ROYAL OAK, MI – There are countless car cruises that take place across the United States each and every year both big and small, but none of them can truly compare to the annual Woodward Dream Cruise, billed as the largest single-day automotive event on the planet. This yearly celebration of Detroit Iron takes place along an 8-mile stretch of legendary Woodward Avenue just north of Detroit on the third Saturday each August. It attracts more than 40,000 collectible and classic rides and more than 1 million people – making for a totally unforgettable automotive experience.
With Ford Motor Company’s legendary status among the world’s major automakers, it’s only logical that you’d see all sorts of Ford-produced vehicles traveling up and down the avenue -- whether they’re cruising by themselves, with friends and fellow enthusiasts, or even meeting new ones at the many Ford-centric stops along the way, from Mustang Alley to the multiple Ford vehicle gathering spots on Woodward. Here you’ll find nearly every sort of Ford vehicle ever made, spanning well over a century of sales, from model Ts to Ford GTs.
Since the Woodward Dream Cruise is a bucket-list experience for most any enthusiast, we’ve covered every aspect of the event, including all the weeklong activity leading up to cruise day itself. Yes, it’s overwhelming; yes, there’s gridlock, but when cruise day is jammed with just about every kind of cool, notable ride you can imagine – and even some you’ve never imagined – it’s precisely why so many come from near and far to see it in real time. Woodward is like Woodstock: you were either there, or you weren’t.
If you attended the 2025 Woodward Dream Cruise or not, it’s so big that nobody can see it all. So that’s why FordRacing.com had several photographers, including Bill Cook and Mark Storm, get out onto Woodward Avenue to try and capture some of the fine Fords that were out on cruise day. To that end, Bill and Mark sent us hundreds of photos, along with this brief note from Cook:
“Each year, Mark Storm and I meet up early at Mustang Alley in Ferndale to start our day at the Woodward Dream Cruise. The tradition continued at this year’s 30th Annual Dream Cruise. By mid-morning, we relocated our cars to the Royal Oak / Birmingham area for the rest of the day. We walked all day (except for a brief lunch stop), enjoying everything on both sides of Woodward from 13 Mile Road all the way up to Maple Road in Birmingham. Between us, we logged over 40k steps before wrapping it up around dinnertime, when some light rain moved in and we headed back to our cars. Hope you enjoy the photos.”
No, we can’t show you all the photos they took along Woodward. But we did sift through them to offer you some of our cruise-day favorites for you to check out in the gallery below:
FORD PERFORMANCE PHOTOS / COURTESY BILL COOK & MARK STORM
