At Modesto’s Lowriding Holiday event, a culture once banned from the streets grows and passes through generations

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Arturo Mendoza bought his 1964 Impala convertible almost a quarter century ago, but the red convertible looks as sleek and shiny as if it came off the line yesterday. He hopes to pass it down to his son, who in turn could pass it down to his children. 

The car is a symbol of Mendoza’s love for lowrider culture, something he’s been around for the past 45 years. He’s spent the last 15 in Modesto and brought his Impala downtown Saturday as part of the city’s second annual History of Lowriding Holiday.

“We grew up in Modesto, and as a teenager, I also got involved with cars after my uncles,” said Mendosa, 58. “We used to do a lot of cruising back before they abandoned it.”

Lowriding culture refers to the age-old tradition of customizing and upgrading classic cars. It was born in the 1940s in Southern California and made its way up the state. This Latino tradition emphasizes the act of “cruising low and slow,” and participants add hydraulics, suspensions, pinstriping and their own personal touches to classic lowriders like Chevy Impalas. 

Modesto is famous for its cruising heritage, which inspired the George Lucas 1973 feature “American Graffiti,” a film based on his teenage years cruising 10th and 11th Streets in the 1960s. While that scene was rooted in hot rods and classic cruisers, the city’s lowrider community has carried the tradition forward, keeping the cruise alive with local car clubs and events like this one.

Mendoza’s car was among hundreds that filled J Street for the free, family-friendly lowriding celebration. The event also featured the Stanislaus State mariachi band, local vendors, lucha libre fights, and ballet folklórico performances.

The day marked another landmark for cruising in the city. 

Modesto outlawed cruising in 1990, and the ban stayed on the books for more than 30 years until the city council unanimously lifted it in 2023. Two years later, the city declared every fourth Saturday of September Lowrider History Day. This year marks the second anniversary of the event, and organizers say they are ecstatic to have it back and better than ever.

That includes Johnny Garcia, CEO and president of the Latino Chamber of Commerce, the event’s fiscal sponsor. The first year exceeded expectations and set them even higher for this year’s event. Participation almost doubled last year’s turnout of about 180 preregistered lowriders – with more than  330 lowriders.

Last year’s event was well received by businesses, lowrider owners, law enforcement and families, Garcia said, because it celebrates the culture as a whole, and not just specific car clubs, cities or people.  

“It’s really a cultural event,” he said. “It’s aimed at bringing the Latino culture together, of the lowriding community and the non-lowriding community, from across the Central Valley.”

He described lowriding as a story of Latino identity. He said the community has been fixing up cars and cruising since the 1950s and 1960s

“It didn’t start here in the Central Valley, but it did grow and expand here,” Garcia said. “They like to say low and slow, but it was just about the identity… the Latino community coming together for the love of cars.”

Mendoza said that identity is handed down within families. 

“It’s culture, something that you’re either in it or you’re not,” he said. “It’s something that’s instilled from your brothers and your older family.”

Working on a car and sharing that with his family gives Mendoza a feeling of accomplishment and “ownership pride.”  

His cousin Alex Hernandez, who does body and paint work on cars, concurred and said part of lowrider culture is doing everything together – including going to events like Graffiti Summer and Hot August Nights. But it’s not just about car shows. 

“We do everything amongst each other here,” Hernandez said. “We also use our cars for quinceañeras and weddings. It’s all family.” 

Events like this, Mendoza said, show younger people what a car can teach. “Just to have pride in what you do,” he said. “It starts off with the car. Next thing, it’s going to be a house, and then from there, it could be anything.”

For Garcia at the Latino Chamber, the event is also about correcting the reputation of cruising and lowriding, emphasizing that it has nothing to do with crime. 

“Historically, sometimes it has been deemed as maybe some thugs and gangsters and trouble,” he said. “The majority of them are hardworking individuals that own businesses, that work hard and put a lot of money into their cars.”

Roy Vasquez, a member of a Stockton-based car club known as No Limit Familia, said cars pulled him out from the violence he saw growing up. 

“I grew up in Stockton, so I was around all of that [crime],” he said. “As soon as I got into cars, it started keeping me away from that life.” 

He  is glad cruising restrictions have loosened, he said, and getting more kids involved can also help keep them out of trouble. 

Roy and his wife, Trish Vasquez, started No Limit Familia with a goal of uniting their friends under the same car club name and fostering their love for cars together. 

“I met my wife and felt blessed because she loves cars like me,” Roy said, squeezing her hand as they sat together on J Street behind their cars. “Bought her car and started cruising together. It’s a lot of time and money. It’s a labor of love.”

Many members of No Limit Familia are married couples like the Vasquezes with matching classic cars. He brought a 1940 Oldsmobile sedan, a rare sight among the Chevys and Buicks, and his wife has a rare white, four-door 1965 Chevy Caprice hardtop that fellow lowrider owners call a “unicorn.” 

Trish Vasquez said her car sometimes draws skeptics. She gets challenged by people who claim the Caprice didn’t come out until 1966. 

“That is true. The full edition came out in ‘66. Sixty-five was a prototype that was a limited amount made,” she said. “It’s actually worth more than an Impala.” 

Both Vasquez and Mendoza described the work as an art form and a way of self expression. 

“If you’re a car person, they’re never really done,” Mendoza said. “You’re constantly tweaking and upgrading it.”

Roy Vasquez said the tradition runs through generations. 

“I grew up in the culture,” he said. “I brought my kids up in the culture, and now our grandkids love the cars too.”

Ximena Loeza is the bilingual communities reporter for The Modesto Focus,  a project of the nonprofit Central Valley Journalism Collaborative. Contact her at ximena@themodestofocus.org.