Last time I got new tires, white walls were a requirement for my white 81 242. I think they look sharp (when clean)

Wasn't it similar to the fashion switch from black to white and back to black socks? Then there was the width of the white sidewall, so you could tell if your lapels and ties were from the same era.

Was care of this white rubber the origin of the Bleche-White tire care products? I'm afraid I haven't been paying much attention over the years.
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Art Benstein near Baltimore

When I think of whitewalls I think of a GM. I think whitewalls have just gone out of vogue.
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Michael 'Street'... one AZ '85 244DL 192K miles

Some Cadillac DeVille's can still be had with (full) whitewalls. But hell, they can be had with a vinyl top too, so.

Not sure on the curb feelers ...

I think the fake wire-wheel covers were gone in the late-80's, though real wire wheels can still be had aftermarket. They're popular with the low-riders.

I think it was the early-60's Volvo's that came with the whitewall tires, later switching to blackwall bias-ply. In the early-mid 70's, they adopted radial tires, which were blackwall.

-- Kane
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Blossom II - '91 745Ti/M46 ... Bubbles - '74 144GL/BW35 ... Buttercup - '86 245GL/AW70 ... The Wayback Machine - '64 P220/M40

You can still buy tires with the white stripe on them. The Yokohama Avid Touring 195/75R14 tires that I last got for a 200-series wagon have a white stripe on one side. I didn't care for the white stripe, so I had the shop install the tires with the white stripe on the inside.

I don't know that anything new comes with whitewalls, but even Corvettes were available with them in the early 70s.
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1991 245, 61k miles, looking for a 5 speed 92-93 245 cheap.