When Waverley builder Peter How and his wife, Christine, joined the masses looking at the cars in Wanganui for the International Vintage Car Club Rally in January, one particular car caught his eye.
It was a straight six 1934 Plymouth sedan.
"I had a bit of an inkling it might have been my old man's but didn't know it at the time," Mr How said.
"I said to Christine that looked like the old man's car because there aren't a lot of Plymouths left around."
But the Plymouth was for sale and the Hows could not resist.
The paperwork has confirmed Mr How senior owned the vehicle at some stage, but the car has been on an interesting journey in the intervening years.
Mr How's father did not buy it new, but he owned it from the early to mid-1950s until about 1971.
"It was then bought by a guy in Hawera who had it for about 10 years. He wanted it for parts but he didn't realise the one he was doing up was Canadian-assembled where this one was built in the USA," Mr How said.
"There are differences. Things like the doors being a different size so one wouldn't fit the other.
"Then another bloke in Hawera got hold of it and spent about 16 years fully restoring it virtually from the chassis up. He re-upholstered it and renewed all the interior woodwork. Then he clocked up about 6000 miles (9600km) in it over a period of 14 years," he said.
Mr How said he could remember the 34 Plymouth being used as the family car.
"We often went down to Waverley beach in it and the old man used it for a heap of things. He was a spraying contractor and used to go everywhere with it."
His older brother learned to drive in the car and got his licence in it as well.
The Hows have taken the new car for a spin and more trips are planned.
Mr How said the vehicle drove well and would cruise along comfortably at legal open road speed limits.
"It wants to go its own way and there's a bit of play in the steering. But, no, it's great. Put it into top gear and away you go."
The homecoming has been topped off by the fact the car is back in the same garage it used to have before, when Mr How's father was the owner.
Now the car will be stored during the winter, but expect to see the 34 Plymouth on the district roads come next summer and beyond.