This news is brand new, so we don’t have much information or back story to add yet, but we will update as we know more. MSD just announced this morning that it has been acquired by Hot Rod Brands, which, in turn, is owned by an investment group named Z Capital Partners.

Right now we have no idea how this will affect the folks at MSD, or if the average customer will ever notice the difference. But whenever it comes to new about companies invested in hot rodding, we’ll keep our fingers crossed and hope for the best. We’ve included the press release below.

MSD Performance Group (“MSDP”), one of the world leaders in vehicle aftermarket performance parts, announced today that the company has been acquired by Hot Rod Brands, LLC an affiliate of Z Capital Partners, L.L.C. (“Z Capital”). MSDP sells products under the MSD, Racepak, Powerteq, Edge and Superchips brands. MSDP filed a voluntary Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection petition on September 6^th of this year.

Z Capital is a private equity firm with approximately $1.2 billion of regulatory assets and committed capital with offices in Lake Forest, Illinois and New York, New York. The firm specializes in investing in companies with a strong product line and top tier brand recognition. The group leverages its operational expertise in actively working with the management teams of their portfolio companies to enhance enterprise value.

“We are excited to add MSDP to the Z Capital portfolio of companies and believe it to be a terrific growth platform. We will work with the management team to continue to be a market leader and deliver cutting edge products to our loyal customer base.  MSDP represents substantial brands within the performance segment and we look forward to further solidifying and growing that brand recognition,” said James J. Zenni, President and Chief Executive Officer of Z Capital.

MSD Performance looks forward to the future as the combination of a stronger balance sheet and focused ownership will allow for an even greater ability to serve consumers with exciting new products and technology. In recent years MSD Performance has expanded its portfolio of products and technology including the award-winning Atomic brand Fuel Injection systems, Flashcal brand Jeep hand-held programmer, Vigilante brand Harley tuning products and this year’s SEMA Show introduction of Brainwave®, the new Vehicle Management Network that allows aftermarket components to utilize a common technology platform for complete vehicle communication.

Ron Turcotte, MSDP’s CEO, said, “Our restructuring allows us to be positioned for substantial growth through an even greater ability to serve our customers with new, innovative product offerings and a higher level of customer service.”