For Fred Lamar restoring his 1967 Chevy Impala was something of a dream.
The 81-year-old from Kentucky has always been a car enthusiast and had shared his passion for cars with his grandson Cam Dedman, taking him to his first drag race.
Now Cam is 28 years old and wanted to do something to repay the man he refers to as his “best friend.”
For over a year Cam has been working on the car, spending around $30,000 of his own money to restore the rusty Chevy to its former glory.
Fred was surprised with the restored car on his 81st birthday and had to be held up by his daughter and grandson after it was unveiled.
Cam posted the restoration pictures on his Facebook page writing: “The car has been setting in his garage since 1976. He’s my best friend and truly deserves it.
“This was so hard to complete let alone do it without him knowing. I saved up for years to do this even sold my personal car to help fund parts for the car. It all is worth it though for my Grandpa!”
All the hard work and sneaking around was worth it just to see his grandpa’s reaction at his much-loved restored car.
“I was so emotional when I was pulling in,” Cam told TODAY. “As soon as I saw his genuine reaction, it was all worth it. His legs were giving out at first, but after that, everything was just great.”
“I just couldn’t believe it,” Fred said. “He’s one special grandson, I’ll tell you.”
According to Today, Fred first bought the car in the early 1970s, but said he had not driven it since 1976. His grandson worked to restore the car four days a week around his job as a landscaper.
“Since I’ve been a little kid I’ve always been real close with my grandpa, and he always had hoped to fix it up like he wanted,” Cam said. “I told myself one day I would be the one to do it.”
Watch his sweet surprise in the video below.
What a sweet grandson, these two have such a special relationship and I hope they enjoy many more years together sharing their love of old cars.
Please share if you too loved this heartwarming video.