CLINTON - When Randy Anderson, owner of Anderson Ford Mercury, first saw the 2008 Shelby GT500KR Mustang, he knew he had to get one for his Clinton dealership. "We're all Mustang nuts," Anderson said. "And this thing is incredible. It's so unique and we're very excited to have one."

Ford is celebrating the 40th anniversary of the 1968 Shelby Cobra GT500KR by making 1,000 of the 2008 models available to the first dealers to request them. Anderson didn't hesitate.

"It's like a rocket ship," Anderson said. "It's got 540 horsepower but to be honest, it may have even a little more than that. The KR in the name stands for 'King of the Road' and there are all types of clichés to use and words to describe it, but really, I don't even try.

"It's just one of those cars you have to see to appreciate and any car enthusiast will."

The car sells for about $87,000 and Anderson said it will make a terrific purchase for the right buyer.

"It's not for everyone," he says. "But over the years, Mustangs have withstood the test of time. In fact, for 21 straight years, it has been the top selling sports car. It's well balanced, and while it may not be the fastest, it's not the slowest. We've always had good luck with Mustangs no matter what the model."

The Shelby Mustang is a performance muscle car first built in the 1960s. It was originally a series of Ford Mustangs which were specially modified by former race car driver Carroll Shelby's company.

A former world champion Formula One driver, Shelby opened a high-performance driving school after his retirement from racing in 1959. In the shop, he designed and built the famed "Cobra" cars as well as several other models for Ford, Dodge and Oldsmobile.

"Now, they build them at a Ford plant and ship them to Las Vegas where the Carroll Shelby company modifies the brakes, wheels, tires, motor, hood and by the time they are finished, it has a completely different look," Anderson said.

The two-door coupe seats four and has a supercharged 5.4 liter, 32-valve, V8 engine. It goes from zero to 60 mph in less than four seconds and has a six-speed manual transmission. It also has stainless steel dual exhaust, a rear spoiler and a Shaker 500 Audio System which includes AM/FM stereo with a six-disk CD player, six speakers and a MP3 player.

"It's definitely worth your time to stop in and take a look at it," Anderson said. "We don't know how long it will be here before someone buys it."