Original ‘Bullitt’ Mustang Becomes the Most Expensive Mustang Ever

By Cameron Vanderhorst - January 14, 2020

Hidden from public view until recently, the sale price of this Mustang proves that absence really does make the heart grow fonder.

The original Bullitt Mustang sold at auction last week for a jaw-dropping $3.74 million. That makes it by far the most expensive Ford Mustang ever sold.

Two cars were built for the filming of Bullitt. One was destroyed in the climax of the iconic chase scene (although it has surfaced in Baja, Mexico, according to Automobile). After filming, Warner Brothers sold the surviving car to Robert Ross, a Warner Brothers employee. In 1970, it was sold again to Frank Marranca, who was, appropriately enough, a police detective.

According to The Drive, the car was sold again in 1974, after an ad was placed in the October issue of Road & Track. It was subsequently purchased by Robert Kiernan, a notoriously reclusive owner who kept the car until his death in 2014.

Going Into Hiding

Kiernan wasn’t a huge fan of the movie, but he was a fan of big-block 1968 Mustangs. In the late ’70s, Steve McQueen wrote a letter begging Kiernan to sell the car. He wasn’t hearing any of it. When the famous Mustang’s clutch went out in 1980, the car was parked with around 60,000 miles on the odometer.

Over the next several decades, the fate of the Bullitt car was largely unknown, discussed in enthusiast circles in hushed whispers. It was known that the car still existed, but where?

When Ford released the first Bullitt special edition in 2001, Kiernan and his son, Sean, felt inspired to get the car back on the road. Unfortunately, Kiernan was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, which more or less stopped the restoration in its tracks.

After his father’s death, Sean Kiernan continued the work, making the most famous Mustang in the world roadworthy once again. By 2018, the word was out, and the car resurfaced at shows, museums, and Ford events.

Last week’s sale at Mecum just adds to the mystique and the legend. According to the Detroit Free Press, only one person knows the identity of the buyer. We hope that it won’t go into hiding for another 50 years.

Photos: Automobile