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1959 Chevy Impala - Rowe's Red-Winged Wonder
Bobby Alloway sends Chuck Rowe to Fin City

Those who commission Alloway's Hot Rod Shop to build their cars are well aware of Bobby's distinctive style. They like it; they want it. You don't go to Alloway and expect to drive out in a weak-kneed, frilly showboat. You do, however, expect to get something show worthy. You see, Alloway not only likes cars potent, he also likes 'em pretty, and has earned a reputation for top-notch craftsmanship and attention to detail. There's a Ridler Award, an America's Most Beautiful Roadster trophy, and many Goodguys honors (Street Machine of the Year, Street Rod of the Year) on his mantle to prove it.

Chuck Rowe's '59 Impala has all the Alloway hallmarks. There are deep-dish, 20x10-inch, Coddington-machined, ET-style rear wheels wrapped in hefty Goodyear rubber, trailing 17x7-inch front rollers. Underhood is a 502ci big-block Chevy; a snorting, thumping mill built by Kesier Racing using a COMP roller cam, aluminum heads, Barry Grant carb, MSD distributor, and Sanderson headers. All around are smooth panels, subtle modifications, and impeccable detailing. None of these elements, in and of themselves, are very surprising considering the source. What is a little startling is finding them all on a big, bold, be-finned, bright red '59 Impala.

Chevrolet's bat-winged tribute to '50s flamboyance has been given plenty of makeovers through the years, most commonly with lowrider or traditional custom treatments. The challenge for Alloway and his Louisville, Tennessee-based crew was making a decidedly more aggressive approach work on this long, lean, and funky body style.

Cleaning up the body was the first objective. Alloway and company have simplified the car's lines by removing the door handles and emblems, replacing the Impala side trim with finer Bel Air spears, and crafting custom pans under the one-piece front and rear bumpers. The vast expanses of sheetmetal are covered in multiple coats of DuPont Guards Red paint, while Dan's Polishing (Adamsville, Tennessee) has made sure all that chrome and stainless glimmers and shines as it should.

The bright and shiny isn't restricted to the car's topside, though. The bottoms of the floors are painted and buffed to be as smooth as the rest of the body. Likewise, the filled and smoothed frame wears a contrasting silver finish worthy of any show car. It's equipped with an Art Morrison front frame stub and IFS with Aldan coilovers. Further back, Viper coilovers suspend the 9-inch rearend. Wilwood binders are used on all four corners.

If you didn't know better, you could almost mistake the cabin for a resto job. That's precisely the effect upholsterer Paul Atkins was after. Leather-wrapped '65 Impala bucket seats are stitched in a factory-like pattern, while the custom door panels mimic OEM styles of the era. Even the handmade console looks like it could've come off the Chevrolet design table. Up in the dash, custom Classic Instruments dials with Alloway logos fill the original gauge pods, while a Vintage Air system and a Sony stereo provide fresh air and sound.

The finished product is stunning, to say the least. For Chuck, it also holds a certain nostalgic value. You see, when Chuck first met his wife, Diane, he was driving a yellow '59 Impala. Diane hated that car, Chuck says. Something tells us this red one might've won her over.

So, does the Alloway hot rod recipe work on a big cruiser like Chuck's Impala? Judging by the reaction at some of this past summer's shows, we'd have to say the answer is a resounding "yes!" It looks like this ol' boy from Tennessee has another crowd pleaser on his hands, not to mention one of the slickest '59 Chevys we've ever seen.