Program transforms lowrider into an EV, paving the way for sustainable cruising
SACRAMENTO -- During Hispanic Heritage Month, CBS13 is taking a closer look at lowriders, which are an essential part of California's Chicano culture. Merging tradition and innovation, a Sacramento trade school is on a mission to transform a lowrider into an EV.
Sacramento Academic and Vocational Academy, also known as SAVA, hosts the program. The class focuses on teaching students the basics of vehicle conversion with the backdrop of the state's ambition to be carbon neutral by 2035.
Lowriders are traditionally classic, vintage cars, sometimes fitted with hydraulics, custom wheels, and loud engines. The class is taking a 1968 Impala and making it completely electric while souping up with a sound system and hydraulics.
"It's been fun, we've taken all this apart and now putting it back together," student Nayeli Rodriguez said.
Instructors and students say the project is challenging and requires a lot of improvising. Galan Hartman, an instructor for the class, says it will pay off in the end.
"We're using modern technology to make something that's old and brand new again," Hartman said.
The program aims to prepare students to become professionals in the clean energy sector.
The project was made possible by SMUD, the Sacramento Metropolitan Air Quality Management District, Ohm Electric Cars and Sacramento's Lowrider Commission.
The project is expected to be completed in the next six months.