Rostyle wheels are a design of automobile wheels of American origin but made under licence[1] by the British firm ofRubery Owen – hence RO-Style – TheRostyle wheel was especially popular during the 1960s and 1970s.
The wheels had a characteristic pressedsteel form with raised 'spokes', and were painted aluminium-grey on the spokes and rim and black between the spokes to imitate the open space of truemagnesium alloy wheels. They were designed for use without the need ofhubcaps or wheel covers, but usually had acentre cap carrying the emblem of the car manufacturer.
In the United States, the wheel style was manufactured inLansing,Michigan, by theMotor Wheel Corporation,[2] and found fame in the 1960s and 1970s onMuscle cars like thePontiac GTO,Ford Torino,Shelby Mustang,Plymouth Barracuda andAMC Javelin. In an American context, the wheel style was known as the "Magnum 500". Hence, the first British cars with "Rostyle" wheels were referred to in early road tests as having "Magnum style" wheels.
The first appearance of Rostyle wheels on theRover P5B met with descriptions of them by some testers as "raffish" and "gaudy",[3] and ill-befitting a luxury saloon. At that time, some Rover road testers also referred to the wheels as "Ro-style", suggesting that the name, if not the style, may have first been developed specifically for wheels fitted to Rovers. Although this surfaces as "fact" on forums, it is not correct. The name "Rostyle" is a portmanteau word deriving from "R-ubery O-wen" (the manufacturer of the wheels) and "Style": "ROstyle": "Rostyle".
The firm'sMG andRover, amongst otherBritish sporty cars in the 1960s, often specified Rostyle wheels as original equipment instead of ones made of lightalloy or wire spoked wheels.Chromium-plated Rostyle wheels were made forJensen,Rover and, famously, theFord Cortina 1600E, originally designed for Ford Chairman Len Crossland's wife.
Rostyle wheels were the only wheel option on theRange Rover for many years following its introduction. These 16-inch Rostyles were used on the Range Rover until 1986, when they were replaced by alloy wheels. The Rostyles then became optional fitment to theshort wheelbase Land Rover (the wheels were not strong enough for use on the long wheelbase models). The Land Rover maintained its optional Rostyle wheels until 1995, becoming the last vehicle to offer them from new.[4]
As well as in Britain, similar wheels were made under license in Germany, Argentina and Australia.
Special masks must be made to paint the wheels of restored cars to resemble the originals.[clarification needed]
Max Sinclair, the sales manager for Rubery Owen in the 1960 to 1980 period, has stated that "We changed the face of motoring, and Mag wheels followed us as their reliability improved."
