ORLANDO: The 1968 Ford Mustang GT that Steve McQueen drove in the movie "Bullitt" sold Friday for US$3.7 million (RM15mil), said auctioneer Mecum Auctions.
The late actor drove the car in several scenes of the film including an iconic, harrowing 10-minute chase through the streets of San Francisco.
The whereabouts of the dark green roadster were unknown for decades but it resurfaced, in good condition and driveable, for the 50th anniversary of the movie in 2018.
The car had been in the hands of one Sean Kiernan, age 38, whose father had bought it in 1974 for US$3,500. The family drove it daily until 1980, when the clutch broke.
It remained parked in a garage until Kiernan restored it and began exhibiting it after the death of his father in 2014.
David Morton, a spokesman for Mecum Auctions, said the opening bid was set at the symbolic figure of US$3,500 — the amount the elder Kiernan had paid for the car.
It was one of the main attractions of a 10-day auction of 3,500 cars that Mecum is holding through the weekend in Kissimmee, Florida.
