The 50th Anniversary Ford Mustang Bullitt Is Just Cool

To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Iconic 1968 movie Bullitt with Steve McQueen as detective Frank Bullitt, Ford will be releasing this summer a Bullitt edition Mustang GT. This will be the third commemorative Bullitt edition Mustang GT since the movie was released in 1968.

Commemorative Mustangs

The first commemorative Mustang GT with the Bullitt nameplate was built and released in 2001 through a partnership with Warner Bros. It was rated at 265 horsepower, but proud owners were reporting horsepower numbers closer to 270-275. It also created 305 lb-ft of torque at 2000 rpm. The car could be purchased in three colors: black, true blue, and the movie-car color of dark highland green. The car also had 17-inch American Racing Torq-Thrust style rims that were reminiscent of the '68 Fastback. Ford produced 5,582 of these special Mustangs. The second commemorative Mustang GT was released in 2008-2009. It was specially tuned to produce 325 horsepower which was up 15 horsepower from the production GTs of the time. It had a 5-speed Tremec that would do 0-60 in 4.9-5.0 seconds. The engineers created a unique system that allowed the GT to mimic the sound of the original '68 Fastback in the movie. There were Torq-Thrust style wheels like the 2001 GT, but they were 18" instead of 17s. The interior was completely designed with Bullitt badging and styling from the door sills, gauges, and steering wheel cap to engine-turned aluminum dash panel, aluminum shift knob, and foot pedals.

2019 Mustang GT Bullitt

The third commemorative Bullitt Mustang GT, which will be released later this summer, is special for a couple of reasons. First, it will coincide with the 50th anniversary of the movie release; and second, it will be promoted with one of the two original Fastbacks from the movie. Just like the two previous GT Bullitt Mustangs, this one will also be a limited-edition model. It will be the fastest GT yet with a true muscle car V-8 5.0-liter. It will be retuned to produce 475 horsepower and 420 lb.-ft. of torque. It will top out at a healthy 163 mph which is 8 mph more than the current production GT. This edition, like the other Bullitt Mustang GTs, will be built with the GT Premium and Performance Package while maintaining the original Bullitt's understated persona. The active valve performance exhaust system has been tuned just like the 2008-2009 model to give the car a signature Fastback burble.

Exterior Styling | Effortlessly Cool

The design engineers wanted a Bullitt Mustang that appeared effortlessly cool like Steve McQueen. This edition will be available in Dark Highland Green or Shadow Black with subtle chrome accents around the grille and front window. The only exterior badging will be a circular faux gas cap on the rear center that has the ability logo. This new Bullitt is, as Steve McQueen was, effortlessly cool, said Darrell Behmer, Mustang chief designer. As a designer, it's my favorite Mustang—devoid of stripes, spoilers and badges. It doesn't need to scream about anything—it's just cool.

Bullitt Interior | It's Just Cool

As I looked into the Mustang for the first time, I saw the white eight ball shifter knob gleaming in the midst of an all-black interior. It was nice because it took me back to my teenage years with thoughts of my friends that had that cool gear shift knobs in their muscle cars. The interior has a few more Bullitt logos than the subtly-stated exterior. Because leather always means cool, the design team equipped the Mustang's interior with black leather and then used green accent stitching on the dashboard, door panels, center console, and the RECARO black leather-trimmed seats.

Rest of the Story

Both '68 Fastbacks from the movie have resurfaced in the last few years. The hero car, in Hollywood terms, is still in running condition with a few parts replaced, but thankfully was never restored. The other Fastback was found in a junkyard with nothing but a body. It has been restored, but not much of it is original.

If you would like to learn more about the truly fascinating trip and story of the Hero Fastback that went missing for 44 years, check out the Historic Vehicle Association (HVA). The HVA collaborates with the U.S. Department of the Interior to explore how vehicles important in American and automotive history could be effectively documented and recognized. The HVA, founded in 2009 through the philanthropic support of car-collector insurance firm Hagerty, documents and recognizes historically important vehicles in a National Historic Vehicle Register, so important cars like the 1968 Ford Fastback Bullitt is always remembered. They do documentary videos of each car registered.

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