Edelbrock

Edelbrock, LLC is an American manufacturer of specialty automotive and motorcycle parts. The company is headquartered in the Memphis area (specifically Olive Branch, Mississippi), with a Southern California R&D Tech Center located in Cerritos, CA. The Edelbrock Sand Cast and Permanent Mold Manufacturing foundries are located in San Jacinto, CA. Edelbrock has two facilities in North Carolina: the Edelbrock Carburetor Division in Sanford, and the Edelbrock Race Center in Mooresville.

Vic Edelbrock founded the corporation in 1938 when his desire to increase the performance of his 1932 Ford Roadster led him to design a new intake manifold,[3] friends and fellow drivers soon wanted one as well. This transformed his repair garage into a parts manufacturing enterprise, making one-of-a-kind equipment for automobiles.

History

Origins

Vic Edelbrock Sr. was born in a small farming community of Eudora, Kansas in 1913. After the family grocery store burned down in 1927, he left school at the age of 14 to help support the family by ferrying Model T Fords from Wichita to the many outlying farms in the area. The frequent stops to replace parts that shook loose on the region's dirt roads made him an expert at impromptu repair work.

Growth

In 1962, cancer claimed the life of Victor Edelbrock, Sr. at the age of 49. At the time, the company consisted of ten employees and annual sales were $450,000.[22] Edelbrock was succeeded by his only son, 26-year-old Vic Edelbrock, Jr.[23] Vic Jr., who had graduated with a degree in business from USC in 1958, became president and chief executive officer, a position he held until 2010.[24]

The company joined SEMA (the Specialty Equipment Market Association) as a charter member in the 1960s, with Vic Edelbrock, Jr. serving as president from 1971 to 1974. Edelbrock had been elected in a crucial time in the history of SEMA;[11] Congress enacted the Clean Air Act in 1971 and established the Environmental Protection Agency, which targeted the air pollution caused by internal combustion engines.[4]

When gas prices soared in the 1970s, Edelbrock produced its Streetmaster line of intake manifolds that featured improved mileage, as well as performance.[5]

In 1987, Edelbrock moved its facilities to its current location in Torrance, California. The five-building corporate facility occupies over 400000 sqft.[3] In 1990, Edelbrock built a 73000 sqft sand-cast aluminum foundry in San Jacinto, which employed 75 to 100 workers, and gave the company the ability to increase production according to market demands.[25]

In 1994, the Edelbrock corporation went public, selling shares of stock on the NASDAQ stock exchange. This initially raised $21 million, which was used mainly for construction of a new exhaust division in Torrance near its main facilities.[26]

In 2000, Russell Performance Plumbing, a company that manufactures fittings and hoses, was acquired by Edelbrock. The company, which had been based in Florida, was relocated to Torrance by 2001.

As of June 30, 2004, the company employed 722 persons, and achieved revenues of $125.98 million USD.[1] Since the company went private again in 2004, revenue findings have not been available to the general public.

On June 7, 2010, the Chicago-based private equity firm Industrial Opportunity Partners (IOP) acquired Edelbrock Corporation.[27][28]

In January 2021, the company was announced that its headquarters would be relocated to the Memphis, Tennessee region.[29]

Timeline

1931 – Edelbrock moves to California

1934 – Edelbrock moves into a shop on Venice and Hoover in Los Angeles

1938 – Edelbrock moves to the Breawood Garage in Los Angeles

1938 – Edelbrock buys a 1932 Ford Roadster and designs the first Edelbrock product, the Slingshot manifold

1941 – Edelbrock sets land speed record in a V8 roadster September 28

1941–45 – Edelbrock contributes to the WWII war effort by fabricating parts in the Long Beach shipyard

1945 – Edelbrock designs his first aluminum racing cylinder heads for flathead Fords

1945 – Vic Sr. purchased first building with machine shop on N. Highland in Hollywood, California

1946 – First Edelbrock catalog published

1948 – Edelbrock purchases a Clayton engine dynamometer[6]

1949 — Edelbrock moves to its first purpose-built shop called Edelbrock Equipment Co. on Jefferson Blvd. in Los Angeles

1951 – The first streamliner powered by a Flathead Ford to go over 200 mi/h is the Edelbrock-equipped Bachelor-Xydias So-Cal Special[32]

1958 – Edelbrock is the first to achieve one horsepower per cubic inch[6]

1962 – Vic Edelbrock, Jr. takes control of company when Vic Sr. dies of cancer at age 49

1963 – Edelbrock celebrates 25 Years in business

1968 – Edelbrock moves to El Segundo, California

1971–74 – Vic Edelbrock, Jr. elected president of SEMA

1973 – Edelbrock becomes a major sponsor of NASCAR

1975 – Car Craft names Edelbrock "Manufacturer of the Year"[12]

1984 – Edelbrock awarded PWA Manufacturer of the Year

1986 – First Cylinder Head was produced

1987 – Edelbrock moves to Torrance, California

1988 – Edelbrock celebrates 50 Years in business

1989 – Edelbrock awarded PWA Manufacturer of the Year

1990 – Sand cast aluminum foundry built in San Jacinto, California

1990 – Edelbrock awarded PWA Manufacturer of the Year

1994 – Edelbrock goes public on the NASDAQ stock exchange.[1] An exhaust division is formed.

1995 – Edelbrock acquires Qwiksilver II and begins manufacturing Harley-Davidson motorcycle products[26][33]

1997 – Edelbrock opens a state-of-the-art Sand Cast Aluminum Foundry

1999 – New distribution center opens, including Vic's Garage, a museum of Edelbrock's cars

1999 – Forbes names Edelbrock as one of the 200 best small companies[34]

2000 – Forbes names Edelbrock as one of the 200 best small companies for the second year in a row[35]

2000–01 – Edelbrock acquires Russell Performance Plumbing

2004 – Edelbrock returns to being a Private company

2007 – Edelbrock begins construction of a Permanent Mold Aluminum foundry

2008 – Edelbrock awarded PWA Manufacturer of the Year

2008 - Edelbrock acquires Lunati.[36]

2010 – Industrial Opportunity Partners strategically invests in the Edelbrock Corporation

2011 – Edelbrock sells its line of suspension components to QA1

2012 – Edelbrock acquires SX Performance

2017 – Vic Edelbrock, Jr. dies at age 80.[37]

2017 – Edelbrock awarded CAN (formerly PWA) Manufacturer of the Year

2018 – Edelbrock celebrates 80 Years in business

2018 – First Edelbrock diesel cylinder head produced

2020 – Edelbrock opens the Edelbrock Race Center in North Carolina that will focus on race-oriented cylinder head machining

2020 – Edelbrock and Competition Cams merge, creating a new platform company owned by Industrial Opportunity Partners[38]

2020 – Edelbrock divests its nitrous oxide category to Nitrous Supply[39]

2021 – The Edelbrock Group is formed, consisting of COMP Cams, Edelbrock, FAST Fuel Air Spark Technology, Russell Performance and TCI Automotive

2021 – Edelbrock corporate headquarters, manufacturing and distribution center move to new 300,000-square-foot facility in metropolitan Memphis (Olive Branch, MS)

2021 – Edelbrock expansion includes new Southern California Tech Center located in Cerritos, CA

2021 – Edelbrock introduces Pro-Flo 4+ EFI Engine Management System

type	Private company
foundation	Beverly Hills, California, USA (1938)
founder	Victor Edelbrock, Sr.
location	Olive Branch, Mississippi
industry	Automotive aftermarket
products	Automotive parts Motorcycle Parts
divisions	Automotive & Motorcycle Carburetor Division Sand Cast Foundry Permanent Mold Foundry Southern California Tech Center Edelbrock Race Center
num employees	624 (2018)‡R1R‡
homepage	edelbrock.com
key people	Chris Douglas, President and CEO‡R2R‡

History

Origins

The Slingshot

Early years

Racing

Turning points

Growth

Modern-day racing

Products

Timeline

Further reading

External links

References