Here’s One Last Look at Original KITT Car, With David Hasselhoff at the Wheel

Because no Hoff-centric event is complete without mentioning his most famous work, the show that literally put him on the map, Knight Rider, he brought along the original KITT car. Knight Rider originally aired on NBC between 1982 and 1986, with Hasselhoff playing Michael Knight, a crime fighter who gets the most unlikely partner for that time: a self-aware, AI-equipped, indestructible, talking car named KITT (Knight Industries Two Thousand).

Based on a 1982 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am, the KITT car remains, to this day, one of the most iconic vehicles ever to grace the small—or big—screen. Hasselhoff was the leading man of the Knight Rider series, but the KITT car legitimately became his partner and co-star, and almost a big a star as he is.

In January this year, The Hoff announced an auction of a personal collection, and it included, among other awesome or downright creepy stuff (here’s looking at you, “Big Dave” from The SpongeBob SquarePants movie!), the KITT car. When we covered the news, bidding had already reached $475,000, but strangely enough, the listing now mentions the selling price as $300,000.

Earlier this week, during his appearance on The Kelly Clarkson Show, The Hoff drove in the KITT and talked about it as if still available. Whatever the case, this is probably the fans’ last proper look at the iconic vehicle in motion—so make sure to check out the video at the bottom of the page. As a side note, Kelly didn’t do half bad herself, driving up in a gorgeous vintage Pontiac with the roof down. It’s no KITT, but it is gorgeous nonetheless.

The Hoff spoke about how his auctions raise money for charity, how far ahead of its time KITT was, and, for that matter, how it was able to “predict” automotive trends of today. He’s referring to driver-assist technologies and the part in which a car “talks” to the driver. He also spoke about doing most of his own stunts in the car. Best of all, we get plenty of sweeping, quite cinematic shots of KITT from all sides, including several quick looks at the interior.

Whether KITT was sold in January or is maybe about to cross the auction block again, this is quite a fitting goodbye for fans. Unless, of course, it ends up in a museum.