Celebrating the 50th anniversary of iconic movie Bullitt and its fan-favourite San Francisco car chase, Ford has introduced the new cool and powerful 2019 Mustang Bullitt.
Third-generation member of the McQueen family, Molly, starred in a special movie of her own introducing the new third-generation Bullitt at the 2018 North American International Auto Show. In the film, Molly races a new Mustang Bullitt through a parking structure battling a Dodge Charger for the final free space.
Helping it win that particular spot was the Bullitt’s upgraded 5-litre V8 engine that will deliver at least 475 horsepower and 569Nm of torque, pushing the new Bullitt to a top speed of 262km/h, a 12km/h increase versus the latest Mustang GT.
As a special-edition model due out this summer in the US, the all-new Mustang Bullitt is equipped with a manual transmission whose gearshifter features a white cue-ball shift knob as a nod to the original. The vehicle packages all Mustang GT Premium and Performance Package content into a vehicle that maintains the original Bullitt’s understated persona.
An active valve performance exhaust system is standard with new Black NitroPlate exhaust tips, and retuned to give the car a signature burble, as well as a new Open Air Induction System and a Shelby GT350 intake manifold with 87mm throttle bodies and powertrain control module calibration for optimal performance.
Other standard equipment includes a 12-inch all-digital LCD instrument cluster, identical in function to the cluster introduced on the 2018 Mustang, but with a unique Bullitt welcome screen that starts in green with an image of the car rather than the pony.
Exterior paint choices are limited to Shadow Black and the classic Dark Highland Green – as worn in the movie. Other features that pay tribute to the car McQueen drove are subtle chrome accents around the grille and front windows, classic “torque thrust” 19-inch aluminium wheels, red-painted Brembo brakes, and a unique black front grille. Inside and out, the vehicle uses minimal badging; only the circular faux gas cap Bullitt logo on the rear centre is visible on the exterior.
The leather-trimmed interior features unique green accent stitching on the dashboard, door panels, center console and seats.
“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.”
That reputation was born after a Mustang GT fastback played a prominent role in the 1968 movie, most notably in a chase scene that set new standards in filmmaking. The film’s nearly 10-minute-long sequence followed McQueen chasing down two hitmen in his Mustang through the streets of San Francisco. 
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