57th International Ford Edsel Club Rally

The Ford Edsels and members of the International Edsel Club are coming back to Portage in 2026! More details to come!! 

A little history according to the IEC website: The Edsel was an automobile marque that was planned, developed, and manufactured by the Ford Motor Company for model years 1958-1960. With the Edsel, Ford had expected to make significant inroads into the market share of both General Motors and Chrysler and close the gap between itself and GM in the domestic American automotive market.

Ford invested heavily in a yearlong teaser campaign leading consumers to believe that the Edsel was the car of the future – an expectation it failed to deliver on. After it was unveiled to the public, it was considered to be unattractive, overpriced, and overhyped. The Edsel never gained popularity with contemporary American car buyers and sold poorly. The Ford Motor Company lost $250 million on Edsel's development, manufacturing, and marketing. The very word "Edsel" became a popular symbol of a commercial failure.