The auction house Mecum, known for selling collector cars and other vehicles, said it will offer a 1931 Harley Davidson VL 74 motorcycle, once owned by the late actor Steve McQueen. The bike will cross the block during Mecum’s inaugural Celebrity Items Auction, July 26-27, in Santa Monica, California.
McQueen, sometimes called the King of Cool, was known for his love of cars, motorcycles and racing. A number of his former vehicles, from a Ferrari 250 GT Lusso to a Husqvarna 400 Cross off-road motorcycle, have fetched many times their estimated value in auctions during the past decade.
The ’31 Harley-Davidson was part of the actor’s collection, awaiting restoration when he was diagnosed with cancer in 1979. McQueen died about a year later. The bike has since been restored in what the auction house described as a “period-correct color combination of red, black and gold.”
