SEMA Show 2026: Dates, Debuts, and the Builds Worth Your Attention
Ford opens the show, Mopar teases a '27 badge, and GM isn't on the exhibitor list. Six questions SEMA should answer in Las Vegas, Nov. 3–6.
The SEMA Show opens at the Las Vegas Convention Center on Tuesday, Nov. 3, and runs through Friday, Nov. 6. For most of the week it is a trade-only event. Friday is the one public day, and it closes an hour early, at 4 p.m. Pacific, according to the show's official site.
This year's story starts with who is on the floor. SEMA's automaker list names Ford, Toyota, Honda Racing Corporation, Mitsubishi, Nissan, and Stellantis' Mopar, plus Harley-Davidson. General Motors and Hyundai aren't on it. For truck and SUV shoppers, the most practical question is what Ford adds to our 2027 Ford Bronco guide before the year ends. Here are six questions the show should answer.
1. What does Ford bring for the Bronco?
Ford takes the first press slot of the show, at 9 a.m. Tuesday in the West Hall. SEMA's press conference schedule frames the presentation around helping builders realize their ideas. That reads more like parts, packages, and customization programs than a production-car reveal.
It would fit Ford's recent moves. Last week it priced an $18,995 dealer-installed Bronco ORV package with FOX shocks and Bronco Raptor armor. The 2027 Bronco also spreads the 380-hp 3.0-liter EcoBoost V6 to more trims. The thing to watch is whether Ford shows parts for the 2027 trucks, not just the 2025–26 models the ORV kit fits.
2. What's behind the "Mopar '27" badge?
Mopar moves to a new spot in the West Hall this year, booth 59119, and its Oct. 21 announcement said little else. The single photo it released shows a blue "Mopar '27" badge on a carbon-trimmed dashboard with red stitching. There is no model and no powertrain in the frame.
The year on the badge has an obvious hook: Mopar, which started in 1937 as a line of antifreeze, turns 90 in 2027, per Stellantis' announcement. Whether that means an anniversary edition, a concept, or just a booth theme is open. Last year Mopar brought two street-machine concepts: The Dude, a Hemi-powered Ram 1500, and a parts-laden Dodge Charger Sixpack.
3. How big does Toyota go?
Toyota holds a walkaround at 10 a.m. Tuesday in the Central Hall, hosted by TV presenter Rutledge Wood. It hasn't published a build list yet. Toyota usually runs one of the largest automaker displays at SEMA, so volume is less in doubt than direction. Tacoma, 4Runner, and Tundra overland projects are the safe guess. Anything wearing a GR badge would be the bigger story.
4. What does GM's absence change?
GM isn't among the automakers SEMA lists for 2026, and no GM or Chevrolet Performance slot appears on the Oct. 12 press schedule. Chevrolets will still be everywhere, just not from Detroit. Granatelli Motor Sports, for one, plans to unveil a pair of 1973 Chevrolet trucks on Tuesday afternoon.
That cools two storylines. A Colorado Desert Boss reveal in Las Vegas now looks unlikely, and GM hasn't announced such a truck. And the first custom builds with GM's 555-hp 8.3-liter Duramax would have to come from independent shops, if the engine appears at all. GM could still turn up in some form. It just isn't on the program.
5. Can Mitsubishi, Nissan, and Honda steal some attention?
Mitsubishi holds a 9:30 a.m. Tuesday press conference, its first official SEMA presence since 2012. Nissan says its concepts will split three ways: heritage-inspired performance, off-road, and motorsports. Honda's racing arm, HRC, is using the show to debut the forged wheels and exhausts it starts selling in March 2027.
6. Who wins Battle of the Builders?
SEMA's builder competition narrows the field all week on the Central Hall stage. The top 40 cars are named Tuesday, the top 12 Wednesday, and the final four Thursday, each at 3:30 p.m. The overall automotive winner is announced Friday at 11 a.m., the one day the public can watch it happen.
What we don't know yet
- The actual debut lists. Automakers typically publish their SEMA builds in the final days before the show, and none of the seven has named a specific 2026 vehicle so far.
- Whether Ford has any production news, or only builds and parts.
- Which vehicle carries the Mopar '27 badge.
- Whether Hot Wheels has a SEMA role this year. Mattel's 2026 Legends Tour announcement describes a virtual Grand Finale in November and doesn't mention the show.
How to see it
Tuesday through Thursday, the show runs 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Pacific for trade attendees only. Friday, Nov. 6, opens to the public from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. SEMA Fest, the show's music and car-culture festival, takes place on the show campus the same day and needs a separate ticket.
We'll update this preview as automakers release their builds before Nov. 3, and cover each debut separately once the doors open.
