Some cars take minutes to buy; others take years, multiple failed negotiations, several phone calls, and enough persistence to make walking away feel impossible. According to a Dennis Collins YouTube video, a 1968 Shelby GT500 KR in Texas became one of those long-haul deals.
Collins first tried to buy the car in April 2024. By August 2026, he was still chasing it, having revisited the Shelby, made multiple offers, walked away more than once, and continued following leads as ownership circumstances changed.
The car itself made the pursuit worthwhile. A genuine 1968 GT500 KR is already desirable, and this one had reportedly remained with the same titled owner since 1977 while spending years tucked away and largely untouched.
Getting it bought was only half the challenge, however. The Shelby currently carries a 427 instead of its original 428 Cobra Jet, but Collins says the original engine components still exist and are part of the deal, opening the door to a proper numbers-matching restoration.
The First Attempt Fell Apart
Collins originally inspected the Shelby in East Texas after tracing its history and confirming what the car was. He also discovered a personal connection, realizing he knew the owner’s father from the Dallas-area Mustang scene decades earlier.
The first negotiations did not go smoothly. Collins offered roughly $5,000 less than a previous buyer had apparently agreed to pay before backing out, which the seller took badly despite the earlier deal never being completed.
Collins later increased his offer to match that previous number, but the seller still declined. Complicating matters further, the Shelby had been parked with a 427 V8 that reportedly suffered an oiling problem, while its original 428 Cobra Jet was no longer in the car.
That’s a big deal, seeing as the “KR” designation is closely tied to the Cobra Jet powertrain. Collins noted that a 427 swap might be acceptable in some Shelby applications, but restoring a GT500 KR correctly without its original-style 428 would be both expensive and time-consuming.
Two Years Later, The Shelby Was Still There
More than two years after the original attempt, Collins returned for another shot. The car had changed hands within the family, and he arrived with cash, hoping the long-running negotiation could finally be closed.
The new owner confirmed the 427 remained in the car and said additional original components, including the intake and carburetors, were still available. Collins inspected the Shelby again, but the two sides remained far apart on price.
He increased his previous offer by another $5,000, yet the seller wanted considerably more. Collins eventually left, describing the car as something of a ghost chase after two separate failed buying attempts. That still was not the end of it.
One Last Phone Call Finally Closed The Deal
As Collins was leaving, he held up the cash and made another offer from the road. That was declined too, so the team pulled into a nearby parking lot and waited for a few minutes.
Collins then made one final phone call. After reminding the seller that he had been trying to buy the Shelby for roughly two years and four months, he pushed for both sides to finally make something happen. This time, the answer changed. The seller told him to come back, and the deal was completed.
Collins called it a clear example of persistence paying off. He has said some cars on his radar have taken five, 10, or even 15 years to acquire, so a 28-month pursuit was apparently far from unprecedented.
The Original Cobra Jet Is The Key To The Restoration
The GT500 KR currently carries a 427 with a single four-barrel carburetor. Collins says the original Cobra Jet engine and its associated induction hardware are still located elsewhere in East Texas and were included with the agreement.
That gives the project a much stronger foundation. His plan is to retrieve those parts, rebuild the correct engine, go through the rest of the car, and ultimately return the Shelby to the road in numbers-matching form.
The title itself adds another intriguing piece of history. Collins says it dates to 1977, meaning the car had not officially changed hands in nearly five decades before this purchase.
A Rare Shelby Gets Another Chance
The 1968 GT500 KR remains one of the most recognizable Shelby Mustangs from the muscle-car era. Its combination of Shelby styling, Ford’s Cobra Jet power, and limited production has made surviving examples highly desirable among collectors.
This particular car will need significant work, but that seems to be part of the appeal. Rather than buying a finished restoration, Collins now has the opportunity to reconstruct a long-dormant KR using its original major components and preserve a history that stretches back decades.
Would you restore this GT500 KR back to factory specification, or keep the 427 in place? How long would you keep chasing a rare car after repeated failed negotiations? Let us know in the comments.