Two Dads. One Garage.
A semi-true history of Badass Automotive Products, told over a cooler of cold ones, in roughly the order it actually happened.
"We didn't start this company. We just kept doing what we were already doing — and somebody finally handed us a tax ID."
— Arnold Gacita & Steven Burns, co-founders, 1983–present
Arnold Gacita
Co-Founder • Will Out-Talk You
Born with a wrench in one hand and a jumper cable in the other. Arnold Gacita has personally jump-started every truck within thirty miles of his house at least once. Claims to have raced an iguana on a service road in 1987 and won. Will not produce evidence.
Steven Burns
Co-Founder • Will Out-Drive You
The quiet one. Has a 1972 C10 he refuses to sell to anyone for any reason. Drinks his coffee black, his beer cold, and his diagnostics with a tone that suggests you should have figured it out yourself. Wears the same jacket he wore on prom night. It still fits.
The Legend
Forty-three years of mostly true stories.
- 1983
The Garage Pact
Arnold Gacita and Steven Burns are 19 years old, drinking Budweiser tallboys in a two-car garage in El Paso. A Cutlass on jack stands. A radio playing ZZ Top. A fistfight breaks out over the correct viscosity for a Texas summer. They settle it on the spot. They don't speak again for six weeks.
- 1986
The Blade Incident
Arnold Gacita drives Steven Burns's '78 Bronco through a hailstorm with bargain-bin wiper blades. He arrives blind, three hours late, and missing a side mirror. They vow, in writing, on a White Castle napkin, to never put a junk part on a vehicle again. The napkin is laminated. It still hangs in the office.
- 1991
First Customer
A guy named Earl buys four cases of motor oil out of the back of Steven Burns's Suburban in a Sonic parking lot. Pays in cash and one slightly used cooler. Earl still calls every Christmas.
- 1998
The Lone Star Move
They open a real warehouse outside Austin. The grand opening features a brisket the size of a passenger door and a band that plays exactly one song for four hours. Three local news stations show up. Two of them stay for the brisket.
- 2014
The Lawsuit That Wasn't
A competitor sends a cease-and-desist over the word "badass." Arnold Gacita frames the letter and hangs it next to the napkin. The competitor goes out of business eighteen months later. The frame stays.
- 2026
Still Here
Same two guys. Same garage energy. A slightly bigger building. The Budweiser in the office mini-fridge has not changed brands since 1983.
How We Do It
Three rules. That's it.
If it ain't right, it ain't shipping.
Every part gets opened, looked at, and put back in the box by an actual human. Robots are great. Robots also can't smell a bad batch of brake fluid.
Loud trucks. Quiet parts.
You shouldn't hear your wipers. You shouldn't feel your filter. You should hear the engine, the radio, and your buddy yelling at you for taking the long way.
The receipt is the warranty.
If something we made breaks, we'll make it right. We don't need a portal, a ticket number, or your mother's maiden name. Just call.
