There have been countless variations on the Ford Mustang ever since the first rendition rolled off the assembly line in 1964, but a handful stand head and shoulders above the rest. One such version is the Shelby GT500, Carroll Shelby’s souped-up take on the pony car from the late ‘60s. And out of all the Shelby Mustang GT500s that were produced during the car’s original run, the “King of the Road” version reigns supreme.
The aptly named “King of the Road” was an absolute monster on the road. Housing a mammoth 428ci Cobra Jet V8 under the hood, the car’s powerplant was officially factory rated at 440LB-FT of torque and 335HP, with the latter being a well-known gross underestimate, as the GT500KR is generally accepted to have produced over 400HP when it was new, making it one of the most powerful muscle cars of the 1960s.
Up for auction today through Bring a Trailer is one of just 1,053 Shelby Mustang GT500KRs ever produced for its lone model year of 1968. Its engine is mated to a 3-speed automatic transmission and the car also boasts the upgraded suspension that the GT500 was known for, along with power steering, power-assisted front disc brakes, and the fetching Interior Décor Group package. This ultra-clean example is finished in striking Raven Black with white side stripes, having been refreshed as part of a refurbishment that took place in 2009.
One of only 38 examples to combine this transmission and paint scheme, this 1968 Shelby Mustang GT500KR has just 67,000 miles on the odometer. It’s currently being sold through the online auction house Bring a Trailer, where bidding has reached $105,000 at the time of writing, with six days left on the sale.
