Guy Fieri's Son Ryder Got a New Car After Driving His Grandma's Minivan for 'One Year, No Tickets'

Ryder Fieri Instagram

Guy Fieri's son Ryder had a milestone birthday — and not just because he turned 17.

The Food Network superstar's youngest son celebrated his birthday on New Year's Eve and the big day came with a gift he's been earning for a full year. In PEOPLE's September cover story, Guy, 55, who also has a son Hunter, 26, revealed that he has a rule when it comes to the boys' first vehicle.

"You know what Ryder drove to school [when] he got his license? He got my parents' old, used 259,000-mile Chrysler minivan. I'm not buying Ryder a car, and I refuse to let him buy a car until he spends one year with no tickets, no accidents, driving the minivan," he said at the time.

Well, one year has passed and Ryder has since graduated out of the minivan. Guy — who is hosting "Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives Live" at Food Network's South Beach Wine and Food Festival on Feb. 24 — tells PEOPLE that to reveal the big gift, he set up a scavenger hunt for Ryder and his friends at his ranch in Northern California.

"The second to last clue sent them all the way up the mountain to the lookout, and they had to find the clue. And then it said, 'Come down where it's deep and cold' or whatever," says the Tournament of Champions host. "And I had opened the pool — now granted it's 34 degrees up at the ranch in the wind — and in the pool tied to a pipe is the final clue."

Courtesy Guy Fieri Guy Fieri with wife Lori and sons Ryder and Hunter

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After an attempt to use the pool skimmer to get the clue, Ryder and his friends resigned to jumping in.

"They all strip down to their boxers and they all jump in and he pulls it out and he gets it. The water had leaked in the envelope a little bit, so it was a little bit wet and he's trying to read it," says Fieri. "It was [revealing] this truck that he's wanted."

More specifically, it was for his brother's crew cab pick-up truck: "Hunter wanted my truck, so Hunter bought my truck and we made Ryder buy Hunter's truck."

Guy and his wife, Lori, pitched in half the cost, and Ryder used the money he's earned working on his dad's shows to pay for the rest.

"We had taken the truck from Hunter, taken it to the detail shop, had it all gone through and made it Ryder's truck and a couple of my buddies come driving up the driveway and honked the horn. He lost it. I've never seen him happier about a gift he was getting," says the chef.

"I mean, what is the gift? The gift is, 'Hey, you have to pay half the money we'll pay the other half.' But he was really excited," he adds.

RELATED: Guy Fieri's Son Ryder, 16, Is All Grown Up in Homecoming Photos

A few months later, the excitement still hasn't worn off. Guy says Ryder takes the time to back the truck into their driveway every night.

"I saw him the other night. I was getting home about the same time he was. I say, 'You back in?' He goes, 'Oh, yeah. Truck looks way cooler when you look at it from the front,'" recalls Guy.

The South Beach Food and Wine Festival, running Feb. 23-26, will be a family affair for the Fieris. Guy's event on Friday night sees chefs who were featured on Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives cook live for party guests. This is his second year hosting the bash. Following his dad's event, Hunter will host a "Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives After Dark" party.

"Who knew it was going to be such a big hit — massive," says Guy of the success in 2022. "We have so many Triple D fans and so many different places we've done. Now you can come to South Beach and in one evening, get a chance to eat at 25-plus Triple D locations."

Tickets for the Miami festival, including Guy's event, are available now.