White wall tires used to be the norm on many cars from the 50s, 60s and early 70s, but since then cars that came from the factory with a white wall tire became super rare - why is that? In a word - fashion! White wall tires were a way that manufacturers gave their vehicles a distinctive, luxurious look - much like the collars on men's leisure suits and ladie’s blouses in the 70s - the wider the white wall the better! 

Most people don’t realize that the very first pneumatic tires made were white, hard to believe but the original formulas for tires resulted in an off-white or very light beige color for the tires. Manufacturers realized adding carbon to the compound resulted in better longevity, and the color we know tires to have was the result - black! Tire manufacturers then started adding a strip of white rubber to the sidewall as a way to differentiate their tires from others, and arguably one of the first ways to make your car stand out was to have white wall tires!

So vehicle manufacturers like Mercedes Benz and Duesenberg made their cars stand out with wide white wall tires - this made it obvious that the owner of these cars stayed on paved roads and didn’t have to take their cars into the back country where the tires would get dirty. The opposite end of the spectrum was the Model T - as first car made for the ordinary person they were expected to be able to go on any road a horse and carriage would travel, and thus the expectation was for the roads to be possibly not paved, but also have horses and everything that comes with a horse on that road, too (yuk!). So from a fashion standpoint, the tires were one of the original ways to differentiate a car as a luxury vehicle with a nice, wide white wall tire. 

From a modern vehicle standpoint, white wall tires were only on a limited number of cars into the 90s. Cadillacs, Buicks and Mercedes-Benz come to mind, but the 2010 Lincoln Town Car was the last modern car to come from the factory with a white wall option. This isn’t to say that there aren’t cars today that would look good with white wall tires - PT Cruisers, Fiat 500s, and even modern Cadillacs can pull off the look with a set of modern white walls (do Mustard and Mayo tires from Vogue Tire count as white walls to you? They do to us!!). Of course there were other colors you could find on some cars from the factory back in the day, there was a Red Line tire that was Original Equipment on some Ford, GM and Chrysler models. And finally, there was a Gold Line tire that came on a 60’s era Corvette - and all of these period correct tires are available from us through Coker Tire (https://www.performanceplustire.com/antique-tires/coker-antique-tires/)! We have been a Coker tire dealer the entire time we have been in business - since 1972! Coker has been around since the 50s, and have the perfect white wall tires for anything from a 1930s Ford to what they call a 80s and 90s Neo Classic tire. That 2010 Town Car came with a 225/60R17 White Wall and yes, we have several to choose from!
White wall tires may not be original equipment on a modern car, but the love of the white wall tire has not faded. So if you’re looking for a fat white wall for a custom built hot rod, a correct build and style for a 30’s Ford, that Gold Line for the ‘60s Vette, or even your Town Car with that ¼” White Wall, Performance Plus Tire has got 1000s of white wall tires in stock, ready to ship or install - so stop buy the shop or look up The Coker Tires we have on the site and know you’re getting the best white wall tires at the best possible price with our Locally World Famous service!