1968 Pontiac Firebird

1968 Ford Mustang Coupe 289 V8, Dual Exhaust, Air Conditioning, Solid Florida-Quality Example

Why This Car Is Special

The 1968 Ford Mustang sits at an interesting crossroads in the model's history. Ford had just given the Mustang its first significant redesign since the original 1964-1/2 introduction the body grew slightly in every direction, the front end received a wider grille opening with the headlights recessed into the grille surround, and the side sculpturing was refined. The result was a Mustang that looked more mature and substantial than the first-generation cars without losing the proportions that made the original so appealing in the first place.

What makes 1968 particularly notable from a collector standpoint is timing. It was the last full model year before the Mustang grew substantially larger for 1969 and 1971. It was also the final year the 289 cubic inch small block appeared as a regular production engine in the Mustang lineup Ford replaced it with the 302 for 1969. That makes any 1968 Mustang with the 289 a distinctly end-of-an-era machine. The 289 had been the engine that defined the early Mustang experience since 1964, powering the car through its most culturally significant years. Owning a 1968 Ford Mustang with a 289 is owning the last chapter of that story.

Ford built just over 317,000 Mustang coupes for the 1968 model year, making the hardtop body style by far the most common of the three available configurations. The coupe's clean roofline and practical packaging have always made it the most recognizable Mustang silhouette, and the 1968 version benefits from the revised sequential tail light treatment that has become one of the most recognizable styling details on any first-generation car.

The VIN on this car encodes several meaningful details. The second character, W, confirms this was built at the Metuchen, New Jersey assembly plant. The fifth character, K, identifies the 289 cubic inch two-barrel V8. The sixth character, 9, confirms the 1969... correction the 9 in position six of a 1968 Mustang VIN confirms the 1968 model year, and the body code 87 identifies this as a two-door hardtop coupe. These details align directly with the car as presented.

Features List

- 289 cubic inch V8 engine
- 3-speed automatic transmission
- Dual exhaust with dual mufflers
- Air conditioning compressor
- Black vinyl bucket seats front
- Black vinyl rear seat
- Black vinyl interior throughout
- Grant aftermarket steering wheel
- Updated alloy wheels
- Chrome front and rear bumpers
- Clean undercarriage
- Solid floors
- Drum brakes all four corners


Mechanical

The 289 cubic inch V8 under this Mustang's hood is a two-barrel carbureted unit, which was the standard V8 offering for 1968. In factory trim, the 289 two-barrel produced 195 horsepower. It is a compact, lightweight engine relative to the big-block alternatives of the era, and its free-revving character is part of what made early Mustangs enjoyable to drive in a way that heavier muscle cars were not. The engine bay on this car shows a clean, painted block with a chrome open-element air filter sitting atop the carburetor a straightforward, functional presentation.

Backing the 289 is a 3-speed automatic transmission. For 1968, Ford offered the Cruise-O-Matic as the automatic option, which was a well-proven unit. The floor-mounted shifter visible in the cabin photos is a period-correct console-style selector that fits the bucket seat configuration properly.

The dual exhaust system on this car is a meaningful addition. The standard 289 two-barrel came from the factory with a single exhaust. The dual exhaust setup, which runs a true dual system back to individual mufflers visible in the undercarriage photos, gives the 289 better breathing and a more characterful exhaust note than the single-pipe original. The undercarriage photos show a floor th