A special surprise awaited ailing Italian Carlo Tedeschi of his seven adult children, restoring the beloved 38-year-old family car Ford Fiesta when their father was diagnosed with cancer.
The Fiesta is considered the "eighth child" of the Italian family and has covered 245,000 km in driving lessons, journeys from the maternity hospital to the summer holiday home and in which all the children learned to drive!
Probably running out of Italian names, Carlo and his wife Gianfranca consider their little white car, bought 38 years ago, to be their eighth child. And when Carlo was diagnosed with cancer two years ago, his seven remaining children decided to restore the beloved family member to its former glory.
"The Fiesta is a big part of our family. Myself and my two younger sisters not only learned to drive in the Fiesta, but it was the car Dad drove us home from the maternity hospital in," said youngest son Paolo, 34. "We knew his dream for this car was to make it like new again. He was present at weddings, holidays, like a regular family member. Everyone knows it. We are the Fiesta family."
All of the Tedeschi children, aged 46 to 28, learned to drive in the Fiesta, which Carlo bought brand new from a dealership near their home in Sant'llario d'Enza, Reggio Emilia, Italy. The only car in his life that he bought new now has 245,000 km on the odometer, but it had obvious signs of wear and tear.
To qualify as a classic and be entitled to the special gold plate, the cars must have only genuine components. The biggest obstacle was the frayed seat fabric, which is not available in Italy. However, the project was brought to the attention of the German Fiesta fan community, who appealed for help and saved the day. The Tedeschi family were also guests of honour when Ford unveiled the next-generation Fiesta in Cologne last week.
Carlo Tedeschi's children have traditional names: Cristina, Monica, Francesco, Massimo, Paolo, Valentina, Chiara... and Fiesta?
"It became beautiful again. I wish I could feel that way again," Carlo said.
