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This Sweet Steve McQueen-Owned Off-Road Moto Is Yours for the Bidding

The bike carries not only Hollywood icon status but also endures as a coveted piece of off-road racing history.

Close-up of a Husqvarna motorcycle engine with black casing and a round silver air filter labeled "G.P Winning Replica.Bonhams
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By Steve Mazzucchi

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While these days, our silver screen legends seem to be more interested in flying (and sometimes crashing) airplanes, there was a time when some of our biggest stars actively raced cars and motorcycles.

One that jumps to mind is Paul Newman, who won four national championships as a driver despite not starting till age 47.

Vintage Husqvarna dirt bike with red fuel tank, black seat, and knobby tires on a white background.
This bike is so impressively well-preserved, you’d never guess it’s more than half a century old.
Bonhams

The other is Steve McQueen, who reached the podium at the 1961 British Touring Car Championship and the 1970 12 Hours of Sebring, among other feats.

He was just as passionate about off-road motorcycle racing, which makes the news of a 1972 Husqvarna 250cc motocross bike he once owned hitting the auction block so exciting.

How Swede it is

McQueen’s off-road moto accomplishments could fill a book, but highlights including competing in the Baja 1000 and the International Six Days Trial.

He also moto-ed on the cover of Sports Illustrated (plus many a DVD copy of The Great Escape) and earned a place in the Off-Road Motorsports Hall of Fame.  

Vintage Husqvarna dirt bike with red fuel tank, black seat, and knobby tires on a white background.
Motos like this one helped prove that smaller, lighter dirt bikes can be desert racing superstars.
Bonhams

Fun fact: to evade preventive Hollywood insurance contracts, he raced under the incredible pseudonym “Harvey Mushman.”

Even so, his Hollywood and two-wheeled lives were inextricably intertwined, as evidenced by the fact he bought this 1972 Husqvarna 250cc Motocrosser through his film shingle, Solar Productions.

Close-up of a vintage Husqvarna motorcycle engine with a red fuel tank and a circular silver air filter cover labeled "G.P. Winning Replica.
Though McQueen was a pretty nontraditional star, I still like to think he appreciated this gas tank’s incidental mirror.
Bonhams

As RideApart writer Justin W Coffey points out, that company helped fund On Any Sunday, the Oscar-nominated 1971 doc that showcased many perspectives on motorcycling, including McQueen’s own. 

But I digress. 

Red fuel tank with black cap and white label reading "Only use Vegetable 'RACING OIL' Mixing Ratio 1:20
Now you have no excuse for not knowing any better.
Bonhams

McQueen’s love for Husqvarna helped legitimize Sweden’s historic brand, one of a few true believers who proved these lightweight two strokes were in fact more qualified for desert racing than heavier modified road bikes popular at the time.

Riding a 1970 Husqvarna 400 Cross in the closing beach sequence of On Any Sunday certainly raised the brand’s profile, as did his predilection for ripping around on 250s like this one.

Close-up of a motorcycle rear wheel with knobby tire, silver sprocket, black chain, black shock absorber, and green circular cover.
Compared to the body, these tires look pretty fresh, perfectly primed to rip. Let’s fire it up already, huh?
Bonhams

While it looks close to mint at a glance, a closer look reveals it has definitely ventured far off the beaten path. 

As far as McQueen fans are concerned, the more miles the King of Cool put on this bike, the better.

Availability and pricing

The Ex-Steve McQueen, 1972 Husqvarna 250cc Motocrosser hits the auction block at the Classic Motorcycle Mechanics Show in Stafford, England on October 11.

While there’s no reserve, the Bonhams estimate is £30,000 to £50,000 ($40,000 to $67,000).

Vintage Husqvarna dirt bike with red fuel tank, black seat, and knobby tires on a white background.Bonhams

The Ex-Steve McQueen, 1972 Husqvarna 250cc Motocrosser

About the Author:

Now managing editor, Steve has served in a variety of roles with GP since 2019. Having previously written and edited for such publications as Men’s Health, Men’s Journal, Esquire and ESPN, he enjoys covering a range of topics — but mostly those pertaining to cycling, snow sports, pocket knives and motos — and dreams of a utopian world in which everyone’s bike seat is at the proper height.

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