White Sidewall Tires

Recently I saw a 1950s era Ford stationwagon fully restored to “as new” condition. As a part of the restoration, the stationwagon had white sidewall tires. When I was growing up in Superior, white sidewall tires were popular. These tires cost more than the standard blackwall tires and their presence on a car would indicate an owner who was (1) able to afford the special tires and (2) wanted to indicate his vehicle was above the typical vehicle on the streets.

The 1950s white sidewall tires had a broad white sidewall. All was fine with them until the driver pulled in a little too close to the curb and scraped the white sidewall often leaving a black streak. There were polishes and soutch-ups available to deal with this.

I wanted white sidewalls but my 1958 Chevrolet Del Ray came with the standard tires. On a visit with Don Kronberg at Superior Motor Parts, I noted he offered a set of white tire liners that could be installed on the outside of the tire and would provide the white sidewall effect. When I had saved up enough money, I invested in a set and soon had them installed on my 1958 Chevy.

This solution was less than ideal. The liners had a tendency to stretch and deform and they soon got so bad that I ditched them. So far in my life, I have never owned a vehicle with true white sidewall tires.

You can still buy white sidewalls today. The white band on the tires is much narrower than on the 1950s version which may cut down on damage from curb rubs. Many of the bicycles I see in Lincoln have white sidewall tires.

The white sidewalls are still a status thing and will set off a vehicle from its more mundane cousins.