1910 Model T tire color

[Harry P.]

Did 1909-10 Model T's have black tires, or white? I've seen photos both ways, which is correct?

[Longbox55]

If I remember it right from what Art has said on the matter, they should actually be beige, similar to the color of the sidewalls on a 10 speed bicycle. Looking at ariginal pictures from the era is misleading, because the beige color shows up white on the old B/W prints. The tires also had a tendacy to bleach out as the aged, which also makes them take on a whitish color. I'm not sure exacty when they started making black tires off the top of my head, or when Ford started using them as OE fitment.

[sjordan2]

According to Snyder's Antique Auto Parts, gray was original on the early T's, and white/gray tires persisted into the teens on many cars.

Wikipedia:

Early automobile tires were made entirely of natural white rubber. However, the white rubber did not offer sufficient traction and endurance, so carbon black was added to the rubber used for the treads. Using carbon black only in the tread produced tires with inner and outer sidewalls of white rubber. Later, entirely black tires became available, the still extant white sidewalls being covered with a somewhat thin, black colored layer of rubber. Should a black sidewall tire have been severely scuffed against a curb, the underlying white rubber would be revealed; it is in a similar manner that raised white letter (RWL) tires are made.

[Harry P.]

According to Snyder's Antique Auto Parts, gray was original on the early T's, and white/gray tires persisted into the teens on many cars.

Ok, so the switch to black tires happened after the first few years of production. Thanks.