The History of Lowrider Hydraulics

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By Jeff Taylor
eHow Contributing Writer

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Lowrider hydraulics can be seen from coast to coast, driven by people who cut across the lines of race, gender and income level. Lowrider hydraulics have an interesting and very specific history. It's a history that centers mostly around the Mexican-American, and later African-American and white communities in and around Southern California.

Origins

After WWII, poor Mexican-Americans were finally able to purchase automobiles. They were usually inexpensive, older cars that were then repainted and "tricked-out" in various ways.

Riding Low

Riding low to the ground became popular among Mexican-Americans sometime around the early 1960s in Southern California. Cops began giving tickets for this, so hydraulics were installed so that the car could be returned to the normal, street legal height when necessary. This evolved into more tricky hydraulic systems being installed, which allowed for such actions as bouncing and lifting from side to side.

Important Individuals

The first known lowrider was created by Harry Westerguard's shop. From there, some early innovators were George Barris, Bill Hines, Al Sullivan, Carl Watson, Terry Anderson, David Woo, "Bear," Don Lasar and Vince Bacardo.

Scraping

In the late 1960s and early 1970s, "scraping" become popular. Scraping is where the front or rear end of the car is dropped down to scrape against the ground while driving. At first lowriders just accepted the damage to their cars, but eventually began adding steel bars that could be replaced when they began to wear out.

Geography and Spread

Though lowriders first became popular in Southern California, especially Los Angeles, they eventually spread out to the rest of California and other Western states. They can now be found everywhere, but are still especially prevalent and popular in the West.