By just about any yardstick, the 1958 Chevrolet Impala was one wild looking car.

I remember it was late one night in November 1957 when my dad and I drove past Milner Chevrolet in St. Louis. There it was, a turquoise wonder parked under a lone spotlight in the showroom.

I remember thinking that all the scoops, the chrome-laden grille, the spinner hubcaps and that weird whatever it was on the back of the roof made it look like some unearthly vehicle had just plopped itself right on the turntable at Milner.

But if I thought the 1958 Impala was wild, Chevy really pulled out the stops in 1959. I remember many articles and jokes about the "gull wing" deck enabling the car to actually fly. And while the 1958 seemed bulbous, the 1959 was sleek, airy looking, and clearly something from the future.

All those memories came home to me when I unwrapped West Coast Precision Diecast's 1959 Chevrolet Impala hardtop, all done up in Aspen Green and Classic Cream, which was the most popular color scheme on this particular car.

This has to be one of the most difficult cars to replicate because of the unusual bends in the sheet metal, the angle of the fins, the slope of the roof and countless other aspects of its design.

But true to form, West Coast Precision Diecast nailed it, rendering a truly road-ready 1959 Chevy model that is the best I've seen. The car sits just right over the wheels, giving it the correct stance and profile. Delicate chrome outlines the fins on the side, along with a dramatic sweeping spear on each flank of the car with a white inset and tiny chrome lettering and emblems.

But it's inside where the model absolutely amazes. The interior fabric in the real car was a concoction of several different colors and had an unusual design. Somehow, West Coast Precision Diecast executed the look perfectly. All knobs and controls, door and window handles are intricately installed and look ready to operate. They aren't just painted on as they are in many models.

Operating interior features include a working ashtray and glove box, folding seat belts and even readable gauges.

Under the hood is a complex system of hoses, clamps and cables to accessorize the V-8 engine, which also is rendered accurately according to photos from sales catalogs and magazines of the era.

The trunk has the same texture and pattern found in the real car, and there's a spare and a jack, too.

Why spend $30,000 for a restored '59 Impala when you can have this one for $150?

More information is available at the West Coast Precision Diecast Web site, www.wcpdi.com.