Ford Pulls Out of 2022 SEMA Show
A staple at SEMA for many years, Ford made the shocking announcement that they will not participate in the 2022 SEMA show.
Well, we didn’t see this one coming. The Ford Motor Company has been a key manufacturer at SEMA for many years. They bring concept cars, and drift teams, an off-road experience and much more. On top of that, just last year the Ford Bronco won SEMA 4×4/SUV of the year, and the Ford F-Series won full-size SEMA truck of the year.
And since we are Mustang fans here, let’s not forget the Ford Mustang won the SEMA 2021 best car to customize award. So, it comes as somewhat of a shock to learn that the 2022 SEMA show will not include Ford. There will still be Ford products there of course as custom builders are sure to show some amazing rides. But Ford corporate will not be in attendance.
On the SEMA website a statement was released which read in part, “Due to a change in corporate strategy, Ford and Honda will not be displaying at the 2022 SEMA Show. We appreciate their long-time support, and while many of us are going to miss their participation at this year’s Show, we are excited to see the Show take on a new look in Central Hall.
SEMA will continue to collaborate with both Ford and Honda on various SEMA programs, such as Tech Transfer and Measuring Sessions in 2022 and beyond.” Volkswagen will be a SEMA exhibitor for the first time at the 2022 show. Long time Ford rival Chevrolet will again be a presence at the show as well as Toyota, Lexus, and others.
What Happened?
There has been no official release from Ford regarding the decision which means we can only speculate at this point. Ford is making a major shift towards electric vehicles, and they are obviously focused on that. However, we think SEMA would have been a great place for them to display more EV technology. The next generation Mustang should be here soon.
Ford could have rolled it out at the 2022 SEMA show. There are plenty of reasons for them to be there. But we all know of the ongoing supply chain crisis. That combined with the Rivian investment losing value has resulted in substantial Q1 losses for Ford. Perhaps with this in mind Ford would rather focus on running and improving day to day operations instead of being distracted by SEMA.
Mustangs Still at SEMA
The Ford Motor Company might not be there, and that is a major bummer. But there will still likely be plenty of Mustangs and other Ford products to see. As we mentioned above the Mustang won as the best car to customize last year.
There are plenty of custom builders and vendors that will be bringing in Mustangs to show off their builds and/or their Mustang products. So, it is not like 2022 SEMA will be a total loss. But it will have a very different look compared to years past. Will Ford be back in 2023? We don’t know that right now. Hopefully this is just a one-year hiatus but all we know for certain now is that Ford will not be at the show this year.
Photos: Ford
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