At SEMA 2018, the Ironman Stewart Toyota Trophy Truck Rules
Major auto manufacturers use the annual SEMA aftermarket show in Las Vegas to showcase new models, concept cars, and parts and accessories. Sometimes brands will bring old vehicles to display, too, either to introduce new parts or just to show off how cool the brand used to be (and, they hope, still is). This year, Toyota brought a 1990s-era Trophy Truck raced by Ivan "Ironman" Stewart, and it was easily the raddest thing at the show.
Ironman Stewart is one of the most decorated off-road racers ever, with three Baja 1000 wins and more than 80 total racing victories. He started racing for Toyota in 1983 and went on to win two of those Baja 1000 events with them, racking up a total of 17 Baja 500 victories and 34 overall wins. The nickname Ironman commemorates his solo win of the Baja 1000-other teams generally have two or three drivers. Although he retired from racing in 2000, Stewart still works with Toyota and its Toyota Racing Development (TRD) division, sponsoring racing teams and acting as a coach. (Toyota even created a special-edition Ivan Stewart Tundra pickup a few years ago.)
One of Stewart's Baja 1000 wins was in a Toyota Trophy Truck like this one, which was built for use in the SCORE off-road racing series. A carbon-fiber and Kevlar body covers a hand-built aluminum chassis, and the truck is powered by a racing version of the T100 pickup's V-6. The truck has 22 inches of suspension travel up front and 26 inches in the rear, which is helpful when you're bounding off jumps in a 3900-pound racing truck. The whole thing is topped off by the classic four-color Toyota Racing livery.
Even better than Ironman's truck, though, was what was on the show floor next to it: An Ivan "Ironman" Stewart's Super Off Road arcade game. Seeing the arcade cabinet instantly brought back memories from our childhoods of the superb game, so we obviously dropped everything we were doing to play a few rounds.
It was the most popular video game in the United States in 1989, the year of its release, according to Toyota, and it's easy to see why. The pixelated graphics, 8-bit music, and cabinet art are all charming, but the gameplay is what was really seared into our minds as kids. Each of the three players gets an individual steering wheel, which endlessly spins, making the game easy to play one-handed. The tracks are tight and full of jumps and obstacles, and the Nitro button makes everything even crazier. The ability to upgrade your truck keeps you putting in quarters again and again-as does the desire to destroy your friends in a race.
When automakers play on nostalgia at auto shows, their efforts can seem like shallow ploys to attract attention, especially if there isn't much else to show. Toyota had plenty of great new vehicles on display, though, so having the bonus of the Trophy Truck and matching Ironman game was just a cherry on top.
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