Inspired by the same two undercover NYC detectives that also inspired the film The Super Cops (1974).
Ford Motor Company actually marketed around 1,000 special edition Gran Torino hardtops during the 1976 model year with the Starsky and Hutch paint job - the shape of the white stripe was not the same as the TV cars; sadly, the Torino was redesigned for 1977 as the LTD II, with the station wagon the only sole survivor.
The producer actually wanted to use a green and white Camaro instead of the red and white Ford Torino but the Chevy company were unable to help them.
Huggy Bear's last name is Brown.
Producer Aaron Spelling wrote that he and the other producers liked to refer to this as TV's first heterosexual love affair.