The Original "Bullitt" Mustang Is Headed to Auction
This is one of two cars Steve McQueen drove in the filming of Bullitt. Expect it to become the most expensive Mustang ever.
BY CHRIS PERKINS
AUG 15, 2019
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When Ford revealed a new Bullitt Mustang the beginning of 2018, it shared the stage with something truly remarkable—one of the originals from the movie, thought to be lost to time. Two Mustang were used in the filming of Bullitt, and of the two, the one Ford brought out was the more complete example. Now, that car is headed to auction.
Today, Mecum announced that the Bullitt Mustang, a 1968 GT Fastback painted Highland Green, will be the featured lot at its Kissimmee, Florida auction next January. Don't be surprised if it becomes the most expensive Mustang ever sold. And you don't need to take our word for it. When we first wrote about this car's rediscovery last year, Mustang legend Ken Marti told us "I won’t be surprised if the kind of offer Sean [Kiernan, the owner] gets will be the highest ever offer for a Mustang."
Since our interview with Marti, a 1967 Shelby GT500 Super Snake sold for $2.2 million. It's easy to imagine this one selling for more. After all, it's arguably the most iconic Mustang of them all, and it was driven by a legend in one of the greatest car-chase scenes in movie history.
The car was modified pretty extensively for the movie, with heavier-duty suspension hardware, some engine upgrades, and mounting points for cameras. After filming was complete, Warner Brothers repaired the car and sold it to a detective living on the East coast. The detective listed it in the October 1974 Road & Track classifieds (as the "Bullett" Mustang), and Robert Kiernan bought it for $6000, immediately putting it to use as a family car. McQueen himself tried to buy the car back in 1977, but Robert Kiernan held on to it until his death in 2014, at which point it was passed on to his son, Sean.
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