Celebrating the film’s 50th anniversary.
Back in 1968, one of the most iconic car chase scenes made its way into movie theatres in the film, “Bullitt”, starring Steve McQueen. In the movie, McQueen’s character chases down two hitmen driving a 1968 Dodge Charger R/T in his unique 1968 Ford Mustang GT. It’s one of the all-time greatest car chase scenes and has led Ford to producing versions of the iconic movie car in 2001 and from 2008 to 2009.
At the 2018 North American International Auto Show, the third-generation model was unveiled in a film starring Molly, the granddaughter of Steve McQueen, driving the new 2019 Ford Mustang Bullitt. Not only was McQueen royalty part of the show, but so was the original 1968 Ford Mustang GT fastback “hero vehicle” that McQueen drove. The original vehicle had been sold to a private seller and its whereabouts was unknown – until now. Sean Kiernan, the owner of the original hero vehicle, had inherited the car from his father in 2014 and contacted Ford to bring it to the NAIAS for the 2019 Ford Mustang Bullitt reveal.
“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.”
The new third-generation Ford Mustang Bullitt utilizes the same 5.0-liter, naturally-aspirated V-8 engine as the GT model albeit with a couple of extra goodies. Ford added on a new active valve performance exhaust system ending in Black NitroPlate tips that create that iconic V-8 burble. A new Open Air Induction system and Shelby GT350 intake manifold with 87mm throttle bodies is also standard. A new powertrain control module software upgrade optimizes performance with the new hardware and results in an output of at least 475 horsepower and 420 lb-ft. of torque. That’s good for a 163 mph top speed – 8 mph more than the standard Ford Mustang GT.
The 2019 Ford Mustang Bullitt comes with a choice of Shadow Black and signature Dark Highland Green exterior paint – the same that was used in the movie. There’s also a subtle chrome trim around the front grille and the windows, a clean black front grille, and old-school torque thrust 19-inch wheels with red-painted Brembo brakes – just like the original car. Minimal badging is used inside and out with only the circular faux gas cap with the Bullitt logo on the rear center being the only visible aspect on the exterior.
“When making a Bullitt, there are certain things it absolutely must have,” said Carl Widmann, Mustang chief engineer. “It has to have the right attitude, it has to be unique in some way from a Mustang GT, and more than anything, it has to be bad ass.”
Inside, the 2019 Ford Mustang Bullitt features a standard heated leather steering wheel and 12-inch LCD digital instrument cluster. This cluster is the same as the unit found in the 2018 Mustang but has a special Bullitt welcome screen with green car greeting instead of the traditional pony display. A classic white cue ball shift knob on the standard manual transmission pays homage to the original model as well.
There are only a few available options for the 2019 Ford Mustang Bullitt, including a Bullitt Electronics Package, MagneRide semi-active suspension, and RECARO black leather-trimmed seats.
Pricing and availability for the new 2019 Ford Mustang Bullitt will be available at a later date.
2019 Ford Mustang Bullitt Specifications
Engine:
Displacement: 5.0 liters
Number of Cylinders: V-8
Aspiration: Naturally-aspirated
Maximum Horsepower: 475
Maximum Torque: 420 lb-ft.
Performance:
Top Speed: 163 mph
2019 Ford Mustang Bullitt Gallery
Source: Ford
Is the new 2019 Ford Mustang Bullitt a perfect homage to the original?
