| History of the Shelby Mustang |
Ford didn't change much to the 1968 model from the 1967 model, but there was several differences between the naming of the 1968 model from any of the past Shelbys. Ford had by that time owned the Cobra name and wanted to get it out to people like they would have to do sooner or later anyway. So, they slapped it on the Shelbys. The actual word "Mustang" was not found on any of the Shelbys in the 1968. The name was changed from "Shelby Mustang" to "Shelby Cobra". Again, the GT 350 had a 302 and the GT 500 had a 427 engine, which became a 428 Cobra Jet later in production with the GT500KR ("King of the Road"), but this time, more luxurious items and more options were offered. On the exterior, there was two gigantic scoops of the fiberglass hoods. Right at the front edge of the Shelbys hood were the word Shelby spelled very openly. This wording was also on the rear spoiler. The grill sported two wide rectangular
fog lights rather than the circular lights that were placed there in past years. On the sides of the cars, about an inch away from the front of the door, was a coiled-up snake. This snake emblem was also used when Ford introduced the SVT Mustang Cobra in 1993. Also, the taillights were basically the same as the `65 Thunderbird's. Much of the suspension was like a normal Mustang GT, with a few changes. Instead of just black, many colors were offered on the `68 Shelbys. Wood grain inserts were put on the doors and the dash, giving it a more luxurious look instead of the sporty interior. With this new model year, Shelby added a wide-spread amount of convertibles (compared to past years anyway). 404 GT 350 Convertibles, 402 GT 500 Convertibles, and 318 GT 500KR Convertibles were made. There was also a bunch more normal Shelby Fastbacks were produced. 1,253 GT 350 Fastbacks, 1,140 GT 500 Fastbacks, and 933 GT 500KR Fastbacks were made.
The Ford Mustang was completely redesigned in 1969. Now with this new model year, Ford used many of Shelbys old options on their other Mustang models. So, Shelby tried again to one-up everything else. On the exterior, Shelby used fiberglass to extend the whole nose of the car. The hood had 5 scattered around scoops; 3 pointing forwards and 2 pointing backwards. 2 other scoops were put right behind the door on the rear fender to cool the brakes. The front grill was very open. The only thing blocking the grill was a small little Cobra emblem. Instead of having the fog lights up on the grill, they were moved to under the bumper. The side stripe was moved to the middle of the door and went past the two wheel openings. A small cobra emblem was put just below the roof line on the Fastbacks and on the top rear of the front fenders on the Convertibles, which were again widely available. The rear spoiler was just a little taller than the `68s. Again, the Mustang had the sequential
Thunderbird taillights. A large aluminum outlet was used around the dual exhaust system which came out right in the middle of the car. The wheels again were basically the same as they had been for a while. The interior was the same as the `68 models. The GT 350 got a standard 302 like it had for a long time, but also came with an optional 351. The GT 500 came with a 428 again. The remaining Shelbys from 1969 were sold as 1970 models. Ford only added two black stripes down the center of the car and a black front spoiler. 1,085 GT 350 Fastbacks, 194 GT 350 Convertibles, 1,536 GT 500 Fastbacks, and 335 GT 500 Convertibles were produced during the two years.
After 5 years, Ford and Carroll Shelby split. The Shelby Mustangs would no longer exist. This was the end of a very famous high performance car. Not much could be better for people who wanted to go really fast for really cheap. After this split of the two car companies, Shelby signed a deal with Chrysler to produce special performance editions of Dodge vehicles in 1982. Also, Carroll Shelby introduced the idea of the Dodge Viper to the Chrysler Corporation. The car's name was oddly enough based on a snake, much like the Shelby Cobra. Although Ford and Shelby went their separate ways, as of lately, they have come together to design the Ford Shelby Cobra and GR-1.
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