LIMA, OH (WLIO) - A local man went to a car show Wednesday night with no idea he'd be going home with his dad's vintage ride. Neal Lause was just a kid when his dad built the car. It has a 1933 Plymouth body and his father had built many parts, like the frame, by himself back in 1962.
For over thirty years, the vehicle has sat in the garage, undrivable. This year, he decided to send it in to get restored before retirement and took it to Greg Hawk. With the help of Neal's wife, LuAnne, Hawk led Neal to believe that it would still be several weeks before the vehicle was in working condition so that they could surprise him with it at this week's Cool Car Cruise-In at Happy Daz on Cable Road.
"I was back there, Lu and I parked back there, and I said Lu, our car's up there. She says no it isn't and I said that's our car! And here it was a big surprise, I had no idea," Neal Lause said, recalling the moment he arrived.
"There was like a lot of strong-arming on my part because he doesn't like to come over here and I said 'You know there's going to be cars over here,' and I said 'I'm going to be busy for the next three weeks so this will kind of be like our last date night for three weeks.' And he said 'Okay, I'll do it." So that's how that worked out," explained Neal's wife, LuAnne.
Neal plans to drive his newly restored car much more once he retires like he did back in high school and college. Hawk also added a plaque inside the car honoring Neal's father.
