By now the resto-mod phenomenon -- that is, restoring an old car with updated and/or custom components and modern amenities -- is well-established. Over the past decade, it has become popular among aging enthusiasts looking to relive past glories or build the car they wish they’d had in high school. With a twist, of course.

 

With enough thought, time and money thrown into the project, a resto-mod can make for a fun occasional driver. But they are rarely ideal -- and by that we mean these rides are almost never hassle-free. Sure, they are often more powerful and have superior handling and braking capabilities than their forebears. But timed-out rubber parts, long-forgotten hidden damage, fatigued metal and ancient technologies can conspire to turn these dream cars into surreal nightmares quickly, and often without notice.

 

So why not come at the target from the opposite direction? Start with a new-model vehicle and make it look like a classic. Sounds logical, right?

 

Our SEMA coverage might focus on the cool cars, trucks and SUVs on display at the Las Vegas Convention Center, but they are only part of the story. SEMA is actually all about the gadgets and accessories that you can buy to soup up your ride, and electronics are a huge part of that. From bumpin' car-stereo systems to slick remote-start devices, here are our picks for the eight coolest, most innovative and most useful of these new "plug and play" offerings.

 

 

iMotion CarPlay Direct Connect

Monster’s iMotion CarPlay Direct Connect charging device features an innovative in-car hand motion control connection that lets drivers use simple hand gestures to control their iPod, iPhone or iPad. You may look like a lunatic, but total control will be yours. Price yet to be announced; www.monstercable.com​

 

 

 

Cobra iRadar iPhone Detection System

You may be looking at the future of radar detection. The Cobra iRadar links your radar detector with your iPhone, via Bluetooth, letting you view radar alerts, control settings, log alert history and be warned of upcoming speed and red-light cameras right through your iPhone’s display. It also allows you to control radar-detection settings through your iPhone. $170; www.cobra.com

 

Hybrids found themselves on unfamiliar ground here in Las Vegas: Under the spotlight at the SEMA show.

This aftermarket show is all about generating horsepower -- a mindset counter-intuitive to hybrids' "green" side. And yet it was power-tuned hybrids that dominated two separate booths.

Honda featured the CR-Z gas-electric, with examples ranging from Bisimoto Engineering’s turbocharged 533-horsepower monster to styling exercises with body kits and basic engine bolt-ons. Lexus featured the LS 600h L and HS 250h hybrids, both tuned with big wheels, slammed suspensions and pristine paint.

 

 

Two SEMA must-haves: booth babes and muscle cars. And while the babes are forever young, the muscle cars are continuously upgraded in their quest for automotive immortality. A few go the classic restoration route -- cast-iron manifolds and poverty hubcaps -- but most celebrate the latest fashion of big wheels, heavily modified chassis and mega-horsepower, creating what is in reality a new breed of modern muscle. Here are five we’d take home to mother:

 

Mopar 1970 Plymouth Barracuda

Look up “muscle car” in the dictionary and you’ll find a photo of a Hemi 'Cuda -- which explains why the Mopar booth was showing this original 1970 Plymouth 'Cuda, built by Delany Auto Design. The first thing to catch your eye is the Grass Green PPG paint, but as the guys hanging around the hood in this picture show, the 572-cubic-inch Hemi from Stanton Racing Engines was another big attraction.

 

Is it possible that Porsche thinks some of the spark has gone out of the company’s relationship with its customers? The German manufacturer has announced a program to restore a 1973 911 T Coupe to auction off as a tribute to the automaker’s considerable sports-car history. There’s no denying that Porsche continues to have one of the purest bloodlines of any automaker, but the past decade has revealed a company that’s evolved well beyond being a niche sports-car maker and into one with a keen sense of market demands.

That sense has invariably led Porsche to pastures previously not trodden with models like the massive Cayenne and similarly bloated Panamera. Despite initial grumblings by press and enthusiasts alike, Porsche’s recent moves have paid massive dividends, allowing the company to continue to produce some of the best-engineered sports cars on the planet.

That doesn’t mean Porsche is exactly following the blueprint created by its forebears, though. 

SEMA show cars are about form, function and flash. Few are practical -- in fact, a number of them don’t even roll under their own power -- and that’s OK. This show isn’t about practicality. It’s about the ultimate expression of passion, performance and style.

 

Tuner cars are a big part of the mix here in Las Vegas. While mostly associated with Asian brands, a tuner car is actually defined as any stock or factory-default automobile with, or suitable for, aftermarket modifications meant to enhance speed, power or style.

 

More Pictures from SEMA

 

You’ll find them on every aisle in the Las Vegas Convention Center. Here are our choices for the top five tuners here in Sin City.

 

Honda CR-Z by Fortune

Motorsports/Tjin Edition

This clean and functional build doesn’t go overboard with the actual cosmetic modifications. A carbon-fiber hood and front lip, sportier mirrors and custom Track Spec ADV10 wheels are about all the exterior modifications you can see. Underneath the sheet metal, you’ll find Baer Racing brake upgrades and Air Lift suspension, adding to the CR-Z’s fun-to-drive factor. Inside, an Image Dynamics audio setup, custom gauges, Trent’s Trick Upholstery and Status Racing goods add ambience.