As I walked through the SEMA show I caught myself having a serious case of automotive ADD, I could barely focus on one amazing build before the next shiny piece of machinery caught my eye. But I will say that some of the shiniest builds always seem to be in the BASF booth…not sure if it’s the paint or the skill of the teams behind the builds, but either way they are awesome! This year I was lucky enough to catch the unveiling of three custom builds BASF featured in their display.

First was JF Launier’s 1967 Acadian, finished in a custom red R-M ONYX HD paint. Of course the customization didn’t stop at the paint. The cool stripe detailing is complimented by the custom chrome details throughout the car, and a Katskin leather interior. This car is dubbed “Adiamo,” a play on the Spanish translation of Nova which is “no go.” Well this car will definitely go with an LS3 engine putting out 550 horsepower!

Next came Chip Foose’s customized 1933 Ford Coupe, which was finished just in the knick of time for this show. Chip shared the behind the scenes story of how a stray spark flew onto the completely taped and masked body, causing it to burst into flames. This happened just 8 days before the reveal, but you would never know it looking at this gleaming hot rod on the SEMA show floor. It is finished in a BASF Glasurit 90 Line custom blue and silver two-tone paint, with a killer LS3 Corvette motor built by Street & Performance under the hood. The body includes lots of custom Foose touches, including re-fabricated front fenders and grill. His head painter looked both proud and exhausted as Chip spoke and praised the build team.

As anyone can imagine, a Chip Foose build is a hard act to follow. But the Ringbrothers definitely did their thing, finishing off the BASF reveal with their customized “Espionage” 1965 Mustang. This ride is given a one-of-a-kind look by its wide carbon fiber body, which is extended 2” on each side. The original car was disassembled and each piece of the body was used to create molds for new carbon fiber components, a process that took more hours then the build team would like to count! Although everything on the body except the floor was rebuilt with carbon fiber components the final weight comes in at 3400 lbs, a few hundred pounds heavier than this model’s original spec weight. This modification didn’t make the car lighter, but instead makes up for the additional weight all of the performance machinery lurking beneath the carbon fiber shell. It might be hard to decide which side of the American Muscle rivalry this spy green Mustang is on, as its powered by a 427 cubic inch Chevy LS7 engine. Either way this ride is cranking out over 900 horsepower and looks good doing it. But there’s a back story to this reveal too…today was the first time the owner of this car was seeing it, and I don’t know if the build team was more nervous about revealing it to the public or their client. I had a chance to ask the owner what he thought of his new car as he looked it over for the first time. When asked if it was everything he expected, through a slight smile he replied that it was everything and more. When I learned he was originally from Russia I asked “why an American muscle car?” He explained that he loves the spirit of classic cars, in his opinion new cars have no soul. Well this Mustang definitely has an old soul, and a new life as an amazing performance machine.

Thanks to BASF and all three build teams for bringing these amazing rides to the 2015 SEMA show. I can’t wait to see what’s in store for next year’s show!