In 1954, drag racing innovator Romeo Palimides teamed up with J.O. Ellison (machine shop owner), to design & craft cutting-ed ... ge, high strength-to-weight ratio magnesium drag racing wheels. Together with Tom Griffith (designer), American Racing (AR) Equipment was born (incorporated in 1956). Street enthusiast interest in the lighter weight, higher tech wheels was overwhelming, an d AR produced wheels for street and racing. In the 60's, Tom Griffith conceived the tapered parabolic contour spoked AR "Torq Thrust" (reduced wheel weight & promoted brake cooling), one of the most famous wheels of all time (honored by Hot Rod Magazine in 2005 as 1 of 20 automotive speed parts that changed the automobile world). AR wheels were shown in such movies as The Game, Die Hard With A Vengeance, Vanilla Skies, 2Fast 2Furious, & Bullit, and on the television series "Dukes of Hazzard" ("General Lee" 1969 Dodge Chargers were built & equipped with AR "Vector" wheels). On May 25, 2005, rolling on AR Pro Series wheels, the 8,000 horsepower U.S. Army NHRA Top Fuel race car of Don Schumacher Racing set a world record speed of 336.15 MPH, and on 10/1/05 a quarter mile elapsed time of 4.37 seconds. In 2003, AR introduced automotive wheels permanently coated with DuPont® Teflon® featuring resistance to brake dust, extreme weather conditions & ease-of-cleaning, proving yet another forward step in re-inventing the wheel. Fifty years later after it all started, AR offered a complete line of over one hundred precision-crafted alloy wheel styles under various brand names: AR Vintage, AR Pro Series, AR Muscle, and related brand lines including Twenty Inches Strong (TIS), Motegi Racing, Motto, Riax, RO_JA, and ATX. AR was the Official Wheel of California Speedway, Don Schumacher Racing, & Universal Studios' The Fast & the Furious. American Racing Equipment, Inc. ceased operations in 2008; however, AR brands continue to be produced by Wheel Pros (www.wheelpros.com) of Denver, CO. read more