Ford Mustang BULLITT production extended

Production of the Ford Mustang BULLITT has been extended into 2020. The decision follows the global sell-out success of the Steve McQueen-inspired special-edition.

Down Under, the 700 cars allocated are already spoken for. And in good news for owners and bad news for those who missed out, Ford Australia has confirmed it will not import any of the Mustang BULLITT v2.0 coupes.

“No, we’re sticking with the 700 [unit] single batch,” said Ford Australia spokesman Damion Smy.

The first of 700 Australian BULLITTs arrived here last September, after the upgraded Mustang’s release in mid-2018. All of them are now in the country and the final handful of Aussie customer deliveries will take place in July.

Following similar limited-editions based on the fourth-generation Mustang in 2001 and the fifth generation in 2008 (both of which were for North America only), the first global Ford Mustang BULLITT is also in strong demand in the UK, which received only 400 units.

But demand was so overwhelming in Australia, that the ten BULLITTs reserved for Ford staff were oversubscribed to the point a ballot was required and buyers were obliged to keep their cars for a set time period.

As we’ve reported, Ford Australia previously considered requesting additional stocks of the hero car beyond its original allocation of 700 vehicles.

In a bid to satisfy local demand for the Hollywood-inspired Mustang without eroding the resale values of traditional Highland Green examples -- or angering its current customer base -- it even contemplated importing the Shadow Black version available in the USA and Europe.

A quick search on carsales reveals at least nine used MY18 Mustang BULLITTs currently for sale, priced anywhere between $83,000 and $109,900.

That’s up to $36,000 more than the Mustang BULLITT’s retail price of $73,688 plus on-road costs, which itself was $10,698 more than the MY18 Mustang GT Fastback manual on which it’s based. The base V8 manual coupe price has since increased to $63,290 plus ORCs.

In an indication of how much the latest Mustang BULLITT could appreciate in time, the highest asking prices still fall $30,000 short of the priciest 1968 Mustang coupe (the car that inspired three BULLITT special-editions) currently listed on carsales – a Fastback GT 390 repainted in Highland Green with 140,000km under its belt, for which the owner is asking $129,900.

Like its two predecessors, the 2018 Ford Mustang BULLITT pays tribute to (and in this case celebrates the 50th anniversary of) the classic 1968 Hollywood movie of the same name, best known for its car chase scene starring Steve McQueen.

The BULLITT adds an ‘Open Air induction system’ and intake manifold, 87mm throttle bodies, Ford Racing air filter and a power control module from the Shelby Mustang GT350 to the Mustang GT’s 5.0-litre V8, liberating 6kW more power but the same torque (345kW/556Nm).

The model is exclusively a six-speed manual transmission complete with classic white cue-ball shifter.

All 700 individually numbered Australian BULLITTs wear Dark Highland Green paint matched by gloss-black 19-inch Torq Thrust-style alloy wheels, plus a faux fuel filler cap, chrome exterior highlights, BULLITT scuff plates and green-stitched dash and door trims.