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2026 Ford Maverick ReviewRutledge Wood Shows off Toyota’s 2024 SEMA Builds
Television host Rutledge Wood shows the best Toyotas at the SEMA 2024 show. Models pay tribute to Toyota's legacy off-road and on the track.
Toyota Shines at SEMA 2024
Some of you might not have seen Rutledge Wood since the last episode of Top Gear USA aired eight years ago. Since then, he’s been a part of Toyota‘s brand ambassador team, covering the SEMA expo every year. This affords him the right to showcase a collection of custom rigs based on OEM Toyota vehicles, both past and present, that most people will never see in person, let alone get up close to. 2024’s SEMA show was no exception. Let’s take a look at the highlights.
Apart from Rutledge looking a little grey in the beard lately, the man carried the same charisma and energy as during his Top Gear days when he introduced the Toyota booth at SEMA 2024.
Richard Petty and the Toyota Suprabird
No sooner did he start his monologue than a genuine piece of NASCAR royalty, Richard Petty, joined the stage to introduce Mr. Petty’s latest Superbird tribute, the “Suprabird.”
That’s right; the long-time Mopar racing icon is now a Toyota brand ambassador. In fairness, Dodge hasn’t been around for over a decade in NASCAR Cup racing, and Plymouth doesn’t exist anymore. That means the ever-controversial fifth-generation Toyota Supra gets the distinction of being the next official Richard Petty tribute vehicle to his 1970 NASCAR Cup racer. With color-matching paint, graphics, and decals, plus a wicked set of blue alloy wheels and low-profile tires, it’s at least the most striking gen-V Supra we’ve seen. The miniature model on the dashboard was cute, too.
Toyota Shows off Amazing Off-Roaders
But as admirers and honored guests of Mr. Petty mingled around the Suprabird, Rutledge took the opportunity to move to the next item. This 2025 Land Cruiser was re-imagined by the Calty Design Research team in California, takes inspiration from Land Cruisers of old, and applies modern touches to make a body kit quite unlike what you’d find in a showroom floor. That said, much of what was on display can be bought directly from Toyota OEM accessories store. Next to that, a Land Cruiser body kit from the Toyota subsidiary Modellista looked more like a video game rig than something real people can drive.
Meanwhile, the Land Cruiser Classic Adventurer Cruiser, with its retro decal set and polished metal hubcaps, has got all the flare of Land Cruisers of old. Just with far more tech and features this time around. It’s safe to call Rutlege’s 2J-Swapped Toyota Pickup his own personal favorite at the Toyota booth. He’s done the school run for his daughters in that truck. Dad of the Year status? Very possibly. But it’s hard to argue that the Toyota RAV-X concept intended to inform future production models gives a sneak peek at what a future off-road-focused RAV4 might look like.
Off-road Packages Galore from TRD
Tundras, Tacomas, 4Runners, and Sequoias of all shapes and sizes were on hand to fully display how dedicated to the aftermarket Toyota truly is at SEMA. Special off-road upgrade packages through Toyota’s TRD and TRD Pro line put particular emphasis on the off-road end of the model range. The Tacoma TRD ProRunner Race Concept might be the flashiest vehicle on the stage, not inspired by Richard Petty.
Its graphics and deal set contrast with BFG Mud-Terrain tires with colorized sidewall lettering bursting with color in a way most pickups never will. The Ultimate Tailgate Tundra, chocked to the brim with exterior retractable screens and storage space for barbeque and camping gear, is a different but equally awesome vibe. Certainly a different tune than the pickup trucks Ford Performance chose to occupy space in the adjacent convention hall.
Close by, the Sequoia SR5 TRD Sport, complete with 20-inch TRD wheels, all-terrain tires, and a suite of OEM aftermarket trim pieces inside and out, gives a real alternative to a Tahoe Z71 or Ford Explorer Timberline. Better still, you can pick and choose which aftermarket goodies you want through certified Toyota parts dealers with genuine OEM accessories. But of all the Toyotas on the showroom floor at SEMA, the 4Runner TRD Surf concept has to be the most exciting.
4Runner TRD Surf, GR Corolla, and More
With a name at least in part inspired by the Toyota Hilux Surf of JDM fame, the 4Runner TRD Surf’s semi-open-top design with a rear roll hoop and storage space for surfboards takes its title far more literally. Elsewhere, a smattering of GR86s, one GR Corolla (soon to come in automatic), and a stock Land Cruiser to contrast against all the custom stuff made for one of the most stacked booths at the SEMA show in 2024.
As Rutledge made his way around the stage for one last hot lap, there was a sense that Toyota put more stock into SEMA than any OEM at the show this year. While so many didn’t bother to show up, the sheer square footage of real estate dedicated to a considerable bulk of the current Toyota lineup was nothing short of impressive. At a show dedicated to the aftermarket, sometimes the automakers themselves get to show out.
