The Donald E. Stephens Convention Center on the outskirts of Chicago was packing some serious Mopar heat during the annual Muscle Car and Corvette Nationals (MCACN). And while there was plenty of Ford and GM hardware strewn across the halls, it was the rows of Shaker E-Bodies, factory Hemi and Max Wedge Super Stock race cars, and even some rare Dodge and Plymouth oddities that were left for dead but brought back to life, stopping the crowds in their tracks. If it's ultra rare, bizarre, or something with a sorted and interesting past, you'll see it only at MCACN.

For Mopar lovers, the MCACN event is a great way to end the car show season, and being indoors and under one roof, it's pure sensory overload. Created by Bob and Vicki Ashton, MCACN assembles the very best muscle car samples of all the brands, not just Mopars, and celebrates certain themes and/or historical milestones of certain nameplates and even options. That's why we love the MCACN show — it's always something new and different year-after-year.

There were also numerous unveilings of many cool, rare, and notable Mopar muscle cars that have been lovingly restored and ready for the public to see them in all their shiny glory. This is a MCACN tradition that we've always looked forward to every time we roll through the front door of the convention center.

Another highlight of MCACN is the Barn Finds and Hidden Gems section. This is where the strange, eccentric, abnormal, and exotic muscle cars come out of the woodwork, or in some cases, the earth itself, and appear at the show. It's been a crowd favorite despite some interesting and musty odors coming from the worn-out interiors of the vehicles on display. Mopar aficionado and HOT ROD contributor, Ryan Brutt, puts his heart and soul into making this one of the best parts of the MCACN show.

If you haven't been to MCACN yet, make it a part of your car show itinerary now. It's always held the weekend before Thanksgiving and fills a void in one's Mopar hunger right before the holiday season.

For now, check out our Mopar highlights from this year's show along with the awesome photo gallery for your viewing pleasure.

See all 104 photos Tom Tignanelli's "UFO" Plymouth began life as an original '65 A990 Plymouth Super Stocker and one of two that went directly to Chrysler engineering for development work. It eventually ended up with Tignanelli, and he morphed the Belvedere to into an altered wheelbase AFXer. Recently found and restored by Mopar collector Clark Rand, he even coaxed Tignanelli to appear at MCACN. On the other side of the Christmas tree is the famed "Hemi Honker" raced by the late Bud Faubel. Mopar resto parts dealer Jim Kramer owns this iconic '65 altered wheelbase Dodge. We'd pay extra to hear these two machines fire up inside the convention center!

See all 104 photos During this year's event, more than 20 Shaker-equipped '70-'71 Dodge Challengers and Plymouth 'Cudas were on hand. Option code "N96," the Shaker hood is one of the most desirable options on any Mopar E-Body, regardless of engine. Among the rows of these impressive Mopars was one that really stood out. A '71 Hemi Challenger R/T originally sold in Switzerland and never shown in the United States before this show. Equipped with an array of cool options including the Elastomeric bumpers, rear spoiler, Formal Rood Package, and a 426 Hemi under its Shaker bubble.

See all 104 photos The folks from APEX Autosports unveiled their latest restoration and like many of their previous projects, this Vitamin C '70 'Cuda convertible stood out. Equipped with the optional 440 Six Barrel engine, this Plymouth sat unsold on a dealer's lot in Manitoba, Canada, for almost a year until being sold in 1971. Equipped with many unique features and options, it's the F70X14 white sidewall tires and wire wheel covers that make this E-Body ragtop stand out even more.

See all 104 photos We love wing cars — even underneath. Mike Mancini and the crew from American Muscle Car Restorations brought this recently restored and exquisite '69 R4 red Dodge Daytona. With steel wheels, redline tires, and dog dish hubcaps, this 440-powered flying machine looks even cooler. Unlike their Plymouth Superbird cousins, Dodge Daytonas, with their lower production numbers, had no problem flying off dealer lots.

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See all 104 photos It's the unsung, fullsized Plymouth muscle car that never got any love, the '71 Sport Fury GT. Unfortunately, having a 370-horse, 440 Super Commando under that huge striped hood caused many of these poor C-Bodies to get junked with their engines and transmissions used as donor drivelines. The team at Magnum Auto Restorations saved this excellent example. With its Sherwood Green paint, contrasting white vinyl top, and GT stripes, this Sport Fury GT is bad to the bone. The fact that it's a factory sunroof car makes it rare.

See all 104 photos The old Car Craft Swinger made an appearance at MCACN. With its high compression and high-winding 340 small-block under the hood, still sporting fenderwell headers, the psychedelic paint scheme was looking worn and tired. The Swinger has gone through numerous owners in its lifetime and luckily remained largely unscathed, except for some minor bruises and neglect.

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See all 104 photos Like we always say in the Mopar hobby, never say never. This '67 Plymouth Belvedere 1 was the real deal Hemi ride despite all the sales literature saying the 426 Hemi was only available in the GTX and Coronet R/T lineup for the 1967 model year (and the RO and WO package cars). It definitely gets the "sleeper of the show" award, and if it weren't for the Hemi badges on the lower front fenders, we'd probably have walked on by. Despite its subdued and conservative appearance, and the fact it sported its original paint and deluxe wheel covers, we still lusted over this mild-mannered Plymouth with its sweet chatter of solid lifters.

See all 104 photos The family of the late Godfrey Qualls was at MCACN with his '70 Dodge Hemi Challenger R/T. Upon his return in from Vietnam in 1969, where he served with distinction with the Special Forces, Godfrey got hired by the Detroit Police Department and soon after ordered a brand-new four-speed, Hemi Challenger R/T. Godfrey checked off many options that included the Super Track Pak, Gator Grain vinyl top, and a white bumble stripe. He also wanted the Shaker hood, since it was shown in the catalogs. When the dealer told him it wasn't available, the ex-army paratrooper sued Chrysler. They apparently settled out of court, and Godfrey ended up with a complete Shaker setup.

See all 104 photos The MCACN show also features Barn Finds and Hidden Gems. Among the numerous Mopars drug out of barns, garages, fields, and just about anywhere else, we spotted the original FM3 Moulin Rouge '70 Road Runner Convertible. Currently owned by the son of one of the original owners, it looks like a major undertaking if they're going to restore this beat-up B-Body. Regardless of the daunting task ahead, it'll be worth it.

See all 104 photos While we're on the subject of barn finds, this A12 '69 440 Six Pack had a happy ending. Drug out of a long-term hibernation in which it was slowly disintegrating, it was brought to the MCACN in 2014 in a state of disrepair. Three years later and after an extensive restoration, it had its coming out party and was unveiled at this year's show looking better than the day it rolled off the Lynch Road Assembly Plant.

See all 104 photos You may not recognize the name or face but crew chief, tuner, fabricator, and all-around awesome wrench, Joe Pappas, was at MCACN with the Motown Missile Pro Duster. Joe made the factory Mopar Pro Stock guys like Don Carlton, Mike Fons, Dick Landy, and others, fast and consistent in the 1970s and was part of the Rod Shop crew before being recruited by the Motown Missile team.

See all 104 photos When was the last time you saw a surviving supercharged Mr. Norms '72 Demon GSS 340? Yeah, we thought so. It may have had a rough life with a mishmash of body parts that included '71 rear quarters welded on, but this was a real-deal Mr. Norm's special and all the important blower bits were still under the hood. Always thinking outside the box and a way around the EPA and insurance police of the time, Norm Kraus was always looking at ways to make the factory offerings faster and more exciting to young, performance-minded buyers.

See all 104 photos This ultra-rare '69 Savage GT Barracuda rolled into the Barn Finds and Hidden Gems section of MCACN. Built in 1969 by Auto Craft Company in Wisconsin, the Savage GT conversions included a custom fiberglass hood and nose assembly with a special grille. Custom aluminum wheels, side pipes, and a host of other unique exterior and interior parts made these very different. Total production numbers for '69 Savage GT is sketchy but safe to assume they can be counted on both hands with fingers to spare. This one was drug out of the Milwaukee mud and rescued about 10 years.

See all 104 photos MCACN also brings in a few swap meet vendors and for those looking for rare parts, there's some good stuff at the show. We thought about buying this Edelbrock Hemi Rat Roaster intake and turning it into wall art. We were also eyeballing that Weiand 440 Six Pack tunnel ram intake on the end with thoughts of bolting it on one of our big-block projects.

See all 104 photos Dude, where's my pickup? It's at MCACN, of course. This was another diamond in the rough but we'd love to get it mechanically dialed in and use it for a shop truck. The Dude Sport Trim Package was available on the '70 and '71 Dodge D100. The package included body side decal "C" stripe available in either black or white, "Dodge Dude Decal" on the box, and dog dish hub caps with trim rings. We're convinced that the person who designed the '70 Super Bee "C" stripes had a hand with the Dude's graphics.

See all 104 photos We're a sucker for multi-carb E-Bodies and this '71 440 Six Barrel 'Cuda with its color keyed grille and Elastomeric bumpers made it love at first sight for us. This was a great example from the Mopar resto experts at The Finer Details who have been showing off their skills craftsmanship on primo Mopars on display at MCACN for years. This 'Cuda also has the honor of being the last 440 Six Barrel convertible known to be built.

See all 104 photos One of our favorite A-Bodies from MCACN was this '71 Plymouth Duster 340. Freshly restored from Mike Mancini's American Muscle Car Restorations, its gleaming Curious Yellow paint and optional factory blacked-out hood treatment left us breathless. Like their '69 Daytona they had on display, the Duster 340 grabbed the Concours Gold Award for its class.