WHAT’S HAPPENING – If season-opening car shows taking place in March seem a bit too early to head out to the barn and fire up your Mustang after a winter’s slumber, there’s one date most owners would agree that deserves taking your Mustang out for the first drive of the year. Of course, that would be on April 17, 2025 – Mustang’s official “birthday” that marks the anniversary date of the Mustang’s public introduction back on April 17, 1964. The problem is that this year, April 17 falls on a Thursday, which is a workday for many Mustang owners who’d surely prefer to have the day off to go out and play with their iconic Ford Pony Car. So what’s the best way for them to celebrate this notable day in the Mustang hobby? It’s simple – just check out what your local Mustang club is doing, either on the April 12-23 weekend before or the April 19-20 weekend after our favorite automotive birthdate.
If you’re already a member of a local Mustang club or social media group, then it’s likely you’ll be invited to participate in some sort of club cruise-in or driving event with your fellow club members. Not part of a Mustang club but would like to tag along? Ford makes it easy to find a group near you by visiting the club map on www.FordPerformanceClubConnect.com. Most every single Mustang club or group will be out doing something to mark the birthdate, so it’s the perfect time to share in the joy of Mustang ownership.
Ever since the Mustang turned 50, the idea of owners and fans getting out on April 17th to celebrate National Mustang Day has grown into a global phenomenon. National Mustang Day was originally set up to be an annual fundraiser for the Mustang Owner’s Museum https://www.mustangownersmuseum.com/ via the sale of windshield stickers to participating clubs. The museum, which is located in suburban Charlotte, North Carolina, set up a National Mustang Day NATIONAL MUSTANG DAY - HOME website to facilitate the sale of the window clings and list all of the participating club activities planned for that day, as well as to register for the museum’s own event.
This year, the Mustang Owner's Museum is inviting everyone join them in celebrating at its annual National Mustang Day events on April 11th and 12th. On Friday the 11th, the attendees will leave from the museum in Concord, North Carolina, just down the road from the Charlotte Motor Speedway, for a cruise to the Petty Garage and Museum in nearby Randleman, NC for a full tour. The Friday Night Dinner starts at 6 p.m. and features a whole hog BBQ and smoked chicken with all the fixins.’ The Museum Car Show field opens at 9 a.m. on Saturday, April 12 with the day’s guest speakers, event attendees and the Museum’s Hall of Fame Inductees choosing their favorite vehicles. Inside the Museum you can hear guest speakers from 11 a.m. to 12 noon and from 1-3 p.m. They include representatives from the Ford Performance Racing School; Bud Magaldi, Chief designer and (styling) Design Manager of the Fourth-Generation (SN95) Mustang; Art Hyde, Chief Engineer of the Fourth-Generation (SN95) Mustang; and Omead Dorandish, Lead Ford Designer of the Seventh-Generation (S650) Mustang.
The Car Show Awards will be given out at 3 p.m. and the winning ticket for the Mustang raffle car will be pulled at 3:30 p.m. Attendees will reconvene at 6 p.m. for the Mustang Owner’s Museum Hall of Fame Induction Dinner, whose 2025 inductees include: Mustang Industry – Dave Pericak, former chief engineer of the S197 & S550 Mustang and former global director of Ford Performance; Mustang Racing – Bob Tasca, creator of the 428 Cobra Jet Mustang. (with video acceptance by Bob Tasca III, current NHRA Funny Car Driver); Mustang Hobby – Bill Dillard, one of the original founders of the Mustang Club of America; and Mustang Journalism – Steve Turner, longtime journalist and author at Ford Muscle. For all the info check out the museum’s website at www.MustangOwnersMuseum.com.
Another multi-club event celebrating the 61st birthday of the Mustang is happening in the heart of the Midwest at The Halderman Barn on Saturday, April 12. Clubs from all over Ohio are gathering for a party at the Mustang museum that honors the late Gale Halderman, principal designer of the original Mustang. There will be a show & shine with a food truck on site, and the guest speaker is scheduled to be Emeline King, the primary designer on the fourth-generation SN-95 Mustang’s swoopy dual-cockpit interior. Emeline was the first black female Transportation Designer in Ford Motor Company’s history, and she went on to design a variety of components on other Fords, including the Thunderbird, during her nearly 25 years at the Blue Oval. She’ll be hosting a Meet & Greet and book signing after her presentation, with copies of her book entitled, “What Do You Mean A Black Girl Can’t Design Cars? Emeline King, She Did It!” available for purchase. Check it out at https://www.emelineking.com/ and plan on meeting her and John Clor of Ford Performance Club Connect at the Halderman Museum in Tipp City, Oho, just north of Dayton off I-75. There is no admission fee, but donations to the museum and purchases of merchandise from the museum are appreciated.
Closer to home will be the biggest National Mustang Day event in The Motor City to be held on Saturday, April 19. That’s when the Mustang Owners Club of SouthEastern Michigan (MOCSEM) is throwing a party open to all in Ford’s own backyard. There’s no signup, registration or entry fee necessary for joining MOCSEM, Detroit area Mustang owners and fans as well as Ford employees and Ford Performance Club Connect at the club’s National Mustang Day Meet-Up Saturday from 12 noon to 4 p.m., rain or shine. The event is being held at the Gateway Classic Cars showroom back lot in Dearborn, where there’ll be food trucks on site, live entertainment, plus games, prizes, a unique event T-shirt and other club merch – and lots of cool Mustangs. For full details visit www.MOCSEM.com.
No matter where or how, we hope all Mustang owners all over the world get the chance to get out and enjoy their Mustang on National Mustang Day. Even owners in Europe are marking this special week with a launch event for the newly formed European Mustang Clubs Association on April 17 in Italy in collaboration with Ford of Italy and the Mustang Club of Italy. The gathering is the handiwork of Fabrizio Schenardi, who had also founded MustangMania.it. Look for event coverage from all of these happenings in the Articles section of www.FordPerformance.com.
Here’s Why You Need to Register your Club or Facebook Group with Ford Performance Club Connect
By now you must have heard about a Ford Performance program called “Club Connect” that can help all Ford and Mustang enthusiasts get connected with both Ford Motor Company and each other. Only those clubs who register with the program are eligible for no-cost promotion and support from Ford Performance, so you owe it to members of your Mustang or Ford vehicle club or online forum to register and appear on our Ford enthusiast club map. All it takes is a visit to www.FordPerformanceClubConnect.com and a single click on the “Register Your Club” link. Once you fill out the form and hit “Submit,” you’ll be notified within just a few days of your acceptance in Ford Performance Club Connect -- it’s that simple, and it’s FREE
The primary goal of our Ford Performance Club Connect program is to get everyone to register their club – at no cost – and get themselves on our Ford enthusiast group map so that we can all connect with each other. Once there, you’ll be able to see all of the other clubs and groups who have registered in your region – not just Mustang clubs, but ALL Ford vehicle organizations. And we want to include all of you who are part of any Ford vehicle Facebook Group to register with Club Connect, too. Why? Because connecting your Facebook Group with more owners and fans makes your group more worthwhile – and registering with Club Connect will link your online group with participants who may never have known that your group exists.
The value in all of this is that whenever you plan a club or group activity, you can see what other clubs and groups are in your area that you may wish to contact and ask to join you at a show or event. It also allows Ford Performance to see all the clubs and groups in a certain area, so that when we are coming to town or planning a special Ford event in your city or state, you and your club members can be contacted to participate.
It takes only a few minutes for a club principal or board member to register your club and establish a direct link for your members to Ford Performance. And now, you can also register your group and logo with Ford Brand Licensing all in the same process. Have a product or parts question that you want answered? Wish you could get some free club event promotion in our weekly “Fast News” e-blast that goes out to some quarter-million Ford fans each Thursday? Looking for event coverage for your show in the Articles section of FordPerformance.com? Hoping you could find a cool Ford door-prize item, or a banquet guest speaker? Individual requests are reviewed on a case-by-case basis, but they can ONLY be awarded to clubs who are registered.
So go to www.FordPerformanceClubConnect.com right now and click on the “Find Your Club” link to see if you are on the map. If not, then register your Ford-based club or Facebook Group today so that you can join this special program -- all backed and supported by real enthusiasts at Ford Performance. If you have questions or want more info, you and your members can always email us at ClubHub@Ford.com, or can simply call our Ford Performance Info Center, toll-free during regular business hours, at 1-800-FORD-788 (800-367-3788).
So what are you waiting for? Get online and make sure you’re connected. Then plan to enjoy your performance Ford more by discovering all the fun and friendly people involved in the world of Ford Performance. We’re sure that being connected with each other and with Ford will make your ownership experience more enjoyable than ever before!
Want to Be Noticed on Ford Performance.com? Get You and Your Car(s) in Our ‘Ford Fan Spotlight’
For more than a decade now, one of the most popular features on FordPerformance.com and in our Fast News e-newsletter continues to be "Ford Fan Spotlight," where readers can send in their own reasons why they're fans of Ford Motor Company. You know who they are: Ford "superfans;" grassroots Ford racers; unique Ford vehicle owners; loyal Ford enthusiasts; notable Ford club people; special Ford families; and/or any avid supporter of Ford, Ford vehicles, Ford motorsports or Ford Performance who deserves a little bit of special recognition.
All you need to do to get you, your car or candidate considered is to send in a brief description (200-500 words or less) and a few photos (in .jpeg format, preferably 1 mb) of a person (full name and hometown, please) and vehicle that you think Ford Performance should feature (and why) in the "Ford Fan Spotlight" for an upcoming installment of Fast News and in the Articles section on FordPerformance.com. Then email it to: ClubHub@Ford.com. (Your submission grants us your permission for us to use your copy and photos on our website and other Ford media outlets, edited as necessary.) We'll choose one submission to be featured online every three weeks. We hope to see YOU and your collectible Ford in our Fan Spotlight soon!
