Wheels

[p78]

Best three spoke ever

May i point your direction onto these?

ATS Wheels, Seller list them as ATS Stars

used to have these on my mk2 golf (back in the 90's).

 

[TexRex]

Been thinkin' about Strippers since posting this. I tend to prefer the standard Kelsey-Hayes Stripper over the Satin Stripper on the Blackhawk.

 

[Centroid]

The Alpine A290 (aka sporty Renault 5 EV) reminded me I really liked the wheels on the original Renault 5 Alpine (aka Renault 5 Gordini)

 

[05XR8]

 

[05XR8]

 

[05XR8]

 

[TexRex]

15" alloys used on early second generation Rangers are handsome.

 

[TexRex]

I'm not sure how I feel about these. Nissan has a special edition Frontier "Hardbody" with wheels that are a nod to those optioned on the D21 pickups and WD21 Pathfinders.

They're larger than the original 15" alloys because modern pickups use larger wheels to accommodate their larger brakes and, I suppose, to better suit modern styling. The original wheels had center caps which had simulated lugs, and I understand the desire to keep the new ones one-piece, but my gripe is that the lugs in the new ones aren't clocked the same. Okay, maybe it's silly.

 

[TexRex]

X100 XK8 "Apollo" alloys.

A very pretty wheel for a very pretty car.

 

[VXR]

X100 XK8 "Apollo" alloys.

A very pretty wheel for a very pretty car.

They had a few sets of wheels that looked a good two generations more modern than the cars they were selling at the time, but by gum, they made the cars look bang up to date.

 

[Tornado]

Especially with the very minor tweaks they kept giving the car that you can never quite place until you have pictures of them side by side. Same thing with the DB7.

 

[TexRex]

Cosmics!

I mostly mention the Mk2, but Mk1s can also be very handsome.

Though there are different styles sharing the same name and some, to my eye, aren't as attractive as others.

 

[TexRex]

Mk1s on a Unipower GT.

 

[TexRex]

Took a second for these to register as Kustomags because they're painted. I like the wheels well enough already but painting them black is kind of transformative?

 

[05XR8]

Can’t say I’ve ever seen those wheels painted.

 

[ScottPuss20]

 

[TexRex]

I know, I've posted these before. I don't care. They're a handsome wheel! One of my favorite OEMs. The combination of beefy ribs and svelte blades, especially with contrast polish and paint.

It's just so funny to me that such a handsome alloy wheel came on fullsize Buick and Oldsmobile cars in the '80s.

 

[05XR8]

When cars had really cool surprises like hub caps.

 

[05XR8]

 

[TexRex]

I was looking at TR7s and something jumped out at me.

Those are awful similar to Oldsmobile Super Stock IV polycasts.

I know I've mentioned them before. And that center cap. Quite possibly the prettiest example of the genre.

 

[TexRex]

Spyders. I have a sickness, okay?

They're 14". They're basically always 14". 15" were sold in much lower volume. But man, a set of 15s sure would be sweet on a Nova. Maybe some skinny Flys on the front.
Have I mentioned Motor Wheel Flys? A true mag. They did skinny and deep dish fitments so you could run them all the way around on your drag car. I prefer the skinny ones.

The Gapp & Roush more-door Maverick "Tijuana Taxi" started out running Spyders and Flys but eventually switched to Flys on the rear.

 

[VXR]

@TexRex I really enjoy your posts in here, because this sort of knowledge would never really make it over to this side of the pond and it's interesting to see the development of wheel design over there.

 

[TexRex]

Matra Murena is a fantastic little thing as it is but some Gottis 🤌 really sets one off.

 

[Darkesta]

I've always liked the 1970s 5 spoke muscle car rims.

 

[Gotbeefboy564]

Czinger 21 c v Max wheel was cool

 

[TexRex]

JW- ('70) and KR-code ('71-2) Firebird Formula and Trans Am Rally IIs. I appreciate Rally IIs as it is but I love that chunky step.

Produced by Motor Wheel out of Lansing, which was under contract with the big three (GM, Ford, Mopar) as well as American indies like AMC for all manner of OEM steel wheels. The Rally II had become so associated with the Firebird and Trans Am in their first generation that Pontiac wanted to continue their use into the second generation, but performance variants like the Formula and T/A got new heavier duty suspension that wouldn't fit in the old 14" wheel. They needed a 15" wheel and as luck would have it, Motor Wheel had a new 15" steel rim that would accept a 14" center thanks to a tall step in its design, and this meant that PMD wouldn't need to pay to tool up for new 15" centers. Why would Motor Wheel have this rim? Well, because Ford wanted a "base" steel wheel option with dog dish caps for the Boss 302 and to shift the Magnum 500 which was standard on the Boss 302 when it debuted the year before to a premium option. The taller step rim would allow them to use centers and caps shared with base Mustangs, Torinos and Fairlanes but fit the more substantial rubber that the homologation special required. Plus Motor Wheel wasn't going to charge Ford to tool up for the rim and just amortized the cost through the production contract. So when Pontiac needed a 15" steel wheel for the performance pony cars, Motor Wheel was happy to sell this rim to them. And that's good because ultimately very few Boss 302 buyers didn't opt for the more expensive Magnum 500. PMD wouldn't bite the bullet and have Motor Wheel tool up for a 15" Rally II until 1972 for 1973 models. The KR wheel which replaced the JW in 1971, joined by the polycast Honeycomb (also manufactured by Motor Wheel), is virtually identical to the one-year-only JW, with only the letters and numbers stamped into the rim changing.

Oh, and...yes, that is the same Motor Wheel Corporation which designed and manufactured the Spyder that I love and post ad nauseam.