Born in Southern California, and raised in the city of Corona, Juan Tauregui grew up around lowriders, making it a natural progression for him to transform his passion and history with the sport into his own lifestyle as an adult. To further emerge in the culture, Juan was blessed to have his uncle, Jerry Hernandez, present in his life, a man whom Juan considers his mentor and biggest influence. His uncle not only consider lowriding as his hobby, it was also his profession, as Jerry Hernandez built bomb cars and trucks for a living, making him the perfect expert to tutor a young Juan. Realizing that lowriding would be a great positive outlet for Juan , where in Corona most kids either joined a gang or got into trouble. Jerry took young Juan under his wing and kept him home and out of harm's way. At the age of 10, Juan was already a full-fledged assistant, helping his uncle and dad fix little things by assisting them with cleaning parts, and handing them tools as they put in long hours working on cars. Juan happily recalls the joy he felt having his own toolbox, as well as the initial excitement he experienced when he was first helping to fix cars, a feeling he says that has never left him to this day.
His experience in helping out at the garage came in handy, as Juan began fixing up lowrider bikes for himself and his friends. At 17, he started work at Billiard Depot where his parents would have to drive him back and forth to work, a chore that ended up working in Juan's favor. To encourage his freedom and free up their own schedules, Juan's parents decided it was time to purchase him a car so that he could get to work more easily. His parents wanted to buy him an economical car, but Juan wanted something classy and American made. After searching through the Penny Saver, he found an '85 Oldsmobile Cutlass in the City of Ontario, and persuaded his parents to make the trip with him to check out the car. Juan fell in love with the Cutty as soon as he laid eyes on it, and knew right away that this was definitely the car for him. They purchased the car for $1200, got the pink slip, and drove it home the same day, much to the delight of an excited Juan. The car was driven the way it was purchased, and taken all over the place to the normal destinations that teens normally attended. Juan wanted to show off his pride and joy to his friends. Juan started working as a sub-contractor in the construction industry and decided that he now had the time, and most importantly the money, to start working on his dream car.
Around that same time, he left his Catholic beliefs and turned to Christianity, as his faith became a top priority in his life, during this all-important transition from boy to man. He also decided to join Legends Car Club as he felt a good bond between the members, as well as a dedication to the lifestyle that matched his spiritual and moral beliefs. Legends members helped him put the car together, and understood his spiritual vision for the car; Juan wanted the car to be a Bible on wheels. The car has different scriptures painted throughout the car in places like the door jams, hood and trunk. The Cutlass was christened "Street Gospel" due to Juan's strong beliefs in Christianity and topped off with an old school Jesus mural in the trunk, expertly painted by Fonzy. Having been seen around the Lowrider Show circuit for over 8 years now, the Cutlass has won numerous awards. Even though this first car kept him out of trouble and gave him so many wonderful memories, the car has been retired and Juan has moved on. Now working on his new Impala project. Juan would like to thank his family and Legends Car Club members for helping him build "Street Gospel", and for helping him to spread his beliefs the best way he knows how; slow and low.