fill up a little more often, it will cost them less each time they fill up the vehicle. It could have a huge psychological effect. Instead of thinking he or she has to take out a second mortgage to finance their fill up, they can think, “I filled up my SUV for only $60.00.”

It sounds crazy, but crazier things have been tried in the past.

What do you think?

Joe Escobar

Most truck and SUV accessories on the market cause heads to turn. Shiny chrome, lifts, and performance exhaust systems have all caused occasional neck strains from onlookers. But one ornamental “accessory” flying off the shelves is causing people to react strongly. From laughs of amusement to grimaces of disgust and anger, anatomically realistic testicles dangling from truck and SUV hitches are causing people to, well, go nuts. There are several products out there. Truck Nuts, Big Ballz, TruckNutz and Bulls Balls are a few examples. (Apparently there is enough room in the gonad business to keep multiple manufacturers in business.)

Although these ornamental accessories have been around for a while, recent publicity has caused an increase in sales. You see more of them dangling down the road. And as can be expected, the increase in nuts on the road is causing a backlash. Just this past Sunday, the Arizona Daily Star published a story by Andrea Kelly titled Sexy truck adornments tickle some, bug others. Kelly’s article shares that while some onlookers laugh in amusement, many, especially those with young children, are offended by the ornaments. And yes, legislation even surfaced trying to ban the decadent decorations. Earlier this year, LeRoy Myers, a Republican in the Maryland House of Delegates, filed legislation to ban hitch huevos. And so not to just pick on male genetalia, the bill would have also banned mudflaps with depictions of naked human breasts, buttocks or genitals, with offenses punishable by fines of up to $500.00.

The bill did not become law. In fact, it didn’t even go to the floor for a vote.

I conducted an informal, totally un-scientific poll here at the office. I asked six of my co-workers what they thought of truck nuts. I asked three males and three females. Three of them, two males and one female, thought they were funny. The other three, two females and one male, thought they were disgusting. Dead tie.

So, what do you think? Truck nuts — funny or obscene? Do you think legislators are right in trying to ban them?

Thanks for reading!

Joe Escobar

The big news this morning is that Chrysler has been sold to the private equity firm Cerberus Capital Management for $7.4 billion.

Cerberus is named after the three-headed creature from Greek mythology that guarded the gates of Hades. Cerberus had a snake for a tail, and was also seen depicted with a dragon’s tail and serpentine mane. Cerberus guarded the gates, ensuring that the souls of the dead could enter but none could exit. It also ensured no living person could enter Hades.

But don’t expect this modern-day Cerberus to just sit at the gate guarding the company. If you know how private equity firms work, you know that this three-headed dog will transform the bowels of Chrysler not with a whine, or even a bark, but with a vicious and determined bite. It will focus on inefficiencies that drag down productivity and profits. It will do everything it can to make Chrysler as profitable as possible, with the ultimate goal of selling the company down the road for a huge return of investment.

I imagine there are a few fat-cats that are terrified by this news of Cerberus purchasing Chrysler. Can you say concessions?

Speaking of concessions, the response by one unions is strange. An Associated Press story that appeared on SFGate.com reports that earlier this year, United Auto Workers President Ron Gettelfinger warned that a private equity buyer would “strip and flip” the company by selling it off in pieces. But apparently Gettelfinger is the one who has flipped. He now says, “We made the pitch all the way home that we wanted the Chrysler Group to stay under the Daimler umbrella but it’s not there. The decision has been made, we’re supportive of it.”

TIme will tell what the transformed company will look like. It will be interesting to see how the transformation affects future Chrysler vehicles.

Thanks for reading.

Joe Escobar