How
did the GT500 and the Corvette stack up when the Rolling
Stones were sex symbols, not grandfathers?
Exerpts from review
BY MARK GILLIES
July 2006
The
KR — for “King of the Road” — was
a development of the ’68 GT500, with the so-called
Cobra Jet 428-cubic-inch engine in place of the Police Interceptor
unit. The GT500 was nominally rated at 360 horsepower, whereas
the KR was down to 335. “This was done for insurance
purposes,” says Chris Burkhart. “Everyone knew
that was a joke and that the real number was somewhere slightly
north of 400 horsepower, with 440 pound-feet of torque.”
Compared with a stock ’68 Mustang, the GT500 gained
a plethora of scoops and vents, a fiberglass hood and trunklid,
a front-strut brace, wider rear brake drums and shoes, an
8000-rpm tach, a 140-mph speedometer, and a rollover bar.
The heavy-duty Mustang suspension, as well as power brakes
and steering, were standard on all GT500s.
