Ferarri restores Steve McQueen’s 275 GTB4

Melbourne: The Ferrari bought by Steve McQueen while filming ‘Bullitt’, is being restored by the car maker just metres from where the vehicle was originally made at the Maranello factory in Italy.

Car enthusiast McQueen reportedly had the Ferrari 275 GTB4 delivered new to the set of ‘Bullitt’ in San Francisco, the Age reported. While he was trashing Ford Mustangs over the hilly sea-side streets during the day, at night he drove off in a more exotic sports car. The rise in values of classic Ferraris has prompted the Italian maker to establish a division “Ferrari Classiche” that restores old cars to original condition – it even has the tech drawings for bespoke models, and build certificates of every car it has ever made. The McQueen car, owned by an unnamed collector, is being restored with a roof after it was made into a convertible in the 1980s, long after it left McQueen’s hands. To return the car to its original form, Ferrari had to reproduce the roof and pillars with hand-beaten steel panels, shaped to match the original design. Last month, a Ferrari set a new world record when a 250 GTO driven by British racing driver Stirling Moss sold for 35 million dollars. Just 36 examples of the 250 GTO had been built, it’s unknown how many remain. ANI