Report from SEMA 2009
Factory Five Hot Rods Make A Statement
 

The 2009 SEMA Show is officially in the books and it was a great one!  This year's show was different in many ways.  There was a huge focus on emissions and green technology.  Big news from GM Performance Parts as they unveiled an emissions legal 430 HP LS3 "Green Rod" engine perfect for Factory Five customers.  This engine promises to make it a lot easier to register custom built cars as the engine and controls package is CARB (California Air Resources Board) certified and catalyzed!

The Ford boys pulled out all the stops and America's only car company to not accept Government money seems to be prospering with a tremendous new selection of cars and trucks.

We did something completely different this year.  We had so many well built and varied versions of our Hot Rod, we decided to fill our booth with only one model.  This is quite a departure from previous years where our booth would typically display one of each of the Factory Five models.  This decision was made easier by the fact that SEMA officials selected four Factory Fives to highlight their "Featured Vehicles" area.  The cars selected included a GTM, a Factory Five Coupe, and two additional '33 Hot Rods. 

The GTM that was selected by SEMA belongs to FFR customer Jud Shutts from Hollister, CA.  His black LS-powered street car was simply flawless and SEMA placed this car at the main entrance to the entire show!  During the show, Jud was asked by the executives at Capstone Turbines if they could use his car at the upcoming LA Auto Show.  More on the featured vehicles later.
 

 
Our booth sported some of the finest eye candy the show has to offer. SKJ Customs, AMP=D, and SoFast Racing all built Factory Fives for the show and the results were nothing but phenomenal. Each FFR Hot Rod was unique and brought something completely different to the table from SKJ's 1,500 HP NHRA drag car to a fully electric BEV from the guys at Amp=D.  It was hugely entertaining to watch the spies from Shelby American cruising our booth, scratching their heads wondering where all the replicas went.

 
 

Mike North and the guys from AMP=D brought a '33 powered by a Power Phase 225 kW electric motor with twin 440v A123 batteries.  This car was built as part of a cable TV pilot episode that will likely air in the spring.

Fara S. of SoFast racing brought his '33 to the show with an immaculate paint job to match the land speed world record holding Type '65 Coupe he built. Rob Kinnan, editor of Hot Rod magazines '33 was also in our booth sporting it's Ford Racing 347 ci engine. Finishing off the impressive fleet we already had was a couple of Factory Five GTM's.
 
 

The black GTM of Jud Shutts in the Featured Vehicles area was joined by Gary C's gold and black GTM displayed in the iForged booth.

LK Motorsports also returned to SEMA this year with their '33 Hot Rod. Last year It was in the Green Zone and this year it is a featured vehicle positioned right next to the Ford Racing booth.
 
 

Another impressive build came from RT Rods. Race Safro who is only 16 years old not only built their '33 Hot Rod, but made some modifications that were far beyond his years. With a little help from his father, Jay, the car turned out beautifully.
 
 
The sheer number, variety, and quality of the Factory Five cars in attendance at the 2009 SEMA Show was jaw-dropping.  The crowds in the Factory Five booth were heavy each day of the four day show and in a year where the industry seemed to taking a breather, Factory Five was steaming ahead with new products and new customers.