Wheels is an Australian automotive magazine owned by Bauer Media Group. The publication is well-renowned by Australian car enthusiasts. Its main competitor within the Australian car magazine market is Motor, though Wheels and Motor are stablemates in the Bauer Media Group catalogue and are aimed at slightly different readers as Motor puts attention on performance cars. Wheels magazine is sold in New Zealand and Australia only and can be found at stores such as newsagents. The magazine is published monthly by Bauer Media Pty Ltd. and has its headquarters in Melbourne. Its current (acting) editor is Alex Inwood, who has held the position as of the December issue.
History
Wheels was founded in May 1953 by editor Athol Yeomans. With the help of a colleague, Yeomans planned the first copy of Wheels in a stationery room of Hudson Publications in Sydney.
Since 1963, Wheels have annually announced their Car of the Year award, although this has been withheld in 1972, 1979 and 1986. Also, it was created by Bill Tuckey.
It was announced in September 2010 that Bill Thomas, former deputy editor of BBC Top Gear Magazine in the UK, would take over as editor in November 2010.
In October 2012, it was announced that former Top Gear Australia magazine editor Stephen Corby was to become editor of Wheels, replacing Bill Thomas.
For the October 2013 issue, Ben Oliver drove a Volvo S60 Polestar from Melbourne to Sydney along the Hume Highway, and Wheels launched the "Raise the limit, lower the toll" petition to raise the speed limit to 130 km/h, as it is in the Northern Territory.
Glenn Butler was the editor in 2014, 2015 and 2016, but quit as of the Summer Edition (on sale December 4). Wheels' current editor is the former deputy editor, Alex Inwood, as an acting editor for the issue.