Alas, we’re living through a period within the automotive aftermarket industry wherein we’re losing the pioneers who established the brands that have brought us so far. The passing of Joe Hrudka, founder of Mr. Gasket, legendary racer and innovator this past May 24th after a long battle with Alzheimer’s disease, is yet another mile marker in our journey.
To those who knew him, Joe’s core passion in the industry was taking care of racers (he being an accomplished drag racer himself). This passion, coupled with an undeterred drive, led him to develop racing gaskets, which he from the trunk of his car. Today, Mr. Gasket has grown into one of the most iconic brands in our aftermarket.
Joe’s love for racing, commitment to helping fellow racers, and entrepreneurial spirit not only equipped hot rodders, street drivers and racers with the parts necessary to get ahead, but ultimately helped to form the automotive aftermarket industry we enjoy today. Our thoughts are with the Hrudka family at this time.
The Facebook page American Cars Talk published the following obituary:
Joe Hrudka had a problem. His gaskets kept failing under racing conditions. So he made his own. Then he sold them out of the trunk of his car to fellow racers at the drag strip. That was the beginning of Mr. Gasket.
Born November 29, 1938, in Cleveland, Ohio. A lifelong hot rodder. Before he was an entrepreneur, he was a racer. He and his brother Tom competed in the formative years of organized drag racing. Class wins at the 1961 and 1962 NHRA U.S. Nationals. Two years in a row. At Indy. The Hrudka brothers were respected competitors before they were businessmen.
But the gasket business grew faster than the racing career. Joe transformed his trunk-of-the-car operation into Mr. Gasket, one of the most successful and influential specialty equipment companies in the automotive performance industry. The name became ubiquitous. Every speed shop in America carried Mr. Gasket products. Every hot rodder knew the brand. Every drag racer had something with that logo on their engine.
Through the decades, Hrudka expanded. Acquired well-known aftermarket brands. Built an empire from a problem he solved for himself and then solved for everyone else. That’s the hot rod story. Find a problem. Fix it. Sell the fix. Repeat.
The early Mr. Gasket logo appeared on race cars across America. Dave Meal’s ’40 Willys C/Gasser carried it on the front fender. Hundreds of other cars carried it too. Not because Mr. Gasket paid for advertising space. Because the racers trusted the product. When your engine is making 500 horsepower on nitro and the only thing between the cylinders and a catastrophic failure is a gasket, you use the one that works. Mr. Gasket worked.
Joe Hrudka was known affectionately throughout the industry as “Mr. Gasket.” Not as a brand. As a person. The man became the company and the company became the man. Inseparable. When people said “Mr. Gasket,” they meant both.
He remained deeply connected to the racing community his entire life. Not as a distant executive. As a hot rodder who happened to build a corporation. The kid from Cleveland who couldn’t keep a gasket alive under racing conditions and decided to fix that problem for every racer in America.
Joe Hrudka passed away on May 24, 2026. He was 87 years old. Survived by his wife of 25 years, Antoinette, one son, six daughters, three grandchildren, one great-grandchild, and his brother Tom. The brother who raced with him at the U.S. Nationals. The brother who helped build Mr. Gasket from a trunk operation into an industry.
A graveside service was held May 31 at Paradise Memorial Gardens. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to the Alzheimer’s Association.
From the trunk of a car to the biggest name in gaskets. From class wins at the U.S. Nationals to an aftermarket empire. Joe Hrudka solved a problem. And in doing so, he helped build the performance industry that made drag racing possible.
