Why do whitewall tires cost so much?

Whitewall tires?!?! Ain't nobody got time for that!!!

 

They have lathe machines that do the same thing as the guy using the grinder it takes very little off its not a safety issue.

Yea it's hard as hell for us to get Kangaroos you should see how much we have to pay for them.

Jake

 

Yup, is that so hard to figure out? Why is gold worth more than silver?

 

There actually is a shop in Woodburn that has a machine to custom grind the whitewalls into wide whites. http://benavideztires.com/services.htm
It's not a while you wait process though.

I'm planning on having them do a set for me for the 48 when I get it close to being on the road. I figure I'll get my rims ready and take them down and have them mount and grind a set of tires while I spend the weekend in Portland. Maybe when one of my buddies plays at a place down there so I can go down for that too or during the roadster show.

 

I am confused. And I rarely get confused. I don't think?
If grinding the rubber off a black wall produces a white wall then does that mean black rubber was added to the white sidewall to make the black wall?
It's sorta like not putting lead in fuel now costs more?
Confusing ain't it.

 

You have to start with white lettered tires, or skinny whitewalls.
.

 

I remember pictures of early cars having all white tires, tread and all. So guessing real rubber tires were white ??????

 

like some one mentioned back on page 2? rubber is white to start........................

from there the black is an additive that also adds longevity ,

got to pay to play

 

Wow really? In response to a simple question I'm now under educated and ungrateful?

Merry Christmas to you too, I'll try not to ask questions on a discussion forum in the new year

 

You're right.. I have to cough up like 320$ a tire.. Oh well, you've gotta look the part

 

All you have to do is look at any White letter tire that has scuffed a few curbs Model T1 and it becomes obvious that there is a layer of white under a thin layer of black that they actually buff the black off the tops of the letters on at the factory.

I went out in my tire pile and dug out a junk white letter tire.


I took my 7 inch angle grinder to it with a 36 grit disk.


One thing that you might run into is that on the white letter tires they don't always get the seam on the white all that close when they cover it up with black.


Now I smell like burnt rubber

 

all this over whitewall tires? yep, there are a lot of cool parts that are very expensive that I hate paying the market price for. but, pay or find an alternative.

 

Rubber is one of the most expensive part for pretty much any car, and it always makes or breaks the look.
Ask in the fitment or minitruck scene how much a set of 20'' plus rubber bands s gonna cost....
Gotta pay to play.

And btw, i really hope youre not gonna run blackwalls on that beautiful Hudson.

 

I agree with the O/P; essentially that today, whitewalls are disproportionately WAY more expensive that blackwalls.

I do recall a time when I was a kid in the early 70's and my Dad opting to not pay ("cheap ot as he called it") an extra $5 per tire for whitewalls and opting for the $39 blackwalls. That meant whitewalls were less than 15 % higher than blackwalls not 50-100% higher like we're seeing. Has to be due to lower runs. With Coker, you're talking extremely low runs and more hand labor, but their tires are REALLY expensive.

 

I just bought tires for an off topic car and blackwalls cost more than whitewalls for those tires.

 

My terse reply wasn't directed soley at you, but you and the (seemingly) hundreds of people on here that constantly bitch about something cost related to which the answer should be apparent.......but unfortunately doesn't seem to be.

And yes, I do think that is largely the result of under education or, perhaps, leading with one's feelings unmoderated by the thought process.

That aside ....Merry Christmas!

Ray

 

I just went through the entire Coker catalog I had laying around and 15-20% more is about the average that white walls cost more. There are very few tires where the whitewall version is significantly more expensive as the OPs tire. There were also a few that had the same price.

It's funny when people bitch about offshore crap and how they would willingly pay more if somebody offers the same made in the US, then when somebody does the bitchfest starts how they are raping us.
I always had excellent dealings with Coker and appreciate the contribution his company has made to our hobby. Nothing wrong with making a buck.

 

i dont know either,but your guy are making me laugh!!!!

 

because idiots keep paying for them.

 

Likewise here - Im cringing at the thought of replacing the tyres on my Thunderbird.
Which cost a fortune to import.
And still does at the gas-pump.

And so it goes if you want a cool car...

 

As long as the guys buying them keep drinking the koolaid they will charge what they want.

I don't thank anyone for making a product sorry no matter what you believe they do it to make money not as a favor to you they are not in business to do favors.

Umm sorry forget what I said above thank baby Jesus for _____ tire.

Jake

 

This info takes a little bit of the sting out of buying cokers now

 

You should get kicked in the balls for running port-o-walls on anything truly deserving of WWW

 

I don't run them it was just a cheap alt.

 

Jake,

That seems a bit harsh. Sure, a vendor has an expectation of making a profit on the products produced and/or distributed. Not really any different than you expectjng to be paid for a day's work well done in your profession.

But I would dare to say, your job satisfaction is much better if you feel your employer appreciates the effort and skill you put forth in delivering the 'goods'. And, in turn, most employers also appreciate some employee 'loyalty' even though relationship is primarily a business proposition.

My comment about 'gratitude', or lack of it, is based on the idea, profit motive or not, if I need/want something either scarce or unobtainium I damn well am grateful when somebody makes the effort to supply it. Think Bob Drake for one example. That is, in my mind at least, a seperate issue from his profitability.

Regardless of which side of the transaction I am on, the best outcome of any deal is when both parties are better off.

Ray

 

I hear you I was just trying to bring some realism to the they are doing us a favor mentality .

Listen I am sure at some point some one is going to kick me in the balls lol because of now you just don't have any other choice.

Jake

 

The question the OP asked is valid and it really comes down to volumes. We are a specialty tire manufacturer. We build tires that no one else wants to build because of the low volumes or complexity. When you compare the volume of tires Coker builds to a major tire company our numbers are very limited. In addition, there are several extra steps involved to make a whitewall or redline tire.

Comparing our product to a cheap blackwall is comparing apples to oranges. The blackwalls were probably made in a production run volume in the thousands, if not ten thousands, most likely overseas, and they don’t require the hand finishing required of a wide whitewall or redline.

Our company is committed to supplying tires for many years of cars, trucks and motorcycles. We make tires for vehicles from the late 1800’s to the mid 1980’s. Some of those really early car tires are so limited that a production run of 100 tires might last 4 years.

We appreciate those who have purchased from us and hope some of you who haven’t will give us a chance when you need tires in the future.

Thanks,

Jess Hoodenpyle
Coker Tire
VP Sales and Customer Service
1-800-251-6336
www.Cokertire.com

 

Most expensive way to modify a car is to do it twice. If you're looking to save money, do it right the first time.

That said if your tires are dangerously worn then by all means get what you can afford to keep the car on the road and keep it safe.

 

Well said.