In 1968 the Shelby Mustangs became heavier and more luxurious. Ford had expanded its influence in Shelby Mustang production and took over production. This meant the beginning of the gradual dilution of the original spirit of the car.
Like the standard 1968 Mustang the lines of the 1968 Shelby Mustang didn't change much. Most notable exterior changes were the new, slightly odd-looking, nose-job, the two huge scoops which almost spanned the width of the hood and the Mercury Cougar taillights with sequential turn signals. The interior was a step down from the previous model year: it featured a stock Mustang dashboard with walnut-grained appliqués and a padded center console. Not very racy indeed.
Another change was the naming of the car: the by now famous "Cobra" designation was included in the model name. This was stressed by Cobra emblems on the sides and in the interior of the cars.
(picture by Charlie Ruggles, used with permission)

The model line-up remained the same with the Shelby Cobra GT-350 and Cobra GT-500 available. The original 289 cid V8 engine of the GT-350 was replaced by a larger 302 cid (5 litre) unit, which was only rated at 250 hp @ 6000 rpm (good for 191 kph). However an approximately 335 hp strong supercharged version of this engine was available as an option. This option was rarely installed because for a few dollars more you could have the more powerful Cobra GT-500.
The Cobra GT-500 featured the 428 cid V8 engine, now producing 355 hp @ 5400 rpm. Its maximum speed wasn't impressive, about 207 kph, but it could do 0-60 mph (97 kph) in 6.5 seconds and cover a quarter mile (400 meter) in 14.75 seconds. Not bad for a 1,406 kg car.
(picture by Charlie Ruggles, used with permission)

Also two new Shelby models appeared in 1968. The most important one was the convertible, a further digression from the original competition car. All Cobra models could be had as an convertible, which showed the same features as the fastback coupes but of course had a Mustang-style fold-away top and a firm roll-over bar behind the front seats.
In mid-1968 Ford introduced the Cobra Jet engine option for the Mustang and Shelby naturally followed. The original 428 block in the Cobra GT-500 was replaced by a tuned Cobra Jet unit. It featured low-riser revised 427 cylinder heads with enormous rectangular ports, a special dual-plane intake manifold and a big four-barrel Holley carburetor. It was to become the ultimate Shelby and the new model was named Cobra GT-500KR, "King of the Road".

The GT-500KR was advertised with a 335 hp @ 5600 rpm rating for insurance reasons but in reality offered close to 400 hp. It powered this 1,451 kg car to a top speed exceeding 210 kph, but its most notable feature was a 0-100 mph (161 kph) acceleration in just 14.04 seconds, which is amazing. A regular, modern car would take that long to get to only 100 kph and the preceding Cobra GT-500 took 17.1 seconds for the same effort. The Cobra GT-500KR almost was like a drag-race car for the open road.

1968 proved to be the best year for the Shelby Mustang with no less than six models on offer and a total of 4,451 cars produced. It was also the only year for the amazing Cobra GT-500KR model, with a mere 933 fastbacks and 318 convertibles produced.

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