1934 Ford introduces whitewalls
The Ford Motor Company announced white sidewall tires as an option on its new vehicles at a cost of $11.25 per set. Whitewalls soon became associated with style and money. By the 1950s, whitewalls were standard on many cars, and it would be hard to imagine a '55 Corvette without a corresponding set of whitewall treads. The popularity of whitewalls continued well into the 1960s. Car companies offered different width white bands in a race to make their whitewalls whiter. In the James Bond film Dr. No, 007 drives a Sunbeam with wire wheels and special-ordered five-inch white-walled tires. Henry Ford was never known as a fashion revolutionary, but he was onto something with the whitewalls.
Posted by Quality Weenie at April 6, 2006 06:52 AM | TrackBack