The Tempe History Museum recently unveiled an exhibit that explores Arizona’s lowrider car culture, which has been celebrated by Latino, Chicano and Indigenous communities across the Southwest.
When you first walk into the building, you’ll see a cherry red Chevy lowrider parked inside the main lobby. This classic cruiser is currently on loan to Tempe History Museum’s senior curator Marco Albarran.
“No, actually,” admitted Albarran. “I had many other people [who] wanted to have their cars inside. They’re family oriented, so they are open.”
Gabriel Pietrorazio
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KJZZ
Model lowrider cars on display inside Tempe History Museum’s “Ranfla Vida” exhibit.
Albarran’s own Somerton car club jacket from his hometown near Yuma hangs inside a glass box. Also on display are model cars, metallic club plaques and an assortment of plastic collectible Homies figurines.
“I actually brought my ‘71 Monte Carlo when I first came to college. Eventually, I left the lowriding community for a while,” Albarran shared. “I got this job and I decided that I wanted to showcase the history of lowriding, because there was — so far — nothing that I seen here in Arizona.”
An adobe-style mercado along South Avenida del Yaqui in Guadalupe is typically home to a barbershop, restaurant and even a boxing ring. But each April, this fenced-off patio in the heart of the tiny town — just east of Phoenix — turns into a jam-packed parking lot.
Despite a cruising ban remaining in effect by Phoenix and other Valley cities, Arizona is still home to some of the biggest lowrider shows in the Southwest, including gatherings in Glendale and Guadalupe.
This exhibit running through December is called “Ranfla Vida.” As Albarran explained, ranfla is essentially Spanish slang for car — often used to describe lowriders, “and vida is life, so it’s ‘Car Life.’”
If you go
Where: “Ranfla Vida” exhibit at the Tempe History Museum, 809 E Southern Ave, Tempe, AZ 85282.
When: On display through Dec. 31.
More details: tempe.gov/government/community-services/tempe-history-museum.