Though Steve McQueen drove dozens of different cars on the big screen during his movie career, the one he’ll always be most closely associated with is the green ’68 Mustang fastback from Bullitt. Less well known is that McQueen also had a brief on-camera fling with the Mustang’s rival, the Pontiac Firebird, in his final movie, The Hunter.
Released in August 1980, only three months before McQueen succumbed to mesothelioma, a cancer caused by exposure to asbestos, The Hunter stars the King of Cool as a bounty hunter with zero cool behind the wheel. Playing against type, McQueen showcases his character’s shortage of driving skills when he picks up a 1979 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am – presumably chosen to cash in on the success of Smokey and the Bandit – from a rental firm and lurches around the parking lot.
The car seen here and currently up for grabs on Bring a Trailer isn’t that car, which was used for the beauty shots, and was almost certainly never driven by the man himself. Instead, it’s one that was blown up at the end of the movie, after which it was apparently liberated of parts including the rear spoiler by the crew and given to a local man as payment for the use of his truck and trailer.
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In documentation visible in the advert, that original post-movie owner says the production team didn’t feel this car was sufficiently destroyed by the explosion so a second Trans Am was sourced and given a bigger send-off. The second expendable car was then crushed, while this one lived in the man’s barn for many years before being sold and exhibited at shows on the back of its trailer, which is included in the sale.
Seventy-nine was the last year you could get a big-block V8 in the Trans Am, though this car only has the 185 hp (188 PS) Olds 403 and three-speed auto in it, and not the 220 hp (223 PS) W72 Pontiac 400 and four-speed manual combo that was available to a small number of buyers. It does have the WS6 handling pack though, which included a faster steering rack, wider wheels, rear discs and uprated anti-roll bars – not that it’s likely to be making use of that bundle any time soon.
Four years ago a Highland Green Mustang driven by Steve McQueen in Bullitt sold for $3.4 million, but this Trans Am is going to be rather more affordable. At the time of writing bidding was only up to $18,650 with four hours of the auction still to go. Check out the listing here.
