Home | About | Book | Cars | Cast & Crew | Collection | Contact Us | FAQs | Links | Songs | Stage Musical | Story

The Cars

There were a number of cars constructed for the film. I have received many kind e-mails over the years from Chitty fans around the world. Since some of these e-mails have provided conflicting information, so what follows is a brief summary and some pictures of the various versions, along with first-hand information that I have gathered regarding Chittys 1, 2, and 3. Click thumbnail pictures for a larger version.

According to its website, two cars are owned by the Cars of the Stars Museum in Keswick, England.

If you have corrections to this information, please contact us.

Chitty #1:

Pierre Picton's car photographed in London, May 2001.

The car used for most of the driving sequences was previously owned by Pierre Picton. Click here to visit his Web site. It was recently shipped to the United States, where Profiles in History sold it at auction to an anonymous buyer. There was a story on the SyFy show "Hollywood Treasure" about the auction company staff's visit with Pierre and the subsequent auction.

It was the only one registered with the number plate GEN 11 and it also has wings which were added for promotional purposes in 1968. Mr. Picton purchased it from MGM.

Chitty #2:

 
Here I am in another Chitty, identifiable by the aluminum exhaust and simulated brass radiator surround. Both of these pictures were taken on February 14, 2005, the day that box office sales opened for the Broadway production.

Here is another view of what I believe is the same Chitty, while on tour in the United States in 1998...absolutely identifiable by the aluminum (not brass) radiator surround.

This "all aluminum" model, never floated. This was used primarily for scenes when the car is trapped by the tide. The aluminum features were to keep costs down and to avoid the tarnishing of the brass by sea-water. It appears on screen for less than 30 seconds! Because it looked so different, they didn't end up using the transition scenes using this car. Instead, they re-shot these in the pool at Pinewood Studios using another Chitty.

This car was also driven in the 2004 Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. It is still owned by MGM and is used for promotional purposes.

Chitty #3:

This Chitty was part of the "Cavalcade of Cars" exhibit at the (now closed) Gaslight Village Amusement Park in Lake George, New York. (see photo above)

It was definitely used in the scene at the end of the film when Chitty takes off from Vulgaria.

In 1990 it was sold at auction to a man in Chicago, where it was on display in his restaurant until it went bankrupt. Here is the text of an article from the time of that sale:

USA TODAY, August 21, 1990

Commuter's Dream: The four-wheeled star of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, the 1968 movie, is expected to sell for more than $250,000 at the giant Kruse International Auburn '90 car auction, Aug 30-Sept 4. in Auburn, Indiana. This is the winged version--one of two models used in the filming (the non-winged version sold in 1987 for $105,000). It had been displayed at a Lake George, NY., amusement park since 1975. The car doesn't actually fly, but it comes with wax models of Dick Van Dyke, Sally Ann Howes, and two children, which you can use to sneak into the car pool lanes during rush hour.

It was sold at a Kruse auction again in 2007 and was purchased by a collector in Jacksonville, Florida. I saw the car in person in 2010, and it was being restored. It still has the wings and propellers, and the wings unfold and the propellers unfold and turn with power from an electric battery.

Chitty #4:

A formal portrait of another Chitty, complete with wings and picnic basket.

Another Chitty is now owned by Anthony Bamford (of JCB auto fame) was the "trailer" car and the "in studio" floating and flying car in the movie. It was also used in the scenes shot in Bavaria. Pierre Picton owned this until the late 1970's. He fitted an engine into it. The panels on the bonnet aren't hinged, they are painted and the bonnet lifts off in one unit. He also adapted the car for use in a clown and ice show act. When filming driving sequences close ups are impossible with two moving vehicles. For this reason, this Chitty sat on a trailer attached to the back of another vehicle on which the cameras were mounted. This was only used for the extreme close-ups when you only see the windscreen and surrounds. On these shots it's noticeable that this car is slightly smaller and the steering wheel sits much higher.

Chitty #5:

Here is yet another Chitty...
notice the vertical bars behind the radiator grill.

This car's radiator grill run vertically (from top to bottom) in contrast to the horizontal support bars on the other cars. She appears in 2 scenes. The first where Lord Scrumptious is driving behind Chitty hooting the horn, right before being captured by the spies. The only other scene this car appears in is the scene where the car descends the red staircase before leaving Vulgaria.

Chitty #6:

Another Chitty was a model with no chassis, mounted permanently on a flotilla which was seaworthy. A driver sat below the bonnet and steered the craft. It does not appear to have survived after filming, although parts from it crop up here and there. It is likely that the Chitty headlamp that was previously displayed at the Planet Hollywood restaurant in Washington, D.C. is from this model.

Other Chittys?

And finally, there are often questions about the racing car from the opening sequence of the film and the wreck that the children play in. I do not know if these are one and the same, but it is my understanding that the racing car still exists.

Top