McQueen Ferrari for auction

A 1963 Ferrari once owned and driven by the late film star Steve McQueen is expected to fetch between £400,000 and £600,00 at an auction in August.

The car is a Ferrari 250 GT Berlinetta Lusso with a medium-brown metallic paint and beige leather interior.

McQueen, nicknamed 'The King of Cool' for his portrayals of nonchalant, in-control heroes in such films as The Great Escape, was a car collector.

He special ordered the car in 1963 and owned it for about ten years, according to Christie's.

Christopher Sanger, head of Christie's car sales in the US, said: "It's probably the best example of a Ferrari Lusso that's out there on the marketplace. It was McQueen's first Ferrari and was his everyday, run-around car, not a movie prop.".

McQueen, who died in 1980, also enjoyed motor racing and reportedly performed some of his own driving stunts in his films. One of his most famous car chase scenes was in the 1968 film Bullitt.

The car is being sold by Michael Regalia, who bought the car in 1997 and had it restored to its original condition, a process that took 4,000 hours of work, according to Christie's.

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