Autolite, Stoptech, Fram and More Upended by Parent Company’s Bankruptcy

Some well-known automotive brands are in dire straits. First Brands Group, LLC, a conglomerate company that owns popular aftermarket automotive brands such as Raybestos, StopTech, FRAM, TRICO, Autolite, and others, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in September of last year after the company’s liabilities ballooned into the billions of dollars while holding very little cash on hand.

Founded in 2013, First Brands relied on a business model that utilized “off-balance-sheet financing,” a borrowing strategy that obfuscates the true amount of leverage that shows up on its books as a liability. The company experienced meteoric growth in just a decade, growing its portfolio to include 25 well-known aftermarket brands that supplied everything from brake components to spark plugs to windshield wipers to lubricants. But that heavy reliance on debt and complex financial vehicles was a house of cards that came crumbling down in 2025.

The founder and CEO of the company, Patrick James, and his brother Edward James (a former senior VP at First Brands) were charged by a federal court in late January 2026 with a multibillion-dollar fraud scheme related to their operation of First Brands. The charge alleges that the James brothers “deceived multiple banks and direct lenders through fake collateral, double- and triple-pledged assets, and misleading financial statements,” according to the Southern District of New York U.S. Attorney’s office. Investigators assert that First Brands wasn’t just inflating the accounts receivable (the asset used as collateral for loans) figures to look extra sweet for private lenders, but it was actually then selling those inflated assets two and sometimes three times over.

To top it all off, First Brands has sued former CEO Patrick James, claiming that he funneled hundreds of millions of dollars from the proceeds of these business ventures into his personal accounts and lived a lavish lifestyle. James has denied any wrongdoing related to that lawsuit, as well as denying the accusations from the Justice Department, according to a report from Automotive News.

Last week, a report from Bloomberg noted that First Brands Group and some of its creditors are considering shifting some of the business units into a Chapter 7 liquidation process to bolster concerningly low cash reserves. Late last month, First Brands announced that it was winding down a few of the brands, including Brake Parts Inc. (the company behind Raybestos brake components), Cardone, and the Autolite brand. “Over the past several months, we explored all available options to secure funding and advance the sale process for the Brake Parts Inc., Cardone, and Autolite businesses,” said Charles Moore, interim CEO of First Brands Group, in an announcement released on January 26. “Unfortunately, those efforts ultimately did not result in a viable solution which would enable us to maintain these operations.” No word yet on how many people will be impacted by the shuttering of these business units, but we’d bet it’s more than a handful.

If you’ve got a few projects awaiting parts that any of these companies make, be on the lookout for some real fire-sale savings. On the flip side, Crain’s Detroit Business reported that automakers such as Ford and GM have had to adjust their supply chain operations substantially to accommodate any disruptions the bankruptcy proceedings may cause. Be ready for possible delays if your vehicle needs to go in for work soon.

One online retailer we spoke to said that it planned to sell down the remaining inventory that it carried of the brands mentioned above. While brands like StopTech and Cardone are staples in the aftermarket game, it’s also worth mentioning that none of these brands had a market niche that they alone occupied; you can still find other suppliers in the key areas, such as spark plugs, brake components, and others. So while your go-to may become harder to find or virtually extinct, don’t think your ride will suddenly have to go without brake pads indefinitely.

Keep going. As wrenchers, these are the sorts of problems we were born to conquer.