Tommaso Bevilacqua’s friends and family gave the 82-year-old man quite the surprise at his home in Longueuil Saturday afternoon, but they couldn’t quite pull the wool over his eyes.
Bevilacqua told Global News he had an idea what his family was doing with his prized possession, a white Honda Accord EXR.
“I said something is fishy.”
His granddaughter Giuliana Bevilacqua executed an elaborate plan over the past two days in order to take his car. Instead of using it for work like she told her grandfather, she took his 30-year-old car to the auto repair shop for a tune-up.
“We basically brought it to get it cleaned inside and out and the place actually repainted it,” she said.
The scheme was all in preparation for a 30th anniversary surprise party with the Honda, his granddaughter started to think about in 2021.
“He told me it was 29-years-old last year, so I said okay next year it’s hitting a milestone,” adding “let’s have a birthday bash.”
Bevilacqua purchased the car for $24,289.56 in 1993 from Honda Sigi in Montreal, which has since closed.
On Saturday friends and family showed up to the family home, while Bevilacqua was taken to “buy plants.”
He showed up after 2 p.m. to party attendees cheering. His Honda Accord EXR with it’s fresh paint job sitting in the driveway with gold Mylar balloons in the number 30.
The 82-year-old admitted he thought it was getting painted because he couldn’t do it himself, but the whole event “was a really big surprise.”
“It means a lot. I’m very, very happy, this my bijoux. I don’t know why, it’s nothing special,” said Bevilacqua.
His granddaughter says he gets recognized driving the car, and is often stopped by car lovers to make an offer.
“He’s been offered thousands of dollars to purchase it,” she told Global News, “His answer remains the same, I will never sell my car.”
He jokes that it’s no Ferrari but it’s his very own race car. He plans to celebrate many, many more milestones in the drivers seat.
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