Borowski Race

January 20, 2016

Hughes Performance, Inc. (HPI) and Borowski Race Engines, Inc. (BRE) announced a stocking dealer relationship so that they may better serve their respective markets and customers.

The Principals
HPI (Phoenix AZ) is the leading manufacturer of automatic transmissions and related parts for the high performance market. Founded in 1971 by Bill Hughes, the company has remained focused on customer satisfaction through service, quality and technological leadership. It remains family owned and is active in racing because of both their love of the sport and the opportunity it provides to continually test and refine their product line.

BRE (Joliet IL) was established in 1968 and is also a family business owned and operated by Ken and Joe McCaul since 2010. Since the acquisition, they have transformed the business into a world recognized leading builder of advanced LS engines for street and strip. Their business philosophy closely mirrors Hughes Performance as evidenced by their BBB accreditation with an A+ rating. Their staff includes accomplished race crew chiefs and drivers. Their El Camino has been seen at such diverse venues as the Hot Rod Magazine Power Tour, World of Wheels, Route 66 and Gingerman raceways to name a few. When not on the track, the El Camino was usually seen with one of BRE’s LS crate engines on display in the bed.

The Opportunity
BRE’s El Camino was originally equipped with a modified 4L60E transmission from a local shop in the Chicago area. At the time, the vehicle had a 525 hp LS1 engine under the hood. Unfortunately, the transmission was not up to the task as it failed on the track. This failure highlighted not only the quality and technology challenges, but it also exposed a range of business issues such as poor communication, long lead times. BRE management recognized that their customers would be facing the same problems. They decided that it was necessary for BRE to offer their customers a better and more complete solution. They also knew that the El Camino’s new Whipple supercharged, LS7 (1,000 hp, 900 lb-ft tq) would quickly tear up all but the best transmissions.

(HPI) has developed a complete range of automatic transmissions with capabilities extending through the power range of BRE’s road and track engines. Their company’s size allows them to professionally serve customers on short lead times. Their location in Phoenix however presents challenges for distribution, particularly for the high end of their line. People who buy these transmissions like talking to vendors who actually use them and can share their first-hand experience. The Chicagoland was also a blank on HPI’s dealer map.
 
The Solution
The El Camino will debut with its new engine and a custom extreme duty transmission from HPI at the Race & Performance Expo in Schaumburg IL (Feb 20 & 21st). Assigned part number BRE049345, this highly modified piece addresses the specific needs of handling the massive torque delivered by BRE’s Hellfire™ line of LS crate engines with street and RT variants from 600 to 1,500 hp ratings. BRE will maintain inventory of this and select other HPI the parts and transmissions to allow them to offer immediate delivery to both BRE engine customers and the general public.