# What was the car the bad guys drove in the famous "Bullit" car chase? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 4, 2002, 5:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-car-the-bad-guys-drove-in-the-famous-bullit-car-chase/117322 "2002-07-04T05:23:50Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2002, 5:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-car-the-bad-guys-drove-in-the-famous-bullit-car-chase/117322/1 "2002-07-04T05:23:50Z")
“Bullit” the Paul Newman movie set in in San Francisco. More of a car knowledge identification question than a movie question but mods move if you must. Watching this movie now but I can’t ID it. ---
**Author:** ![pkbites](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pkbites/32/204_2.png) [@pkbites](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pkbites)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2002, 6:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-car-the-bad-guys-drove-in-the-famous-bullit-car-chase/117322/2 "2002-07-04T06:15:41Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by astro \* > \*\*“Bullit” the Paul Newman movie set in in San Francisco. > \*\* Uh,…Don’t you mean Steve Mcqueen? ---
**Author:** ![Nametag](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nametag/32/406_2.png) [@Nametag](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nametag)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2002, 6:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-car-the-bad-guys-drove-in-the-famous-bullit-car-chase/117322/3 "2002-07-04T06:22:44Z")
Yes, it was Steve McQueen, in a 1968 Mustang GT Fastback. ---
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2002, 6:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-car-the-bad-guys-drove-in-the-famous-bullit-car-chase/117322/4 "2002-07-04T06:25:39Z")
Blush :o … yes McQueen . I’m looking for the _bad guys_ car. ---
**Author:** ![pkbites](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pkbites/32/204_2.png) [@pkbites](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pkbites)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2002, 6:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-car-the-bad-guys-drove-in-the-famous-bullit-car-chase/117322/5 "2002-07-04T06:39:59Z")
I’m almost certain that it was a Dodge Charger, but I couldn’t tell you what year. Sorry. BEST CHASE SCENE, EVER!🆒 ---
**Author:** ![jinty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/dbc845/32.png) [@jinty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jinty)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2002, 1:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-car-the-bad-guys-drove-in-the-famous-bullit-car-chase/117322/6 "2002-07-04T13:05:27Z")
pkbites is right. “Cars to watch for include Bullitt’s 1967 Ford Mustang GT and Hickman’s Dodge Charger R/T.” From [http://www.geocities.com/MotorCity/Downs/5498/films.html](http://www.geocities.com/MotorCity/Downs/5498/films.html) Also reveals “Ironically, in real life the small block Ford could never quite keep up with the big block Dodge…” It’s on UK TV tonight. Am I going to watch it, for the umpteenth time? You bet! 😃 Best bit of the film outside of the famous chase?.. “Now listen to me, lieutenant.” \ ---
**Author:** ![spheric\_thor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ee7513/32.png) [@spheric\_thor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/spheric_thor)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2002, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-car-the-bad-guys-drove-in-the-famous-bullit-car-chase/117322/7 "2002-07-04T16:44:10Z")
It’s a 1968 Dodge charger R/T. ---
**Author:** ![Cerowyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/82dd89/32.png) [@Cerowyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cerowyn)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2002, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-car-the-bad-guys-drove-in-the-famous-bullit-car-chase/117322/8 "2002-07-04T18:12:10Z")
To add to what **spheric thor** posted, [IMDB](http://us.imdb.com/Trivia?0062765) says: > [@](#): > > Two Mustangs and two Dodge Chargers were used for the famous chase scene. Both Mustangs were owned by the Ford Motor Company and part of a promotional loan agreement with Warner Brothers. The cars were modified for the high-speed chase by veteran auto racer Max Balchowsky. Stunt coordinator Carey Loftin got Bud Ekins to drive the Mustang for the bulk of the stunts. Both of the Dodges were junked after the filming, as was one of the Mustangs. The other less banged-up Mustang was purchased by a WB employee after all production and post-production was completed. The car ended up in New Jersey a few years later, where Steve McQueen attempted to buy it. The owner refused to sell, and the car now sits in a barn and has not been driven in many years. Hope that helps. ---
**Author:** ![Nametag](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nametag/32/406_2.png) [@Nametag](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nametag)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2002, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-car-the-bad-guys-drove-in-the-famous-bullit-car-chase/117322/9 "2002-07-04T18:41:31Z")
I’ll bet Steve McQueen read questions carefully before HE answered them. ::Sigh:: Sorry about that. ---
**Author:** ![tekgraf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8491ac/32.png) [@tekgraf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tekgraf)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2002, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-car-the-bad-guys-drove-in-the-famous-bullit-car-chase/117322/10 "2002-07-04T21:58:06Z")
The Mustang GT wasn’t necessarily a small block; one of the options was the 390 cubic inch FE large block (same basic block as 406 and 428) ---
**Author:** ![Doc\_Nickel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/5fc32e/32.png) [@Doc\_Nickel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doc_Nickel)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2002, 9:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-car-the-bad-guys-drove-in-the-famous-bullit-car-chase/117322/11 "2002-07-04T21:59:29Z")
'68 Dodge Charger R/T, as already noted. Both cars were four-speeds, the Charger had a 440cid big block with a four-barrel. You also see a white '67 Pontiac Firebird about three or four times during the chase, and while I haven’t bothered to look, somebody once told me that you see a total of seven hubcaps come off the Charger during the chase. At the terminus of the Mustang’s run, the shot of it coming to rest in the ditch, you can quite clearly see the damage to the front suspension- either the spindle, the A-arm or a ball joint has failed catastrophically. In the late sixties’, the cars had the raw power- realistically, the Charger should have been able to walk away from the Mustang- but neither one was really set up for handling or twisties (the edge here would go to the Mustang, being quite a bit lighter and having somewhat better suspension.)