Following its movie debut, the 1968 Mustang GT hero car—this car—was sold to Robert Ross, a Warner Bros. employee who used it as a commuter, documented by the Warner Bros. parking sticker on the bottom right corner of the windshield. The other Mustang stunt car was deemed unrepairable and reportedly scrapped.
What happened to the original Mustang from the movie Bullitt?
The Bullitt Mustang ended up staying in the Kiernan family's D.C.-area garage for decades. Upon Kiernan's passing in 2014, the car was passed down to his son Sean who was inspired to get the car back up and running. Sean Kiernan restored the car in secret on his own before unveiling it to the public.
Its owner is Nashville-based Sean Kiernan. “For 40 years,” he says, “it was a total secret.” Kiernan's father, who had been chasing a Mustang with the 390-cubic-inch “big block” engine, found one for sale in the classified section of Road & Track magazine.
It was missing a lot of pieces and parts, but there was enough to certify it as one of the two movie-star Mustangs. The Bullitt that took a beating. However, the hero Mustang, the surviving Bullitt car (#559), was repaired and somewhat repainted by Warner Brothers after filming and readied for sale.
Did Steve McQueen actually drive the Mustang in Bullitt?
Although Steve McQueen was credited with the driving during the chase sequence, it was actually shared by McQueen and Bud Ekins, one of Hollywood's best stunt drivers. From the interior shots looking forward inside the Mustang, it's easy to see which one is driving.
The actor is better known for his prowess as a stunt driver. His work in Bullitt (1968) is legendary where he drove the black Dodge Charger 440 Magnum that was pursued by Steve McQueen in his Ford Mustang 390 GT.
Two Mustang GT 390s were used in the making of Bullitt. One (VIN 8R02S125559) was pampered and used in low-action scenes – mostly when McQueen's titular character, Frank Bullitt, was driving around his neighborhood in picturesque San Francisco.
For some reason the surviving R/T Charger ended up back with the dealer and was re-painted yellow and sold. Arnold says the car hasn't been driven since about 1978 and that its VIN date indicates it was built January 15, 1968. Location filming was begun in April of 1968.
About 40 years ago, a certain Highland Green 1968 Ford Mustang GT exchanged hands for $3500. That same car, the one that was actually driven by Steve McQueen in the movie Bullitt, just became the most valuable Mustang ever after it was auctioned off for a cool $3.4 million.
What is so special about the 1968 Bullitt Mustang?
Frank Bullitt. The Mustang's grille was blacked out, and the paint was scuffed to give it more of an authentic, road-tested look. Meanwhile, the engine was modified for speed and sound, creating the iconic symphony in the background of the chase scene.
However, it seems that a certain buyer grabbed the machine from the Valley Dodge car dealer in Van Nuys, California in 1970 and sold it to Arnold Welch of Tucson, AZ in 2002. There were either two or three 1968 Dodge Chargers used in the film.
The ominous-looking pony car with the barking 390-cubic-inch V-8, which starred in one of the greatest chase scenes in movie history in the film Bullitt—with McQueen doing the driving in many of the shots—may have been lost, but it was never forgotten.
In homage to McQueen's character, this Bullitt was offered in the same Highland Green color, along with True Blue and Black. Ford produced a total of 5,582 Bullitt models in 2001. While the horsepower output was listed at 265 hp, some owners indicated their Bullitt provided horsepower in the 270-275 range.
Industry experts believe it is odds-on there will be a new-generation Ford Mustang Bullitt – given the special edition was included in the previous three generations – but it could be several years away, in the second half of an expected eight-year model cycle.
After filming, the Mustang was sold to a Warner Brothers employee, and later to a New Jersey police detective. He in turn sold it for $6,000 in 1974 to Robert Kiernan of Madison, New Jersey, who held onto the car until he died in 2014.
With a strong 6.4 L V8 Big Block power plant, the Ford could give the Charger a run for its money any time, which the film established quite convincingly. The Mustang went from 0 to 60 mph in only 5.5 seconds and took the quarter mile is 13.8 seconds, with a maximum speed of 140 mph.
The Bullitt Mustang was offered in only three colors: Dark Highland Green (like Steve McQueen's original Bullitt Mustang), True Blue, and Black. Total production was 5582 units, with 3041 of those in Dark Highland Green.
Although Steve McQueen was credited with the driving during the chase sequence it was actually shared by McQueen and Bud Ekins, one of Hollywood's best stunt drivers.
However, it was the car chase alongside Steve McQueen in the 1968 film Bullitt for which he is usually remembered. Hickman was to do all his own driving; portraying one of two hit men, he drove an all black 1968 Dodge Charger 440 Magnum R/T through the streets of San Francisco, using the hills as jumps.
Genge is most famous for his role as the shotgun toting gray-haired mob hitman 'Mike' in the 1968 film Bullitt (his character is the passenger in the black 1968 Dodge Charger during the famous car chase that goes out of control and causes his death and the driver's).
How long did it take to film the Chase scene in Bullitt?
One of the most memorable car chases in all of cinema features Steve McQueen in a Ford Mustang being chased by bad guys through the streets of San Francisco in the 1968 film “Bullitt.” Warner Bros. The sequence took Yates three weeks to film and was pieced together from multiple takes.
The car that featured in what for many is the best movie car chase of all time, the Ford Mustang GT from Bullitt, has sold at auction in the US for $3.4 million – a thousand times what the car originally cost.
GT stands for “Grand Touring,” which represents a trim level that offers additional performance and luxury features compared to the base models. This designation signifies a Mustang that's built for power, speed, and a refined driving experience.
