Son surprises dad with his dream car he sold decades ago for 'diaper money'

A Texas man surprised his dad on his 65th birthday with the dream car he sold over 40 years ago to support his family.

Jared Guynes told "Good Morning America," he first found out about his dad Earl Guynes' beloved 1967 Chevrolet Camaro as a teenager, a time he was used to seeing his dad drive family cars, including a minivan.

"When he described that he once had so many cool cars in the late '70s and '80s after he got out of high school and before he got with my mom, I couldn't believe it," said Jared Guynes, now 40. "And so the coolest car that he had was this 1967 Camaro."

When he asked his dad at the time what happened to the car, Jared Guynes said his dad told him he had to sell the car to be able to pay for diapers.

"The joke was always that because I was born or about to be born, that my dad had to sell the car so he can afford my diapers," Jared Guynes explained.

Since learning about the car, Jared Guynes said he always dreamt about buying it back for his dad, but had to put that dream on hold because of both the cost and difficulty of finding or restoring that exact model.

After having what he described as a "really good business year” in 2021, Jared Guynes searched for and purchased a 1967 Chevrolet Camaro.

"Now a normal person, an average person, a responsible person, if they come into more money than they anticipated, they should save it. They should invest it, they should pay down debt," Jared Guynes said, with a laugh. "But for me, that was always something that I had decided a long time ago that if the circumstances ever presented themselves, that I would do it, and I never forgot that."

Over the next three years, Jared Guynes worked to restore the car for his dad, all while keeping the project a complete secret.

"So very few people knew about this [that] when I needed help that was beyond my ability, I had to explain to them that they couldn't take pictures, that they couldn't park it outside. They couldn't tell anyone that I brought it in," he said. "And I had to do it the difficult way, because, honestly, my dad is the expert on this car."

In October, on his dad’s 65th birthday, Jared Guynes said he planned an elaborate birthday dinner for his family, including hiring a magician to help with the big reveal.

Through a clever trick by the magician, he said his dad unknowingly picked the numbers 6 and 7 and spelled "Camaro."

At the end of the trick, the magician led everyone to the parking lot, where his dad initially thought the restored 1967 Camaro was just part of the magic show until Jared Guynes handed him the keys and said, "Thanks for the diaper money, Dad."

"He wrapped his arms around me, and he couldn't believe it, and he cried," Jared Guynes shared of his dad's response. "He broke down and cried and he told me he loved me, and that was probably one of the best days of my life."

Earl Guynes told "GMA" he was "absolutely surprised" by the gift from his son.

"I thought it was the greatest magic trick I ever saw in my life," he said. "I had no idea what was coming. I mean, it just appeared. It was the greatest surprise I've ever seen."

Earl Guynes also shared that if given the chance to go back in time and make the decision again to sell his dream car to support his family, he "would do it all over again the same way."

Meanwhile, Jared Guynes said his goal in giving his dad the Camaro was to show him, in the most meaningful way possible, how much he loved and appreciated him for his sacrifices.

"I want him to get in that car and be reminded every time he starts it up that that sacrifice was not in vain," he said. "He sold this car so he can start his family and he can afford diaper money and he forgot about it. But I didn't forget about it."