CARLISLE, PA – It only makes sense that we kicked off our coverage of the 2025 Carlisle Ford Nationals with the event footprint for Mustangs, which is overwhelmingly the most numerous vehicle in attendance on the Carlisle Fairgrounds show field each year. But let’s not forget that this isn’t just a Mustang show. As its name implies, this is the Carlisle Ford Nationals – meaning it’s a showcase for ALL Fords of every stripe and vintage. (And did you know that the show was previously known as the “All-Ford Nationals?”) Indeed, this massive event is a festival for every Ford vehicle ever produced, so this time around we’ll offer a closer look at some of the non-Mustangs that we found being celebrated at Carlisle this year.
Something you can’t miss each time you arrive at the fairgrounds via the main entrance at Gate 3 is the big display on your immediate right for the Ford Fairlanes, along with the club tent for the Fairlane Club of America. Next to the Fairlanes along the entrance row we see the many years of Torinos – this time seemingly filled with 70’s-era rides. It’s hard to miss all the swoopy Torinos sporting all their bright colors, not to mention several red 1974-76 “Starsky and Hutch” replica cars with that unmistakable Bright Red paint scheme and the big White “vector” stripe going down each side. Like the Bullitt movie car replicas, these cars carry a similar pop-culture attitude.
You get to your first major intersection in the fairgrounds and between the foot traffic from all the spectators and the variety of Fords coming through it’s easy to lose yourself! An enthusiast can seek a higher vantage point to navigate the show following the flow of traffic up the hill. Not only does this give an unreal view of the event but it leads you to more of a variety of Ford show cars displayed up on the giant hill as well as behind it. Up here you’ll find everything from Galaxies to Lincolns, Edsels to Falcons and Pintos to Mavericks – the latter both in car and truck form. And with this year being the 70th anniversary of the Ford Thunderbird, there was a special historical collection and a great turnout of cars, owners and club members in attendance this year.
The variety of Ford trucks up on the hill was impressive, most shrugging off all the rain while earning their “Built Ford Tough” slogan. Beyond the classic F1 and F-100 pickups, there was every sort of Ford truck you can imagine. You couldn’t miss the number of newer compact Maverick pickup trucks. This originally smaller group has started to really blossom, thanks to how popular Ford’s hot little truck has become over the last several years. Somehow – whether it was coincidence or not – we noticed that it seemed like the trucks gradually got larger the further up the hill you walked. It started out with Mavericks, then to Rangers, then stepped up to all different specs of F-150s and Raptors, and then your F-250 trucks and even larger. Who would’ve even guessed that Carlisle Ford Nationals staff even included a commercial class of truck! This is where we found one of our celebrity choice awards: the one and only 1986 C7000 Tilt cab otherwise known as a “cab over” in attendance, owned by Mr. Ben Maurer who also towed his other show truck, a short-cab 2016 manual transmission F-250 that he custom built from the ground up, winning awards in both categories.
Something else that really caught our attention was a retired Ford ambulance. Featured in a bright orange and white paint scheme decked out with the high roof and emergency lighting, this was a standout. Sitting right beside the ambulance were a pair of Tin Lizzie’s – otherwise known as the illustrious Model T. It’s always something seeing the first truly mass-produced Ford vehicle not far from a row of heart-pounding GT350R’s. That’s what 122 years of innovation does!
A big attraction are the most prestigious areas on the entire fairgrounds, buildings “T” and “Y” that house the year's hand-picked selection of feature and show cars. Inside of these two buildings you’ll find a variety of the rarest examples of Ford cars. This year we saw models to showcase the 70th anniversary of the Thunderbird and also to celebrate 20 years of the Ford GT (complete with a special GT reunion tent will all-day seminars from the major players from that famed Ford program). Not to be outdone, there was also a collection featuring the largest gathering of Mercury Motorsport Capris since 1985.
Simply put – if you’re a die-hard Ford fan and you haven’t yet visited the Carlisle Ford Nationals show on the first full weekend in June each year, then you’re truly missing out on the Ford experience. This event is an enthusiast’s dream with so many different happenings to be included among the more than 3,200 Ford cars and trucks on site for your viewing pleasure. Check out our photos below of some of our favorite Fords that we spotted at Carlisle during our weekend at the Nationals!
FORD PERFORMANCE PHOTOS / COURTESY JOE DELADVITCH
