Some visitors see it as a pile of scrap. Others find it spiritual and energising. Still others see it as a masterpiece, according to Liz Lee, 54, a computer guru who is president of Friends of Carhenge.

The attraction in question lies on a windswept plain just north of the town of Alliance in western Nebraska, along Highway 87. It's modelled on Stonehenge - the ancient cluster of stones in Wiltshire in the west of England.

The difference is that Carhenge consists of what Americans call automobiles (38, in keeping with the original). Coated with grey paint that lends them a ghostly aura, they've been welded together and positioned in the same pattern as the Wiltshire wonder. The roll call includes Fords, Plymouths, Chevys, Dodges and Cadillacs. A 1962 Caddy takes pride of place as the heel stone.

Engineer and conceptual artist Jim Reinders built Carhenge in 1987 as a memorial to his father, who used to live on the property.

Manoeuvring the cars into position was hard work, though. Lee says it came down to 'blood, sweat and beers'.

The resulting monument may one day act as mausoleum for Reinders, who wants to be buried at the centre when he dies.

Meanwhile, Carhenge is becoming an icon. It has appeared on the cover of Steely Dan's Greatest Hits and graced several commercials and films, including the 1995 low-budget midwestern comedy Omaha and Elizabethtown, the Orlando Bloom drama that will be released next year. Visitors come from around the world - 'the incidental, the intentional, those searching and those finding', says Lee.

'If you're curious, you may find it entertaining. If you're wanting space, great. You have wide open places to look around at - acres of farmland and no one standing at your elbow. It's a good place to let the kids run through the grass.'

Beyond the expanses of western Nebraska, the fascination that Stonehenge exerts has found expression in other replicas. There's Stonehenge II in Texas, Stubby Stonehenge in Missouri, and Foamhenge in Virginia.

Lee says that developers choose to ape the original because it's 'do-able' and 'because it's there'. The one she presides over probably has more dramatic impact than most. If you're tempted to visit, Carhenge costs nothing and is open all year.

But expect the unexpected. Sometimes, during the summer or winter solstice, druids descend on the attraction. Everyone is welcome, Lee says. Carhenge has also been used as a backdrop for teenage drug adventures, and one honeymooning couple whose lovemaking was interrupted by the local sheriff.

But the site is most peaceful for watching a solstice sunrise or a harvest moon. 'All are wonderful,' Lee says.