[ChopTop]

Mecum is currently live streaming their Kissimmee auction at mecum (dot) com.

Just a heads up that a genuine Bullitt Mustang that has been verified to be one of the Mustangs that Steve McQueen drove during the filming of Bullitt (1968) is being auction off (no reserve) on 1/10/20 at the Mecum Kissimmee auction (January 2-12/20).

1968 Ford Mustang GT

1968 Ford Mustang GT

www.mecum.com

No CGI here folks.

 

[ChopTop]

Reminder, this is crossing the auction block today probably around 2:00-2:15.
Watch via mecum lifestream or NBCSN.

 

[ChopTop]

No Reserve. Sold $3,400,000 (less auction fees). Mystery buyer was phone bidder.

 

[TomatoSoup]

Jeez !

 

[WickedMike]

I saw this car yesterday. Was it ever in sad shape. Bumpers are rusty, paint is in terrible shape and tires are bald. Really looked bad. Couldn’t see into interior since they had at in a display case. Hard to believe someone would pay that much for that car. Many cars sold for less then you would think and then others sold for hefty prices. Like the redline.

 

[JohnWR]

Are saying that you think that the car auction market should be logical?

 

[ChopTop]

I saw this car yesterday. Was it ever in sad shape. Bumpers are rusty, paint is in terrible shape and tires are bald. Really looked bad. Couldn’t see into interior since they had at in a display case. Hard to believe someone would pay that much for that car. Many cars sold for less then you would think and then others sold for hefty prices. Like the redline.

What's the saying, an original is only original once. To think that the 2nd owner paid $3,500, and that it was used as his wife's daily for several years, and was never was restored is amazing to me. I don't know if it was just dumb luck or if the guy had the foresight to know that leaving it original would be beneficial. Seeing some of these old muscle cars crossing the block that are almost 100% original tells me that there must have been some people who understood that storing them away was the smart thing to do (or rarely driven). I've also read that Steve McQueen tried to buy if from him but he refused to sell. Guess the King of Cool is still cool.

 

[WickedMike]

Chop: yes it looked original but in terrible condition. It had tubes welded underneath and sticking out the sides a few inches to mount cameras on. It will be interesting to see if they clean it up and do new tires (tires were really bald)

 

[TVRBill]

It toured the country last year and a friend and I went to a private showing where the owner spent an hour plus going over the history..it was a fun evening.I was joking around pretending to be arrested by Steve McQueen..

 

[Sting Ya]

The car went for 3.4 mil. anything to do with the "King of Cool" is worth big bucks !

 

[Nervous Norvous]

Brethren,
My guess is the buyer was a middle eastern oil tycoon who has no idea how to spin wrenches. After seeing the car & hearing the background story & knowing how 'shifty" some people can be,A fifty year old car for4.3 mil.Really ?

 

[WickedMike]

Plus it is one of three used in the movie.

 

[JohnWR]

Plus it is one of three used in the movie.

Actually one of two, the other being a stunt/camera car. They called this one the "hero" car as it was the one that McQueen actually drove for close-ups. So it is definitely the more prized of the two. The stunt car was thought to have been crushed, but there are reports of it having been found in Mexico, so there may be another chapter to this story.

Regardless, this isn't a car, it is a piece of cinematic history that happens to be in the form of a car.

The total cost to the buyer is $3.74 million after auction fees are added to the $3.4 million bid.

 

[wmf246]

some people will call it ''patina", to me it is just a POS

Bill

 

[wspohn]

Odd - in the Jensen community we've had cars formerly owned by people like Ginger Baker and Tony Curtis, John Bonham and such (when new they cost double what a V12 XKE did) but the thought of them being worth any more for having had famous owners is just laughed at.

 

[JohnWR]

Odd - in the Jensen community we've had cars formerly owned by people like Ginger Baker and Tony Curtis, John Bonham and such (when new they cost double what a V12 XKE did) but the thought of them being worth any more for having had famous owners is just laughed at.

Yes, but were those cars movie stars in their own right?

 

[TomatoSoup]

I'm surprised that there were only two cars. I would've thought that they went through a few more in that extreme driving chase scene.

 

[JohnWR]

I'm surprised that there were only two cars. I would've thought that they went through a few more in that extreme driving chase scene.

It surprised me too, but I have never seen anything to say that there were more. The reason given for the stunt car being crushed was that it was so badly damaged.

 

[wspohn]

Yes, but were those cars movie stars in their own right?

Not those particular cars but some others were. A CV8 was the featured car on The Baron british TV show, or more widely distributed was the Interceptor used in the Saint reboot but I guess that wouldn't have much pull either.

The Saint's Jensen Interceptor

The Jensen Interceptor, driven by Simon Templar, alias The Saint.

www.saint.org

 

[JohnWR]

Not those particular cars but some others were. A CV8 was the featured car on The Baron british TV show, or more widely distributed was the Interceptor used in the Saint reboot but I guess that wouldn't have much pull either.

The Saint's Jensen Interceptor

The Jensen Interceptor, driven by Simon Templar, alias The Saint.

www.saint.org

I suspect that it is all a matter of degree. Bullitt the Movie, Steve McQueen, and the Mustang each have almost a cult following, so when you combine the three, especially considering that the Mustang had such a central role in the movie, you get something special. Or at least special to a certain group of people. It may not make sense, probably doesn't actually, but then again it doesn't have to. It just is.