The 20 Best Muscle Car Wheels

We'll start with what is the most recognizable wheel design in the world. The Torq Thrust from American Racing. It's a design that Ford and Dodge take inspiration from even today. Five beefy and rounded spokes in a simple barrel. Available in nearly every backspacing, diameter, and width imaginable and in dozens of color combinations from all chrome to whatever you want. Sometimes the obvious choice is the best choice and this is one of those times.

Want a more modern version of the same thing? Try the Rocket Racing Wheels Booster wheels. That classic five-spoke design with recessed bolts, but with spokes that offer more character than the Torq Thrust as well as a sharper edge to them. Rocket too offers their wheels in multiple bolt patterns, offsets, and spacing, making sure you can get exactly what you need to sit perfectly on your car. This wheel's made from A356 aluminum for strength and durability. These wheels are finished in Hyper Shot, a two-stage finish Rocket says reflects in a way that chrome can't.

The Bassett Wheel D-Hole is a real icon. The wheels have been the wheel of choice for all levels of stock car and dirt track racers for decades. The big holes are meant to make things easier for pit crews, but we don't care because they look amazing. This wheel makes sizing easy, too, because while it comes in 7 through 14-inch widths, it is only offered in a 15-inch diameter. It's hard to look cooler than a red-stripe D-Hole wheel.

Weld wheels were born when a racer couldn't find wheels that would meet his circle-track needs. The company's Draglites became its best-known product because they were both light and strong. The flat-faced design with eight small holes isn't fancy, but sometimes function creates the best form. Made from aluminum for light weight they come with a mirror-like polished finish. Black powder coat is also offered, and they'll make these wheels in a wide range of sizes.

The Cragar Super Sport is another five-spoke classic. Here, the spokes get thicker in depth as they narrow toward the wheel's hub. Not only does that look cool, it adds strength to the center of the wheel, helping to make it more durable and better able to deal with your muscle car's torque. These are a two-piece design with an aluminum center and steel barrel but are still one of the more affordable muscle car wheels and available to fit almost any car.

U.S. Mags Indy is another classic deep-dish wheel design, making it perfect for stepside muscle trucks and other wide-fender muscle cars. The slots follow the shape of the wheel on their outer and inner edges, giving them a cool jellybean appearance. The Indy is offered in 15 and 17-inch diameters for a wide range of options. Even an eight-lug version for modern and HD pickups. Offsets are slightly more limited than others, especially in 17-inch, but this wheel still offers a wide range of fitments.

If your muscle car is no longer wearing its original wheels, they can be tough to find. Wheel Vintiques solved that problem by recreating a wide range of classic original equipment wheels. This Rallye-style wheel is meant for Chevrolet pickups but will look good on nearly any GM muscle car or truck. Wheel Vintiques also offers factory center caps in various styles to really let you tune in that look. Though they are offered in only common GM factory backspacings and widths.

The Magnum 500 wheel is another one that was massively popular amongst Ford, GM, and Mopar fans in the 1960s and 1970s. Strangely, the same basic wheel was actually offered by most OEMs as a factory part, the only difference was the center cap. The chrome wheel with black pockets is a style icon. They're still built today by Wheel Vintiques, offered in sizes that will fit most muscle cars. You can also still get the right center cap to match your brand of choice.

The story behind the Vision Wheel 148 Shift is an interesting one. This wheel is clearly inspired by the Mopar Warrior wheel, a wheel that only briefly saw production because there was a problem with that. The problem wasn't in the looks, though, so Vision change the style a bit, applied some new engineering, and now produces this super cool almost flat-faced wheel with D-shape slots. It's offered in high-offset Mopar-specific sizing and is a fully-modern aluminum wheel meant to fit loads of muscle cars.

The American Racing Outlaw II takes the classic flat-face Outlaw and updates it for cars that plan on slowing down more than once or twice. The original had no holes at all while the II adds 12 round holes spread over the face of the wheel. It helps cut weight from the wheel and it helps aid in cooling. Everything else is the same, including making it from one piece of billet aluminum and the rivet accents that go around the lip and help make the Outlaw II even cooler. Forget just your hot rod or muscle car, this is a wheel you can match on your car hauler, too, making for a sweet and complete package.

Halibrand drag racing wheels are another icon, but the spindle-mount wheels didn't exactly work with front brakes. Instead, check out the Rocket Racing Launcher. These 10 spoke front and back-look wheels are offered in 15 x 4 and that is perfect for a gasser or your drag racing muscle car. It's a five-lug wheel because you need lugs to have front brakes. And you want front brakes. The wheels are offered in gray as well as machine polished, but you can also get this dull "as cast" finish that really gives your car a unique look.

Centerline's Convo Pro is a muscle car staple. It's a design that is both simple and elaborate at the same time thanks to its five-spoke center but bolted outer rim. Though the looks say show, this is a classic drag race wheel, able to handle seriously large horsepower. It's even available with a beadlock if you're planning on using them with low-pressure, high traction race tires. Loads of bolt patterns are available, as are widths from 4 through 15-inches, with custom backspacing on request.

Cragar's Soft 8 is a simple upgrade to any muscle car that helps give it a load of presence. Yes, it's just a black steel wheel, but it's also so much more. The Soft 8 is an icon of wheel design thanks to its deep-dish and the eight soft-edged holes that run around its face. With a set of Cragar center caps and chrome lug nuts, it's nearly perfect. These wheels are offered in 15 through 17-inch diameter and with widths of up to 14-inches wide, helping you find exactly the stance you want. They're black powder coat finished, making them much more durable than standard painted steel wheels.

Wheel Vintiques says its 13 Series Smoothie is one of its most popular wheels and it is easy to see why. Offered from 14x5 all the way to 18x8 and in a range of bolt patterns, this wheel is extremely versatile. It's also the perfect wheel for fitting a set of dog dish hubcaps and getting a completely smooth inner face lool. With a chrome outer lip and bare metal center, you can turn this wheel into whatever you need it to be to make your muscle car yours.

With the VN511, American Racing has recaptured an iconic time for land speed racing. This was the design you would see on a host of cars getting ready to tackle the long and open Bonneville Salt Flats. While a great look on any muscle car, these wheels are particularly well suited to Shelby Mustangs. You'll see loads of them on Shelby-badged vehicles, sometimes with a fake knock-off center cap. Polished with a gunmetal finish, these wheels are absolute icons and they're now offered in sizes and backspacing perfect for modern muscle too.

These wheels are a more modern take on the Centerline wheels up above, and they look just perfect for your 1980s muscle car. Sure those weren't the heydays of the type, but cars like the Camaro IROC-Z and Fox-body Mustangs look great on these wheels. Offered in 14-16-inch sizes and in satin black as well as a machined finish, these wheels look great on your modern muscle car.

We haven't ignored the Pro Touring and restomod scene that fit massive rims to their modernized classics. Take this Outcast wheel from Foose, for example. Once-piece construction for durability, wear-resistant finish to keep it looking good, and budget friendly even when offered in massive sizes. How massive? How about up to 20 inches, perfect for stuffing a wide and low-profile tire under your muscle car or truck. A black face makes the chrome spoke outlines and chrome lug nuts really pop in this design.

The Boyd Coddington Speedster is another modernized classic design. It's offered in 17, 18, and 20-inch sizes along with a number of widths and bolt patterns. This wheel isn't an homage to one specific vintage design, rather it's a look at several period-correct classics that have been transformed into one glorious new design. If your car is looking more modern than stock, then a wheel that does the same is going to look just right on your muscle car.

The Vision Wheel 142 Legend 6 takes the classic five-spoke Torq Thrust ideal and one-ups it. One extra spoke works a little bit better on modern muscle cars, especially in the 20 and 22-inch sizes you'll find this wheel sold in. Vision offers up plenty of color options, even if there are only two diameters, including gloss black, chrome, and gunmetal. These wheels offer up something different, but still familiar, and so they feel just right.

Hold on a second? A Japanese wheel design on a muscle car? We know what you're thinking, but this is one of the best wheel designs of all time. The TE37 is offered in dozens of styles and even more different finishes, and not only does it look great on modern muscle like a Nissan GT-R, it looks perfect on a classic Celica or a 1966 Ford Mustang. Don't believe us? Take a look for yourself, because these Volk Racing wheels from Rays are nearly impossible to beat for versatile style.

Will new muscle car wheels effect performance?

This all depends on if you are adding lighter or heavier wheels to your muscle car. Less rotating mass means you will see improved acceleration if you add lighter wheels to your car. The inverse is true if you add heavier wheels. However, unless the weight difference is significant, it’s likely you won’t notice much of a change from the driver’s seat.

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