Each year around the end of October, the people of Charlotte see an increase in the number of “foxes” in the area. These “foxes,” however are not small fluffy animals, instead they refer to a model of the Ford Mustang.
Ford Mustangs from the years 1979-1993 are fondly referred to as “foxes” because their fox body style, a term well-known in the car community. The Mustang and a few other assorted compact cars were dubbed “fox bodies” as they were all made on Ford’s Fox platform. The public anticipated the release after two prior generations of booming sales, and a 1980s icon was born within just the first few years of sales.
Starting as a small meeting for the Southeastern Foxbodies club, the concept for Foxtoberfest was born. Fox Mustang Restoration took over the idea of a fox body only meeting as a day of customer appreciation. Now, Foxy Events, an automotive event company specifically for Mustangs holds the gathering around the second to last week in October each year.
The gathering is a weeklong series of events that allows owners of fox body Mustangs to connect in an organized and community oriented way. The main event is on that final Saturday at Charlotte Motor Speedway. It leads into a car show where local businesses open their doors for the community to meet and socialize.
In the Charlotte area, it is common to see events for car enthusiasts, called “meets,” where things get out of hand, people get hurt and cars get impounded. Since 2020, illegal street takeovers and racing has impacted the community. Roads littered with tire marks and loud noises at night have become more common, and residents in neighborhoods surrounding Uptown have made complaints.
Long standing automotive events have even been shut down in the area to try and crack down on the issue.
Charlotte Cars and Coffee started in 2008 and was shut down for good in 2023, after multiple location changes, in an attempt to save the event. When the event finally came to an end, the car scene in Charlotte changed and street takeovers became more prominent giving enthusiasts a bad reputation across the region.
The people behind events like Foxtoberfest are hoping to change that by focusing on connection, charity and nostalgia. They hope to prove why the Charlotte area is still the birthplace of racing and car culture.
Focus on Community
Of the 897 registered cars, many of the car owners at Foxtoberfest in October were from states beyond the Carolinas. Building a community within the car scene is one of the best benefits to those who participate. Foxtoberfest brings people together that might not otherwise ever meet.
Many attendees at Foxtoberfest confessed they use this time to catch up with friends that live in other states.
Alexis Burch, who lives in Charlotte, participated in her first Foxtoberfest event in 2024. “Last year was my first year coming with my car,” she said. “I really didn’t know anybody yet. Over the past year I have made so many friends online and in person and now I know all these people and we were able to get caught up even though most of them live nowhere near me.”
A cruise to Morrow Mountain State Park was offered as an event on Wednesday, Oct. 22, 2025 where Fox Body owners could get some miles on their tires in an organized group. Having events where people can do something together leads to less street takeovers and creates spaces that are open for the community to gather.
Attendees still have a chance to race their cars. Legal drag racing took place on Friday, Oct. 24 at the Mooresville Dragway, in an event called Foxes at Full Throttle. The event included open test and tune, swap meet opportunities and a burnout competition.
Other events during the week included demonstrations, the official car show, a cookout and social events.
Ady’s Motorsport Events was one of the vendors at this year’s Foxtoberfest Car Show.
At the event attendees could enter to win a two-tone blue fox body Mustang. Raffle tickets support Ady’s BiG Army, a nonprofit that supports children and young adults with special needs by giving them vocational opportunities to learn valuable life skills.
“We are helping Ady’s BiG Army raise money to build a home for those individuals that will help support them in their next stage of life,” said Nick Owens, who owns Ady’s Motorsport Events.
The organization hosts and participates in motorsport events throughout the year that feature opportunities for those with special needs to ride along in things like drifting and off-road courses.
Nostalgia and Future Generations
Most attendees at the Foxtoberfest Car Show grew up around cars.
The spent late nights in parents’ garages, working on their first fox body Mustangs.
BJ Adams, grew up in South Carolina, without a lot but knew he always loved cars. “I couldn’t afford cool cars,” he said.
He founded Poverty Motorsports and has become a well-known figure in the fox body community. “Now I’m 45-years-old and I have a ton of cool cars – we get to bring them out and show ‘em,” said Adams.
That nostalgia and determination from a young age is something that many admire in the car community. During this year’s event, the Wednesday “Retro Night” event included car audio demonstrations and a costume contest that nods to the fox body’s heyday of the 1980s and 1990s.
As stories and laughs were shared, new relationships were made that will continue to grow each year. In an effort to recruit younger participants and pass down some of these traditions, Foxy Events offers two “Future of Fox” awards for fox body owners under 25 years old. This award encourages the younger generation to put time and effort into their cars and to participate in sanctioned events, leading them away from things like street racing and illegal street takeovers.
