History The History of the Red Wheel and Whitewall

I really thought this was going to be a good thread about the origins and history but once again it's started off with a bunch of poo thrown at it.

There's more then enough evidence to say that this was a popular thing to do from customs to hot rods from the late 40's on up. And personally I don't think there is a better color to paint a wheel one a custom when a wheel cover is being used.

 

what everyone seems to be missing is we had very few options. there were no after market wheels. the ones that were built were out of our price range. so painted rims were the only way to go.

there were hub caps and baby moons (dog dish size) were popular in the early 50's and red was the brightest color. white was probably second. and to be different (which is what we all want) other colors were not uncommon. My favorite were full moons with flippers until 1956 Olds and 1957 Dodge. funny thing, I never cared for 55 dodge or Olds flippers, now they are my favorite.

about 1960 Chrome Reverse were an absolute must for rod or custom. also white walls started leaving the rods about that same time, but stayed a few more years with customs just kept getting narrower.

Early biased tires only lasted a few thousand miles, 10,000 max for grand dad that drove the speed limit and rotated all five tires regularly. We used to buy used tires. black walls for $3.00 mounted and balanced. white walls were $5.00 and usually got 1 or 2 at a time till you had them all the way around.

 

I wouldn't mind having the Dodge in the first pic.

 

Back in my youth, red rims and Porta walls were the shit.

 

I had one back in 1967, bought it for $20.00. Small hemi, push button auto and the sweetest sounding set of straight pipes anywhere. It was Pink, white and black. I drove it for about 6 months and sold it for a $100.00.

But to get back to the question at hand, red wheels with white's ( usally port-a-walls ) is very much traditional. I remember painting the wheels red on my mother's '56 Belair, must have been around 1960.

 

One of the best one-liners I've read on the HAMB.

 

My dad had red wheels on his black 40 Fordor in 1951...No whitewalls tho...

 

The thruth is red wheels are older than cars
i have a horse buggy that was green with
red wheels pinstriped in a lighter green.
If you realy wanted to show of you
painted your buggy blue. Beacuse
blue was wery expensive and didnt
last as long as other colours so if
you had a blue buggy you must be rich

 

If you couldn't get a hold of some cool hubcaps you ran red rims and white walls or porta walls back in the late 50's

 

Maybe the wheels became red because the gas companies always supplied red paint to paint the gas islands and water cans free of charge.

I know of a lot of things that got painted red with the free paint!

 

Then and now. Same car.

 

Even though we mostly ran wide whites with black rims back in the early 60's in Artesia, Ca. I do like red rims and white wall tires mostly with full hub caps.

 

Draggin' the Main early 60's on Fulton Street , Fresno, you'd see lots of Red Wheels.
When we saw a guy with no hub caps, we'd say,"Hey, you're going to get arrested! Why? You can't drive around with your nuts showing!"

 

I always assumed that lack of options drove folks to paint their rims red or whatever to be different, thanks for your overall post Noname.

 

Over here in the hillbilly half of massachusetts when I was a young lad in 1954 my 47 merc coupe had just the outer edge painted red [,possibly just with house paint] then spun alum moon disks. Maybe we had whitewalls? most likely if we had w/w they were only on the front wheels.

 

Yeah, thats basically the same story I was told.

 

I think the red wheels and wide white wall look best especially on a black car. Here a few examples from last year's Goodguys here in Scottsdale Arizona

Frenchy

 

The neighbor kid bought a black 63 Galaxie; (this was about 1979) when I went over to look at it his dad came out with a can of red paint and did this exact thing, except with the stock full wheel covers. He even said "that's how we did it".

I recall many black steel wheels with chrome lug nuts and white letter tires around 1970-71 (only 5 years old but already car crazy) I do remember it wasn't unusual to see red wheels in the junkyard either, plus the occasional cream/beige, some even with pinstripes.

Red wheels still look good on the right car, be it black, dark blue, or even dark green, no matter how over-used they might seem to be now.

 

I don't think that I count as a hater of red wheels I just wouldn't run them on my car if I could afford a can of black paint. You run 'em all you want I won't let anyone get ya.

 

Red wheels don't look bad, they are just cliche'. Unlike black paint, evidently some folks have finally had it with red wheels. Too bad we can't get away from all the other cliche' parts. Red wheels get put on just like a lot of other stuff put on traditional cars... no one seems to be thinking, to the point that you might say from at least 20 ft away they are like kit cars. Only three kinds of tail lights are ok, one type of tire, two or three types of head lights, two diffs, etc. etc. Dare ya to build a 32 roadster without teardrops, Firestones, a flathead and chopped top or black paint! Ya might as well make the wheels red, too, you got all the other cliche' stuff installed. Gary

 

The red/black was a factory set up. I have an unrestored 1946 Pontiac fastback, black body, red steel wheels, rings and caps (blackwalls)

 

My '49 Hudson coupe was last registered in 1963. It had red wheels on a gold body with blackwalls.

One yard that scrapped out a few years ago, this damn near perfect 55 Ford was completely hidden until they pulled it out with a loader and smashed the top down. It had been redone by someone - still shiny black paint, red/salmon (faded?) interior with a plaid or gingham print seat cover set on it, and - red wheels. Based on where it was the car probably hadn't been touched by anyone since about 1965. I wish I could have brought it back to sell, 4-door or not, it was in amazing shape.

I wouldn't mind having the backup lights off the Dodge in the first pic.

 

I like red wheels and white walls but I like to change it up every now and then also!!

 

Help !

Whar can I git some of that "Red Paint"..............??

*********************************************
Guess I've ben Smokey'ed Up Too Long !
But, Painted Whitewalls & red wheels (painted, just on the rim....could'nt see rest of wheel with spinners onit!)........Yes, I said painted whitewalls, Paint from
Western Auto Stores, or Sears.

 

I really didn't want to be part of this conversation, but wheels came from the manufacturer (usually Budd Wheel on Conner Ave in Detroit) in various colors over the years.

My neighbor, that I grew up next door to, had a 67 Buick in his back yard that had red wheels on it. They were't custom paiinted, but just plain factory-painted red wheels and they were marred up pretty bad too just like any average steel wheel.

Why do most people like red wheels and whitewalls? Like everyone has pretty much said on here already. They just look good.

I'm suprised these same people that bitch about red wheels don't bitch about chopping tops, FEDs, flathead Fords, and maybe even bubble top cars. Whatever dude... These people need to get over themselves. I've always hated elitist assholes, in any genre. Nobody on here should have to defend what they do to their cars and why they do it.

 

I aint bitvhen about red wheels I don't think. I have been known to bitch about flatties though as well as I don't believe that every top needs to be shopped or that everyone should own a 12 second FED.

 

I agree! Leave the 12 second FEDs to crazy f##kers like King Chassis

 

What about a 12 second FED...with red wheels though...