The fifth annual MoParty left its mark all over Beech Bend Raceway this year with rubberized signatures scrolled across the drag strip and oval track pavement. Presented by Holley (HLLY) in the rolling hills of Bowling Green, Kentucky, this smoke-producing spectacle has become way more of an all-out entertainment event instead of a boring ol’ show.

Friday through Sunday, September 13 through 15, were packed full of Imperial-sized amusement that even a late afternoon rain shower couldn’t douse. There were show cars, drag cars, autocross cars, project cars, clones, and survivors on display with many exercising all eight cylinders at one point or another.

The swap meet swarm started at 9am on Friday morning. Before the dew had worn off, show-goers had paths beat into the rows with steals, deals, and surprises littering the lots. Naturally, prices were primarily high to start; rarer items disappeared anyway while some of those sky-high listings came down significantly by Sunday morning.

A Clifford Hyper-Pak intake manifold caught our eye at $600. This long-runner aluminum piece would be right at home hanging off to the side of a trusty 225 Slant Six. While the four-barrel unit might not be ideal for daily duty, the thing just looks cool.

Another highlight was a pair of FC7 Plum Crazy purple 1970 Challenger T/A front fenders. A little rough around the edges, these had us dreaming about a survivor car in need of some surviving fenders to complete a rough and ratty look.

On the opposite end of that spectrum were the folks who brought basically everything but the kitchen sink. Our guess is that they took most of it back home, but they always remind us not to ever throw anything away.

One example was a trailer loaded down with the rusty front half unibody structure of a 1970 Dodge Charger. Its floor pans were gone, its frame rails were toast, and one might wonder if the accelerator pedal bracket was even worth busting loose. And yet there it was, basking in its oxidized glory and begging for a buyer.

The manufacturer’s midway, on the other hand, featured bright and shiny objects at every turn. QA1 had the full gambit of pavement-grinding gear with both their torsion bar and coil-over suspensions on display as a reminder that they’re one of the few offering performance front ends for either setup.

Trick Flow had their latest aluminum cylinder heads and intake manifolds on hand including the hugely popular PowerPort 240 heads and Track Heat single plane intake for RB block Mopars. Muscle Car Restorations, Inc. (MCR) showed off an exquisite 1970 Plymouth ‘Cuda as a testament to their terrific work. With a 340 engine, 4-speed transmission, Shaker hood, rear window louvers, and FK5 Deep Burnt Orange Metallic paint, it checked the best boxes.

All of the usual sheet metal suspects were under the Auto Metal Direct (AMD) umbrella along with the Northeast Ohio Dukes’ General Lee that made the monster jump at this year’s Nationals. What was left of the crunched exterior steel sitting on a Crown Victoria chassis looked like it had endured quite the rough landing.

Classic Car Liquidators, this year’s headline sponsor, brought their premier MoPower to MoParty, all for sale to those so inclined. A 1970 Dodge Challenger took center stage at the cool cost of $64,999 for this numbers-matching 440-powered R/T.

We had the Mopar Connection Magazine tent packed with projects Brazen (1969 Dodge Charger) and Marsha (1970 Plymouth Fury convertible) plus Jim Hannan’s TKX-swapped 1967 Plymouth Belvedere. Our scavenger hunt contest ended up handing out a couple of new Edelbrock carburetors to the swap meet sleuths who photographed the most items.

But the high-octane part by far was Ms. Daisy Duke herself stopping by to sign autographs and take pictures with a long line of diehard Dukes fans. Catherine Bach, as she’s better known when not wearing those signature shorts or sliding into her white 1980 Jeep CJ-7, was a special kind of Hazzard County hospitable for all those in the General Lee’s army.

Of course, Holley had a full spread with go-fast parts and Hemi-swapped cars lining their layout. A dressed Gen. III Hemi engine showcased just a few of the many modern Hemi parts they have available like a hi-ram intake manifold, billet throttle body, mid-mount accessory system, and swap oil pan.

The revamped Sniper 2 EFI kit touted an even simpler installation than its predecessor. Seats filled up in a Sniper workshop on Saturday afternoon under the shade of the photo booth. In it, one of Holley’s experts explained EFI basics along with the Sniper 2’s unique features that make it so user-friendly.

While the swap meet and manufacturer stuff is nice, where MoParty always really shines is in the events. Drag racing, an autocross, thrill rides, a dyno, a mullet contest, and a monster truck car crush were just part of the sizzling schedule and we made sure to enjoy every offering.

Out on the strip, modern Challengers swarmed the staging lanes. The turnkey quickness of these cars right off the factory floor made it where several drove the cars to the track, swapped tires, and went racing. But a fair amount of old-school muscle made its way down as well. Our favorite was a green 1970 Dodge Challenger T/A with classic Weld Prostar rims and a Pro Street stance.

Autocross cars wore out the oval track, traversing the cones in a myriad of methods. Mopar Connection contributor David Kruk had his veteran 1970 Dodge Super Bee there while the rest of the field included modern, vintage, and even a van.

On the stationary side, the mobile dyno brought out a breadth of power. This year, Rhino Dyno spun the tires for several hours on Saturday with disbeliefs and disappointments alike. Most shocking might have been the 1971 Dodge Challenger pace car convertible, just because of its rarity. However, its 110-horsepower 318 didn’t do much for our thirst for throttle.

A blown 1971 Dodge Charger piqued everyone’s interest, but didn’t quite quell our need for speed since its slipping third gear limited it to just under 600 ponies. Talking to the owner after that attempt, we were assured it would make 1,200 horsepower at the crankshaft. And we’d be inclined to believe it. Regardless, the thing looked sharp sitting there spinning its big meats.

Mullets were the headliner for Saturday night and a surprising number of return contestants were still rockin’ the Kentucky Waterfall. After prizes were distributed for the best fake, real, trashy, and junior Mississippi Mudflaps, it was on to the burnouts.

First up were those poor thrill ride Hellcats. After two days full of rubber destruction, their grand finale was being tied to each other for a tug of war which mainly consisted of an obscene amount of smoke likely visible from the space station.

Next up were the amateur burnout contenders, all of whom ended up looking like this wasn’t their first rodeo. A wrecked-but-running 2014 Dodge Challenger, Dylan McCool’s 1969 Dodge Charger, and a shorty Dodge Van all fogged the track with some super respectable spinning spectacles.

The Predator monster truck was the evening’s closing act with longtime driver Allen Pezo at the helm. Ten cars were crushed by his Hemi-powered giant and we’ll tell you this: seeing monster trucks mash stuff never gets old no matter your age.

For all the fun that was had, the weekend was not without its challenges; one of our camper tires decided to go flat on Friday morning, prompting a pit crew-like response to get it remedied. A big thanks goes out to Big O Tires in Bowling Green as their crew diagnosed a cracked rim. Once we had a replacement, they swapped the tire and got us back up to pressure by early afternoon.

With MoParty V in the books, it continues to be clear that this is your preeminent Chrysler, Dodge, Plymouth, and AMC activity. Dates have already been set for next year, so mark your calendar as reserved for redlining activities on September 12-14, 2025. It’ll be business in the front and MoParty in the back.

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