Maestro – Alloy Wheels
Wednesday, November 4, 2009 13:21Q. I would like to give my standard 1989 Maestro 1.6L a bit of a sportier look by fitting a set of alloy wheels. What options do I have open to me, and what looks best? When I’ve decided what I want, where can I get the wheels from cheaply?
A. Your first option is to use the standard Maestro Alloys that were fitted to the MG and some other varients. These basically come in three different flavours; the early type wheels commonly referred to as ‘cheesegrater’ or ‘toastrack’ alloys which are 14in rims, the wheels used on the MG between 1987 and 1989 (these don’t look as good and we won’t concern ourselves with them here, they’re like hens teeth anyway) and the latter type ‘cross spoke’ alloys on 15in rims. These can all be sourced second hand through clubs, breakers or being advertised by private sellers who have a set going spare. Many come with tyres, although obviously you should be particularly careful in deciding whether or not the tyres on the wheels are safe! These wheels are available new through Moto-Build Racing or direct from Rover (at a price!).
A popular option is MGF wheels which are readily compatible with the Maestro having the correct PCD and offset, on top of which they look very good on the car. They are available as 15in and 16in. Any breaker dismantling late model Rovers as part of the Universal Salvage Group is a good source of these. The best place to pick these up is MG events and shows, particularly from the many specialist MG spares days and autojumbles held throughout the country. Prices for a set can vary from around £200 to £500, but you want to be looking to buy in the £200 – £300 margin if you shop around. The 16″ wheels are more expensive. £850 from Brown & Gammons but they ofeten have slightly used wheels in stock for £500 – £650 Tel.01462 490049.
Aftermarket wheel manufacturers don’t seem to cater for Maestros very well, and many look cheap and nasty anyway. It’s worth noting that Maestro wheels use a PCD of 95mm x 4, and companies such as Team Dynamics, Compomotive & Raceline supply in this PCD, at 15″ 16″ or a whopping 17″ if you really must!
As a final point, if you’re spending this sort of money on wheels you would do well to invest in a set of locking wheel nuts particularly where the car is to be left in areas where it is vulnerable to the ‘wrong sort of attention’!