Ford Mustang BULLITT: 60s ICON RETURNS
By Paul Borden
The 12 months that were the year of 1968 were tumultuous times, even considering it was—as is 2008—an election year.
The incumbent president, Lyndon Johnson, under heavy criticism for the way the war in Vietnam was proceeding, announced on national television on March 31 that he would not run for reelection. Assassins gunned down two national leaders, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert Kennedy. And the Soviet Union ratcheted up the Cold War by invading Czechoslovakia, snuffing out that country’s nascent democratic reforms. But not all was gloom and doom.
On the space front, U.S. astronauts Frank Borman, James Lovell and Williams Anders became the first to orbit the moon. Seven months later, Neil Armstrong would be the first to land on the moon’s surface.
In baseball, Detroit pitcher Denny McLain became the fi rst pitcher since St. Louis’ Dizzy Dean in 1934 to reach the 30-win plateau, going 31-6, and though he would not play a large role in it, his team would rally to win the World Series.
In television, Rowan and Martin’s Laugh-In, a montage of topical quips and skits that helped launch several careers—not unlike Saturday Night Live would less than a decade later—was the smash hit.
And at the movies, a detective drama that would become a cabletelevision staple in years to come, made its debut. That fi lm was Bullitt. Directed by Peter Yates, Bullitt had an interesting story with enough twists to be entertaining, an appealing location and an excellent cast featuring Steve McQueen, Robert Vaughn, Jacqueline Bisset, Norman Fell, Simon Oakland and future Oscar-winner Robert Duvall in a bit role as a taxi driver.
But what really caught the attention of reviewers and movie-goers alike and has made Bullitt a continuing favorite over the years was a chase scene through the streets of San Francisco and the nearby countryside that, including the buildup, took up more than nine minutes of the fi lm’s 114-minute running time. It has served as a measure for all such chase scenes since, even in today’s computer-driven movies.
And the star in that scene didn’t have a word of dialogue—it was a 1968 Highland green Ford Mustang Fastback GT (with a 1968 Dodge Charger in a supporting role).
In recognition of the 40th anniversary of this Warner Brothers classic, Ford put into production for 2008 a limited number of Ford Mustangs with “Bullitt” trim, in either the original dark green (preferred) or black and additional upgrades that embody “the true spirit of the 1968 movie car,” says Derrick Kuzak, Ford group vice president for Global Product Development.
Unlike the 2001 Bullitt Mustang that Ford put out as an anniversary edition, the 2008 Bullitt incorporates more of the styling cues from the movie original. You won’t fi nd the familiar Mustang pony emblem in the middle of the wide-mouth grille or, for that matter, any other typical Mustang markings on the exterior. Nor will you find any chrome, scoops or spoilers. Detective Frank Bullitt—McQueen’s title character—apparently stripped his Mustang clean before chasing bad guys.
There are some touches, such as aluminum instrument panel inserts and large “Bullitt” markings on the steeringwheel hub, rear emblem and rocker panels that obviously were not on the original as well as an available LED ambient lighting system that purists might balk at. You can get Sirius Satellite Radio for your listening pleasure and a navigation system, technology that obviously wasn’t available back in the 1960s. Though HID headlamps are available as an option, the headlights are the original dual configuration. Those concessions aside, where it counts in performance and overall appearance, the 2008 Bullitt Mustang lives up to the spirit of the somewhat Spartan ’68 movie model. And under the hood is a 4.6-liter V8 engine that pumps out 315 horsepower and 325 pound-feet of torque—the force that gets you moving from a standing stop. The zero-to-sixty miles-per-hour time is roughly five seconds, not quite as quick as the Shelby GT500 version but quick enough. The throaty sound it pumps out through the dual tailpipes will make you want to drive with the windows down. (Engine sound is a Mustang specialty. It’s why when he scored the movie, Lalo Schifrin dropped the buildup music completely when the hit men peeled out from the intersection to start the actual chase. Schifrin let the engine roars of the Mustang and Charger carry things from there. It works.)
This is a car that can certainly function as a daily driver, but the Bullitt may be more suited to weekend “fun” activities such as rallies or other auto-related events or simply for cruising.
The seats are comfortable enough for routine tasks and grab your bottom securely, giving you the feeling that if you wanted to duplicate the movie chase scene, you could do it securely. (We don’t recommend that, by the way, and you can’t follow the actual route anyway because the scenes jump from one location to another in a non-contiguous manner.)
The raised center console that contains the gearshift and the parking brake lever also provide a more secure impression, as if you are in a true single-person cockpit of a racecar. You do have to work to shift gears on the six-speed manual transmission, though it is a labor of joy, and you won’t find such niceties as redundant controls for the sound system on the steering wheel. There’s not a lot of room in the backseat, but it’s not as difficult to get back there as you might imagine. The front seatbelt presenters are easily unsnapped and moved out of the way to provide access. The front seat tilts forward to leave plenty of room. Trunk space? Who cares? This isn’t a car you’re going to pack up for the family vacation.
Pricing for the Bullitt Mustang starts at $31,075, and the wait list likely will be long, perhaps even prohibitive. Again, this is a limited production model with Ford planning to manufacture only 7,700 units for sale in the U.S. and Canada. They are likely to get scarce fast.
However, your chances of getting a new one are infinitely better than getting the original Mustang from the movie. Warner Brothers used two Mustangs (and two Chargers) to film the chase scene. One Mustang was destroyed during filming. The whereabouts of the other, a 1968 Mustang 390 GT, is somewhat of a mystery.
According to a Mustang enthusiast website, a studio worker had it for a couple of years before selling it to a forgotten buyer in 1970, and two years later, that buyer sold it again. The present owner, who turned down an offer from McQueen himself and refused the producers of the movie Charlie’s Angels permission to use it, simply won’t talk about the car’s whereabouts. He remains anonymous.
“The car is said to be in Tennessee in a barn. Or Kentucky,” a Ford spokesperson wrote in an e-mail. “Has 66,000 miles, front-end accident damage, camera mounts still in place, holes drilled in the body where cameras were attached. The owner is not talking.”
You’ll have to be content with the 2008 version. Overall, I’m sure you’ll be just as happy.
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