A lowrider or low rider is a customized car with a lowered body that emerged among Mexican American youth in the 1940s.[3] Lowrider also refers to the driver of the car and their participation in lowrider car clubs, which remain a part of Chicano culture and have since expanded internationally.[3][4] These customized vehicles are also artworks, generally being painted with intricate, colorful designs, unique aesthetic features, and rolling on wire-spoke wheels with whitewall tires.[3][5]
Lowrider rims are generally smaller than the original wheels.[6] They are often fitted with hydraulic systems that allow height adjustable suspension, allowing the car to be lowered or raised by switch. From 1958 to 2023, the California Vehicle Code made lowriding illegal, which was ultimately criticized as unnecessary and discriminatory toward Chicano and broader Latin American culture.[7][8]
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- ^ "Gypsy Rose, the Most Famous Lowrider of Them All, Goes to Washington D.C." MotorTrend. June 13, 2017. Retrieved January 26, 2023.
- ^ "Lowrider fans pay their final respects to owner of Gypsy Rose in East LA". ABC7 Los Angeles. Retrieved January 26, 2023.
- ^ a b c Sturken, Marita; Cartwright, Lisa (2009). Practices of Looking: An Introduction to Visual Culture. Oxford University Press. p. 80. ISBN 978-0-19-531440-3.
- ^ Tatum, Charles M. (September 5, 2017). Chicano Popular Culture, Second Edition: Que Hable El Pueblo. University of Arizona Press. p. 230. ISBN 978-0-8165-3652-8.
- ^ California ends cruising ban that targeted Chicano low-rider culture. PBS NewsHour. October 20, 2022. Retrieved January 19, 2024.
- ^ Stavans, I.; Augenbraum, H. (2005). Encyclopedia Latina: history, culture, and society in the United States. Grolier Academic Reference. p. 51. ISBN 978-0-7172-5818-5. Retrieved January 9, 2020.
- ^ "Ron Aguirre's 1956 Chevrolet Corvette - The X-Sonic - Kustomrama". kustomrama.com. Retrieved January 27, 2023.
- ^ Hernandez, Jose (October 17, 2023). "Once Harassed by Police, Lowriders Can Cruise Across California Under a New Law". NPR. Retrieved October 22, 2023.