By Ben Lovrien
Metra Electronics®is set to return with two booths at the 2021 SEMA Show with booth 12141 in the North Hall and its off-roading and powersports products on display at booth 61041 in the new West Hall. Marketing the company’s 75th anniversary in manufacturing, they will showcase new product releases while also taking visitors on a journey to look at products from the past to the present – demonstrating their innovations over these milestone decades.
In 1946 at a little shop in Brooklyn, New York, founder Michael M. Somma was fixing and selling TVs and FM radios. Not too long after, the shop began creating FM radios specifically for cars under the name MetraVox and discovered a big demand for installations in taxi cabs. Taxi drivers spent their entire workday in their vehicle and now they could enjoy listening to the radio. Naturally, Metra’s radio kits were a success. At this point, the business split into a new entity focusing entirely on car audio, called Metra Electronics. Metra manufactured complete radio installation kits that included wiring and harnesses, becoming a pioneer in the car audio industry.
In the early 2000s, Metra grew and created Axxess® for vehicle integration and Tsunami® for car audio wiring and audio installation accessories. Tsunami’s brand name evolved into the T-Spec® and Raptor® product lines. In 2003, Axxess introduced interfaces to retain the door chimes in Chevrolet. The Install Bay® brand was also created to offer all of a shop’s hardware essentials in one place, becoming the largest product line in the Metra portfolio. To complete an aftermarket audio installation, Metra created Shuriken High Performance Batteries® along with Ballistic® sound damping. In 2014, Heise LED Lighting® became its premiere LED lighting brand, soon followed by iBEAM Vehicle Safety Systems®, AmmoTenna®, Metra PowerSports®, Saddle Tramp®, Metra Marine®, Daytona Lights®, and a product line of accessories dedicated entirely to Jeeps®.
In 2001, Metra applied its expertise in car audio connectivity to create Ethereal Home Theater®, a division specifically for HDMI® products and home theater systems. Today, this division has been rebranded as MetraAV® and has grown to include Ethereal®, Velox®, Spyclops®, and Helios® product lines. MetraAV is now known as one of the most reliable manufacturers for premium residential and commercial integration products.
At the SEMA Show, new product highlights will include a growing lineup of dash kits and integration products designed to bring upgraded sound systems into older and newer vehicles. Metra will also showcase accessories and lighting packages designed for Jeep® Wrangler and Gladiator, new RGB and RGBW lighting kits, redesigned LED lightbars from Heise, and new monitors and cameras from iBEAM. In the off-road/powersports booth, attendees will see universal audio products plus audio accessories designed specifically for Polaris® and Can-Am® UTVs. Daytona Lights will also expand its value series of LED lights, doubling its product offerings.
