Wheels...... Built to Go Fast or look good????

50 years ago this question was an easy one to answer. GO FAST....It just so happens that in his quest to go fast Romeo Palimedes did both. Creating the legendary Torq Thrust helped dragsters of the 60's shave fractions of seconds and look good at the same time. Early adopters trying to emulate the dragsters but more into the looks of their cars helped Romeo and American Racing take the Torq Thrust to the streets. I guess a good parrellel in our industry would be the Moon Discs. You can't show up at Bonneville on your lakester or rod without a set of these before you make a pass down the salt. But they sure do look good on the push truck too. If only we could go back to the 60's and enjoy the infancy of this aftermarket and motorsports that we love and enjoy today. In a quest to go fast and a unique tapered parabolic spoke shape, a couple racers and a whole car culture defined what goes fast and looks good.

T70R makes it return

I am proud to announce that in 2008 we will be bringing back the Torq Thrust T70R. In celebration of it's 40th anniversary the T70R will hit the streets again in 2 finishes, light mag gray center and polished rim or full polish. The first sizes to start rolling are 15x7 and 15x8. This wheel will be an exact replica of the original with some slight modifications on the 15x8 that allow for better fitment with a 4" backspacing.

The T70R first appeared in 1968 as a variation of the Torq Thrust. The 'R' stood for ribs which appeared around edges of the spokes. Another distinct feature was the replacement of the 5 ear cap with a CP200 pop in style hex cap. The T70R saw modest sales and had a very short lifespan. T70Rs have become very popular with the recent muscle car boom. In recent years T70Rs find their way up on ebay and fetch some good money.

I am very excited to be able to reach back into our archives at American Racing and bring back a classic that I am sure a lot of hot rod and muscle car fans will love. My goal is to expand on the initial size offerings and bring out some larger diameter T70Rs going into 2009.

The Home of the Torq Thrust

This blog is dedicated to the Torq Thrust and the many other hot rod wheels that we produce here at American Racing. Over the last 50+ years American Racing has been instrumental in setting the trends and changing the culture that we call hot rodding. It's hard to imagine a hot rodding world without the most famous 5 spoke wheel of all , the Torq Thrust. Stay tuned as we will talk about some exciting things past, present, and future.