FPV Open Days

[DFB FGXR6]

The FPV Open Day was something I always looked forward to attending, often held in March each year. As a young Ford nut, this was almost the Holy Grail, only bettered by visiting the Broadmeadows assembly plant across the road, something I was fortunate enough to do at the height of the BA Falcon days.







The Tickford / FPV facility was situated on Glenbarry road in Campbellfield and as mentioned, literally across the road from the Ford assembly plant. The business was spread across two sites, the main facility housed the workshop, storage and office spaces. The building on the other side of the road was dedicated to engine building, inventory storage and was even used for converting Mustang Cobra's into RHD for the Australian market. Later, the FPR race workshop opened alongside the engine facility.





These open days allowed fans of the brand to attend and access the factories where the cars were made. Often, FPV staff and the current race drivers would be circulating to talk and answer questions. The events were open to all comers, including the various car clubs.



The open days continued for many years, ending when Ford bought out Pro-Drive's stake in the business and moved the operations in house at either Geelong or Broadmeadows.

On a personal note, I first attended the FPV open day in the early 2000's at a very impressionable age. Going to these days only cemented my passion for the brand. I remember looking at all these cars and wishing I had one myself or that my dad was into cars as much as I was.

It only dawned on me a few years ago that I ended up joining the party, going on to own some really cool Fords of my own, in the process becoming the person I aspired to be. And that was the whole point of these customer days, they were brand building exercises. I wonder how many other young boys went on to buy high-performance Ford's after being infected by the bug at these days like I did?

The following posts will feature the photo's I took on those open days. Many here may recognise the cars, cars from a bygone era.