The 4^th Annual Fun Ford Sunday event was held on September 10, 2000. The Show was held at the Great Mall of the Bay Area in Milpitas, California. Is there a better place to hold a FORD show? The Great Mall is the former location of the San Jose Ford Plant.

If you own a Falcon or a Ford with an "R" Code, then it was born in Milpitas (San Jose). The location was referred to as "San Jose" in Ford shop manuals and other literature even though it was really located in the nearby small town of Milpitas. I'll have more on the "R" Code later in this article.

This year's show was a special treat for Falcon fans. This year marked the 40^th anniversary of the Ford Falcon. Ray Johnson's 1963 Falcon Sprint Convertible was on the show's T-shirt this year along with a Thunderbird. The T-Birds were celebrating their 50^th birthday.

This year had the largest turnout of Falcon for the show ever! I counted 62 Falcons at the show. Dave Laurice (SCFF President) counted 72 Falcons although he may have included some from the adjacent (non-show) parking lot. In either case it was a huge turnout of Falcons and their proud owners.

This show is always a lot of fun because it has beautiful Ford, Lincoln, and Mercury models from all years. From the model T to modern day Mustangs, it's a celebration of all things FORD! There are no awards, just fun and the good company of fellow enthusiasts. Each registered participant receives a goodie bag, dash plaque, and hat pin. A unique T-shirt is also available at each year's show.

If you haven't attended a past Fun Ford Sunday, try to make next year's event in September, 2001. Keep tuned to the SCFF website or newsletter for details.

Now, back to that "R" code that designates Fords built at the San Jose (Milpitas) Ford Plant. Why is the code "R"? According to Darrel LaFond who worked at the Ford Plant for many years, the original Ford plant was located in Richmond about 30 miles north. Darrel reports that the employees picked up their equipment and tools and moved one weekend from Richmond to San Jose. The "R" designation was never changed.