David Hasselhoff not only played the lead Michael Knight but also portrayed Garthe Knight, Wilton Knight's estranged criminal son who drives a rocket-armed semi-truck named Goliath.

William Daniels voiced KITT while simultaneously starring on St. Elsewhere, and he requested not to be credited for his role as KITT's voice.

The character of Dr. Bonnie Barstow was dropped after season one but was brought back for season three due to strong fan reaction and lobbying by David Hasselhoff and Edward Mulhare.

The customized 1982 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am used as KITT cost about $100,000 to build, and its ride height was dropped 1.5 inches from a stock Trans Am.

Only the principal studio car had the intricate functioning dashboard; a mock-up dashboard was used on a sound stage for close-ups, and some stunt cars had dummy dashboards with fake electronic displays shot to avoid revealing this to viewers.

For scenes where KITT appeared to drive without a driver, stuntman Jack Gill hid behind the driver's seat and extended his arms and legs through it, concealed by a two-way mirror.

William Daniels recorded KITT's dialogue after most of an episode was filmed; on set, an assistant read KITT's lines to Hasselhoff off-camera, or through the car stereo if KITT was in motion, and the vehicle was usually towed during driving scenes.

Pontiac supplied the studio cars for just $1 apiece, though many were vehicles already damaged from a train derailment; the only car Universal actually paid for was the principal car.

Creator Glen Larson wanted the car to have a 'heartbeat' and asked design consultant Michael Scheffe to create a scanning light beam on the front like the Cylons from Battlestar Galactica, leading to the Pontiac's nose being slightly extended.

The Knight Rider Theme was composed by Stu Phillips and Glen A. Larson, with Larson stating he drew inspiration from Léo Delibes' classical piece 'Marche Et Cortège De Bacchus' from Sylvia; the decision to use synthesizers was largely imposed by the network.

The Knight Rider theme has been sampled in several songs, including Timbaland & Magoo's 'Clock Strikes,' Busta Rhymes' 'Turn It Up (Remix)/Fire It Up,' and Panjabi MC's 'Mundian To Bach Ke.'

Despite being panned by critics during its original run—with Rotten Tomatoes giving season one a 33% score—retrospective reviews have been far more positive, with Entertainment Weekly calling it 'a relic from a simpler time.'