Steve McQueen's 1967 Ferrari 275 GTB/4 races to auction for around $8 million

When Steve McQueen piloted the now legendary Highland Green colored 1968 Ford Mustang GT in "Bullitt," it's entirely possible that the man nicknamed "King of Cool" was dreaming of another car: A brand-new 1967 Ferrari 275 GTB/4, a car he took delivery of during filming and one that will soon hit the auction blocks with an expected sale price of around $8 million.

When McQueen placed his order for the car in 1967, while filming "The Thomas Crown Affair," he had a few special requests: He wanted the original Nocciola paintwork – a metallic gold coloring – replaced with Chianti Red; for the five years McQueen owned the car, it was the only Ferrari in his collection – it had to be red, right? He also demanded a custom-designed driver's wing mirror, a retractable radio antenna and special seat trim.

But it was the wheels that appeared to peeve him the most; when the GTB/4 was introduced at the Paris auto show in the fall of 1966, it was the first Ferrari to ditch the traditional wire wheels. McQueen replaced the standard rims with a set of his own Borrani wire wheels from his beloved – and sadly crashed – Ferrari 275 GTB N.A.R.T Spyder.

Built by Scaglietti, an Italian coachbuilder situated across the street from Ferrari's Maranello headquarters, the 275 GTB/4 featured a four-cam, 3.3-liter V-12 engine boasting around 300 hp. It wasn't as rare as McQueen's original 275 N.A.R.T Spyder, where just ten were built between 1967 and 1968; and in today's market, it isn't quite as valuable as the 275's predecessor, the Ferrari 250 GTO – recently selling for a record $52 million.

But with the name McQueen etched as chassis number 10621's first owner – and with it later being sold to actor Guy Williams from "Zorro" and "Lost in Space" as well as spending time at Ferrari's own museum before the Prancing Horse's "Classiche" department restored it back to McQueen's exact spec – when it crosses RM Auctions' flagship block in Monterey on August 15-16, it's sure to be one of the star attractions.