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home > news > Business > New SEMA Garage Shaping Future of Auto Aftermarket

It’s an otherwise nondescript building tucked in amidst an assortment of faceless offices and warehouses in the western Detroit suburbs. But inside the 45,000-square-foot structure the future of the automotive aftermarket is taking shape.

Since almost the moment the first automobiles rolled out, buyers have found ways to customize them, whether adding a bud vase on the instrument panel or bolting on a supercharger to boost performance. For the members of the Specialty Equipment Market Association that adds up to about $42 billion in annual sales today.

But the auto industry is in the midst of the most dramatic transformation it’s faced since those early years. Sedans, coupes and sports cars are rapidly fading into oblivion as millions of buyers migrate to SUVs, CUVs and pickups. The easily replaced radio in the instrument panel has been supplanted by deeply integrated infotainment technology. Indeed, virtually every aspect of today’s vehicle is digitally controlled. That includes the powertrain where internal combustion engines are beginning to be phased out in favor of electric drive technology.

Such changes pose significant challenges to aftermarket suppliers — though they also present tremendous opportunities, says Ben Kaminsky, the auto industry veteran who has spent the last 18 months overseeing construction at the new SEMA Garage in Detroit.

“We’re trying to help our members develop new products” that will find a niche in today’s changing automotive world, “Full stop,” said Kaminsky as he showed a visitor around the dust-covered facility ahead of its Aug. 18 grand opening.

The term “aftermarket” is a nebulous one, covering a vast array of different products and offerings. A sizable portion of SEMA’s membership focuses on appearance and convenience items — everything from in-car air fresheners to decals to SUV brush guards. There’s growing demand for electronics. And, of course, there’s the performance side which covers everything from custom shocks to “crate” engines.

But aftermarket suppliers are struggling to adapt to changing consumer demands, new technology and increasingly stringent regulations. Federal regulators are “trying to crack down” on products that don’t meet emissions and safety standards, said Kaminsky. That was underscored earlier this year when Spartan Diesel Technologies founder Matthew Sydney Geouge was sentenced to 366 days in jail for selling “systems to boost the performance of diesel-powered Ford pickups” — while also spewing out plumes of choking black smoke, earning them the nickname, “rolling coal.”

The new operation in Detroit is actually one of two SEMA Garages, the original one opening in Diamond Bar, California in 2013. The Motown facility will be larger of the two and significantly more advanced. At an initial cost of $12.5 million, it will be “the single largest investment SEMA has ever made,” said Kaminsky. And it will take advantage of the fact that scores of engineering centers, operated by automakers domestic and foreign, are based in and around Motown. The region also has key testing labs run by government agencies such as the EPA.

The Garage has rooms full of dynamometers and other gear that can be used to test and calibrate performance products. That includes the ability to comply with the latest standards set by the California Air Resources Board — generally the toughest in the nation.

Significantly, the facility will be able to assist SEMA members hoping to develop parts and accessories for the next generation of electrified vehicles.

That’s going to be critical if aftermarket suppliers hope to survive the nascent transition to battery power, said Tim Kuniskis, the head of Stellantis performance brand Dodge — which is launching the plug-in hybrid Hornet R/T for 2023 , with an all-electric muscle car coming for 2024.

While it’s a particular challenge, in today’s environment, to develop new drivetrain products, that’s not the only arena in which SEMA members have to adapt. Gone are the days when the only silicon circuits in a car were found in the radio. Today’s vehicles can have more than 100 microprocessors onboard.

The new SEMA Garage has been designed to work for suppliers of electronic technologies, especially those whose products might affect a vehicle’s advanced driver assistance systems. And the facility will also work with suppliers whose products could impact the security of a vehicle — as well as the privacy of its owner.

Even the most basic aftermarket parts have to adapt to an ongoing technological revolution. The new garage can access an automaker’s digital CAD data, making it easier to design things like add-on body parts, or even floor mats that are now laser-cut.

Kaminsky also plans to have the Garage use additive manufacturing technology — also known as 3D printing — to quickly create and test prototype parts.

“The SEMA Garage is a game-changer,” Mike Spagnola, the trade group’s vice president of product development, said when the Detroit project was announced. “It opens up new doors and opportunities,” he added, and will “take our current offerings to a whole new level by making the services accessible to new members, incorporating new technology, and collaborating with key partners.”

For consumers, SEMA is betting that the new facility will ensure a steady flow of new aftermarket products that can enhance both the look and performance of their vehicles well into the future.

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