Trivia

Several items of clothing worn by Steve McQueen received a boost in popularity thanks to the film: desert boots, a trench coat, a blue turtleneck sweater and, most famously, a brown tweed jacket with elbow patches.

While filming the scene where the giant airliner taxis just above Steve McQueen, observers were shocked that no double was used. Asked if the producers couldn't have found a dummy, McQueen wryly replied, "They did."

Although Steve McQueen was credited with the driving during the chase sequence, it was actually shared by McQueen and Bud Ekins, one of Hollywood's best stunt drivers. From the interior shots looking forward inside the Mustang, it's easy to see which one is driving. When McQueen is driving, the rear view mirror is down reflecting his face. When Ekins is driving it is up, so his face is hidden.

Bullitt's reverse burnout during the chase scene actually wasn't in the script; Steve McQueen had mistakenly missed the turn. The footage was still kept, though.

Bill Hickman, the backup hit man and driver of the Charger, was highly experienced in driving stunts and in racing. Thirteen years before this film, being a good friend of actor and budding race driver James Dean, he was accompanying Dean to a race in Salinas, California, driving Dean's station wagon and car trailer while Dean drove ahead in his Porsche Spyder. Dean died in an accident on the way and it was Bill Hickman who extricated Dean's body from the wreck.