As a present to Kobe Bryant’s mother, Pam, former Los Angeles Lakers teammate Shaquille O’Neal, on the birthday of her son, gifted her with a restored 1996 Toyota Land Cruiser that was owned by the Lakers’ legendary player when he was in high school.
According to Japanese Nostalgic Car, the TNT analyst took his request to a Riverside, Calif. customization shop, Effortless Motors, a place that had previously worked on several automobiles for Shaq. As a surprise gift for Kobe’s mother, he wanted the shop to bring the vehicle to its original look after seeing the car, described as being in dilapidated condition, at Pam’s house.
Pam now resides in Las Vegas, where the car had been sitting for years. As no one has driven it, it has seen a lot of nature and other factors corrode the appearance, as it is a nearly 30-year-old car.
NBC Los Angeles spoke to the men responsible for the restoration of the Land Cruiser, owners of the shop, Ahmad Abdelrahman and Daniel Ubario, about taking on the task. Having worked with Shaq before, he felt he needed to make sure that the NBA Hall of Famer would not be disappointed with the request to restore the car to its original factory settings.
“Anybody that’s fortunate enough to get to work with Shaquille O’Neal, the number one thing you don’t want to do is let Shaq down, man,” Abdelrahman said.
The task at hand would not be an easy one, as the car is nearly 30, but the conditions the vehicle was in previously, braving the cold and hot weather from Kobe’s hometown of Philadelphia to being in the Vegas desert sun in recent years, presented a real challenge for the duo.
“It was in a little rough condition,” Ubario said. “The paint, we had to do a fully, fully restore, 360 restore. Interior was a little rough.”
The job was completed to the satisfaction of Shaq, but, more importantly, Kobe’s mother, Pam, who received the vehicle in time for the celebration of Kobe’s birth, Aug. 23.
“She was extremely thankful and to be there on Kobe’s birthday, and I met her for the first time. It meant a lot to me too,” Abdelrahman said.
