Lowrider

. See metal-rich. Often featuring suspension long since rendundant from modern design. In the specialised usage of astronomy and astrophysics, the term "metal" is often used to refer to any element other than hydrogen or helium. Excessive chrome, overspoked wheels and fur are common accessories to these low and bizarre custom creations. The oxides of metals are basic; those of nonmetals are acidic. A new breed of lowrider bicycles and even the occasional motorbike have been inspired by lowrider culture. Metals are also sonorous, which means that they conduct sound well.

Lowriders have been a prominent feature in Hip-Hop culture, primarily in West Coast hip-hop where the 1964 Chevy Impala ragtop is widely considered to be the most desirable lowrider, Daytons are widely considered to be the most desirable manufacturer of spoke rims (100 is widely considered to be the most desirable number of spokes per Dayton), and sixteen is widely considered to be the most desirable number of switches. However, this is mainly because the low density, soft, low melting point metals happen to be reactive and we rarely encounter them in their elemental, metallic form. There are several magazines devoted to presenting, preserving, and chronicling lowrider culture, the best known of which is Lowrider magazine, currently published by Primedia. Traditionally, metals have certain characteristic physical properties: they are usually shiny (they have "lustre"), have a high density, are ductile and malleable, usually have a high melting point, are usually hard, and conduct electricity and heat well. Aside from local drags and their parking lots (hence the term, parkin' lot pimpin'), lowriders are most commonly seen at privately organized lowrider car shows that often feature a variety of different vehicular and non-vehicular events, the most popular of which are the hydraulic competitions and the wet T-shirt/bikini contests. Alloys specially designed for highly demanding applications, such as jet engines, may contain more than ten elements. Most lowrider clubs have weekly meetings in the summer where owners and friends will have a BBQ/cookout followed by cruising a popular drag (or strip) after dark. Examples of alloys are steel (iron and carbon), brass (copper and zinc), bronze (copper and tin), and duralumin (aluminium and copper).

Summer is the most popular season for lowriders, as the weather often encourages being outside either in or nearby the vehicle. An alloy is a mixture with metallic properties that contains at least one metal element. Essentially all the options available to today's custom automobile creator are also available to the lowrider builder, and lowrider style varies greatly from region to region. . Today the lowriding scene is diverse with many different cultures, vehicle makes and visual styles. Painting or anodising metals are good ways to prevent their corrosion. This culture was celebrated in the 1975 song "Low Rider" by the funk group War. aluminium, some steels, titanium).

Lowriders were originally a facet unique to Chicanos, but have since become common to urban youth culture in general. Some metals form a barrier layer of oxide on their surface which cannot be penetrated by further oxygen molecules and thus retain their shiny appearance and good conductivity for many decades (e.g. A skilled switch operator can manipulate his controls (hitting switches) to raise one wheel completely off the ground (3-wheel motion), or to bounce one end of the car completely off the ground (bouncing, hopping, dancing, hanging, amongst many others). Others, like palladium, platinum and gold, do not react with the atmosphere at all. The most common motions are dipping/raising the four corners of the vehicle (referred to as corners), dipping/raising the front or rear of the vehicle (front, back), dipping/raising the sides of the vehicles (side to side), and lowering/raising the vehicle as a whole (pancake). iron, copper, zinc, nickel). These systems range from simple to complex and are usually measured by the amount of switches used to control the various hydraulic combinations that ultimately produce a specific motion from the vehicle. The transition metals take much longer to oxidise (e.g.

Many lowriders feature custom hydraulic suspension systems that allow the driver to alter the ride height at will. The alkali metals react quickest followed by the alkaline earth metals, found in the leftmost two groups of the periodic table. Many lowriders now feature any combination of mobile electronic audio and video devices, most stereotypically a loud audio system that features a powerful amp and large subs (or woofers) and primarily focuses on producing massive amounts of bass. Most metals are chemically unstable, reacting with oxygen in the air to form oxides over varying timescales (e.g., iron rusts over years, potassium burns in seconds). Other common custom interior enhancements are; the use of woodgrain panels or interior paint, neon or LED lights, chrome or gold accents, cosmetic mirrors, aftermarket steering wheels (of which a chain-link steering wheel is iconic), and various fuzzy objects that hang from the headliner or rear-view mirror.
The properties of conductivity are mainly because each atom exerts only a loose hold on its outermost electrons (valence electrons); thus, the valence electrons form a sort of sea around the close-packed metal nucleii cations. Custom interiors are also very popular and are most commonly fabricated in leather, tweed, or velvet. These synthetic materials often have the characteristic silvery-grey reflectiveness of elemental metals.

The most detailed vehicles have engine, exhaust and performance modifications and/or beautifications. This definition opens up the category for metallic polymers and other organic metals, which have been made by researchers and employed in high-tech devices. Other common custom exterior enhancements are; body kits or skirts, extensive use of chrome or gold, neon or LED lights, curb-feelers, tinted windows, antennas or fins, spoilers, and fifth wheels (a full matching spare on display). A more modern definition of metals is that they have overlapping conductance and valence bands in their electronic structure. Lowriders traditionally feature small (to be able to tuck beneath the wheelwell and allow the lowest ride heigth), gold or chrome spoke wheels with or without knockoffs and whitewall tires. The allotropes of metals tend to be lustrous, ductile, malleable, and good conductors, while nonmetals generally speaking are brittle (for solid nonmetals), lack luster, and are insulators. The exteriors typically feature expensive custom paintjobs (the best are often referred to as candy) that consist of several thin layers of different colors, metal oxide flake or pearl flake, clear coat, metal leaf, airbrushed murals or script, pinstripes, flames or any other hand-painted graphics, or any combination of the above. Some well-known metals are aluminium, copper, gold, iron, lead, silver, titanium, uranium, and zinc.

Lowriders are very often flashy, show-quality custom vehicles. Nonmetal elements are more abundant in nature than are metallic elements, but metals in fact constitute most of the periodic table. . Elements on this line are metalloids, sometimes called semi-metals; elements to the lower left are metals; elements to the upper right are nonmetals. The word is also used to refer to those who drive or own such cars. On the periodic table, a diagonal line drawn from boron (B) to polonium (Po) separates the metals from the nonmetals. Lowriders are very often classic cars from the 1950s which rode low to begin with, although large numbers of 1940s and 1960s cars are also so modified, and to a lesser degree newer vehicles. The metals are one of the three groups of elements as distinguished by their ionisation and bonding properties, along with the metalloids and nonmetals.

A lowrider is a car or truck which has had its suspension system modified (usually with hydraulic suspension) so that it rides as low to the ground as possible. In chemistry, a metal (Greek: Metallon) is an element that readily forms ions (cations) and has metallic bonds, and metals are sometimes described as a lattice of positive ions (cations) in a cloud of electrons. Low Creations (since 1974). UCE C.C. Vultures.

Viejitos. Touch Of Reality. Strokers. Sleepers.

RPM boys. Rogues. Plaza rebels. Play boys.

Nobles. Naturals. Masquers. Majestics.

Los Santos. Imperials. Hot coils. Highway barons.

Idols. Cherry pickers. Cavaliers. Buzzards.

Barrelers. Auto butchers. Coffin cheaters. Amigos Car Club.