Did McQueen do a lot of hte stunt driving ofthte Mustang himself?
He started to but was convinced to stop so the story goes.
Stunt driving is a totally different subject from auto racing. A stunt driver double did most of it in the Mustang.
Bill Hickman was the actual driver of the Charger and was also an actor. He is the one that Gene Hackman blows away at the very end of The French connection. He also drove the car chasing the subway under the EL line in NYC in that movie. He also drives the Pontiac that Roy Scheider chases in the Seven Ups. Phil D’Antoni got him for all three films.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Hickman
He was driving right behind James Dean when he had his fatal crash.
If you watch closely, he’s also in a scene with George C. Scott in Patton.