As a kid growing up in Northern California the car culture was all about drag racing, hot rods and low riders. For as long as I can remember, low riders have been around. In 1975 the band WAR recorded their song “Lowrider” which became an instant hit, and my favorite song as a little kid. I moved to Texas in the late ’90s, where the lowrider scene is smaller, but when I came back to California and moved here to So Cal, the lowrider scene is alive and well. One of the cars I absolutely want to own someday is a ’64 Impala convertible with 16 switches, panel paint, heavy flake, and Daytons. If you haven’t seen them hop and bounce, you are missing out as well. The good thing is the video for WAR’s “Lowrider” features tons of cool lowriders doing what they do.
Click play to watch.
Before Daytons, lowriders liked to run deep dish Cragar SS with 5.60×15 tires used on Volkswagens. I like those better, for an old school look. Remember the 64 Impala with hundreds of hand painted roses? It was in the opening of Chico And The Man.
when I worked at Simi Tire the lowriders ran 13X7 with something like a 5.00 13 tire,it was a bitch to get the bead to seat.
I dig old school lowriders, too. I have always loved that someone else saw 60’s Impalas as something special and more than a engine donor for a Camaro.