Contributed photographCompany: Coker Tire Company, Inc.
Started: 1958
Product: The company manufactures and sells vintage-style Michelin, Firestone, BF Goodrich and Uniroyal bias-ply and radial whitewall tires for collector automobiles. Coker Tire uses original, refurbished and new molds built from original drawings to produce tires that retain the appearance of the old tires made with modern materials.
Coker also sells Phoenix Race Tires, M&H Racemaster, Pro-Trac, Hoosier Pro Street Radials, and select Firestone vintage tires through its performance division. Coker has also developed a line of Firestone Indy tires, built for a variety of vintage Indy cars.
Distinction: Coker Tire is the world's largest manufacturer and supplier of collector vehicle tires and motorcycle tires, with distributors in more than 30 countries. Coker Tire also offers wheels for collector vehicles. In 1994, Coker Tire released a radial tire with a wide whitewall, which was a first of its kind. Coker Tire was given manufacturing rights by the original tire brands, and also has acquired other tire molds of the original obsolete tires they manufacture to include a total of more than 2,000 tire models for historic and other collectible cars and trucks.
Owner: Corky Coker, son of founder Harold Coker
President and COO: Wade Kawasaki
Facilities: Headquarters in Chattanooga and factory in Los Angeles
Website: cokertire.com