Fastback Flashback
Celebrating their 50th anniversary, this couple wonders whatever became of their “honeymoon car”—a ’68 Mustang almost identical to Steve Mcqueen’s famous Bullitt model
Ialways thought of my husband’s highland green ’68 Mustang Fastback as our “honeymoon car,” but the rest of the world knew that make and model as the bull it tm us tang from the 1968 Steve Mcqueen movie.
My Steve purchased his Mustang after receiving a tip from my father that there was a nice sports car for sale at a body shop in Goderich, Ont. A couple of years later, in the summer of 1973, we prepared to head out in it for a two-week tour of the province. Cheered on by waves and well wishers after our wedding reception, a quick beep signalled the beginning of a carefree road trip.
Movie camera in hand, we captured footage of the cottage we stayed at in Thunder Beach, as well as time spent in Ottawa, Orillia, Sharbot Lake Provincial Park, Toronto’s Ontario Place and Niagara Falls. In scenes from the film, you can easily spot the car. We loved it, and Steve kept it pristine. When he drove it, I thought he looked mighty handsome! With its 289 cubic-inch engine, automatic transmission and two-tone green interior, it was definitely a show stopper!
Fast forward a year after our honeymoon, and we were blessed with a precious son. As time went on, I was finding it very dicult to get our little bundle into the back baby seat. Mustangs weren’t made for transporting babies along with their accoutrements! After much discussion, it was mutually agreed that a family type vehicle would be more helpful, and feeling melancholy, Steve drove his Fastback up to the local Ford dealer, “Green and Parent”, in Goderich, to trade in for a van.
A week later, filled with regret, he returned to the dealership to buy it back. He said we’d figure out the money somehow, but to his dismay, it had already been sold. Years passed, and one day while again lamenting our decision to let it go, I wrote a letter to the local paper, in an attempt to track it down, but to no avail.
Undeterred, we always kept our eye out for the car, or at least the same model to purchase, but as time went by, and its popularity grew, that sought-after Mustang’s price tag was far beyond our means. Buying a home and raising three children had become our family focus.
The summer of 2023 will mark our 50th wedding anniversary, so here’s hoping someone reads our story, and can identify the vehicle’s whereabouts. Although we realize “that ship has sailed”, as far as the chances of owning our honeymoon car again, we’d sure be happy just to know what happened to it!