Okay, so what’s the big deal about “whitewall tires”? Why is it such a notable, advertised feature? Is it a mark of quality of some sort? Or did a quality manufacturer use the whitewall as their mark, and the rest of the industry copied them?
Or, is it just the look? And if that’s the case, who gets really dazzled by a white stripe on a tire anyway?
I’m almost afraid to post since no one had even LOOKed at this thread yet…
I just started searching and can say that whitewall tires are more expensive…
http://www.yarock.com/p779.htm
After I few more minutes I can tell you Jeeves is an idiot.
While I seaching I remembered my father once told me they just look better, fancier, etc.
I don’t belive that is the full truth…
Need a rubber necktie? It’s dishwasher safe!
http://www.rubber-neckties.com/
It doesn’t affect speed…
http://www.scitoys.com/surprise1.html (cool javascript effects with IE!)
This 1967 Chevy II Super Sport doesn’t have Whitewalls
http://www.renc.igs.net/~smcnabb/chevy2.htm
This 1964 CHEVY SUPER SPORT CONVERTIBLE does
http://www.carsnet.com/082399a.jpg
Now that’s a boat!
I don’t know what to say…
They’re more expensive because, first, people think they look better, for some reason, and people pay more for what they think look better even if there is no other advantage.
Second, the smaller reason is that they have to be tinted or appliqued in a way it won’t come off in heat, rain, snow, age, or wear.
Mainly they went on nice cars back in the olden days. Now, they’re for geezers in Cadillacs with vinyl roofs.
–Tim
It’s decoration, nothing more. When I was young and stupid (as opposed to me now - older and stupid) I just had to have raised white letter tires on my car. They cost significantly more for no benefit except asthetics. Nowadays I buy blackwalls. If, for some reason, a particular set of whitewalls is less expensive I’ll buy them - but have the installer turn the whitewall to the inside. I find function much more apealing than form these days.
Hey, Homer, watch it: I’m one of those Cadillac drivers (although mine does not have a vinyl top). And I’m not a geezer. But whitewalls are definitely more aesthetically pleasing on some cars, mine included. In fact, until I read this thread, I didn’t even know you could get plain blackwalls. I’ve always just asked them to turn the white in if I don’t want to see it. Maybe after a certain tire size, whitewalls are standard?
They are mighty unpleasant to clean, though…
T’was a time when whitewalls was just The Look. At that time, if you didn’t have them, your car looked funny. The tires were just flat black orbs that detracted from the overall sleekness. In today’s terms, think of it like seeing a car that has no wheel covers - you just see the unpainted tire rim.
As you might expect, this was also overdone. You saw many tires with ridiculously wide white stripes, taking up most of the wall of the tire.
Now, like most things, the demand for whitewalls has moderated. Some people like them, at least on some car styles, and some don’t.
IMHO, whitewalls just looked better on some cars. You used to be able to buy whitewalls that were not part of the tire. They were extra “flaps” or circles that were placed between the tires bead and the wheel rim before inflation. When the tire was inflated and the bead seated on the rim, the whitewall was held in place. A major drawback was that if you rubbed a curb, you could tear your whitewall. Not cool!
Gary
White stripes and raised white lettering are light years from the old white sidewalls. I think you could still get the ones that GaryM described as recently as 15 years ago from J.C. Whitney/Washawsky. The coolest white sidewalls I ever saw were in the movie of Catch 22 on General Dreedle’s (Orson Welles) B-25.
The General’s whitewall were probably supplied by “The Syndicate”, because everyone has a share.
GaryM