Chitty Chitty Bang Bang is a fictional vintage-style racing and touring car created for the 1968 film and based on a car from Ian Fleming’s book. The screen car itself was a custom-built vehicle made to look like an Edwardian- era car rather than a specific production model.
Fictional car in the story
In the book and film, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang is portrayed as an early 20th- century open touring and racing car with magical abilities like flying and turning into a boat. The design blends elements of pre–World War I racing cars and period touring cars to give it a distinctive Edwardian look.
Real movie car construction
For the movie, the main drivable Chitty was built on a custom chassis with a Ford V6 engine, wooden “boat tail” rear deck, and vintage-style brass fittings to resemble a 1910s–1920s racing car. Multiple non-driving props and stunt versions were also made, all styled to match the same fictional “Chitty Chitty Bang Bang” rather than any single real-world car.