The white-walls never realy went away. They just got narrower. You can still get the thin ones today, it's just that if you want the '50s style wide-whites you have to special-order. I worked at an Exxon Car care shop for 18 years. They used to carry the same Atlas brand tires in blackwall and whitewall, just so they could milk that extra $3 from customers that had to have that white stripe on their wheels. They probably spent more in inventory costs, than if they just sold only whitewalls and let the customer decide whether to turn them in or out, for the same price!

Happy Motoring, Mark

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DrDKW