Created by George Barris – learn more. Weighing 5500 pounds and powered by a 429 Ford Race engine, the front of the car has been fabricated to resemble the face of a bat with the hood scoop extending down to accentuate the nose and the headlights become the eyes and extend to the ears.
In addition, the vehicles have a V-8 Chevrolet engine, components of a Rolls-Royce jet engine for the hood-mounted intake, and a British Herrier fighter jet utilized for the turbine blades in the nosepiece.
This matt-black weapon was notable for its front-mounted turbine front and simple yet potent gadgets. The production team spliced together two Impala chassis' and inserted a Chevy V8 powerplant to build this Batmobile.
The series chose the 1939 Cadillac Series 75 convertible as the first Batmobile car, originally designed by Harley Earl of General Motors. As it was a car designed for the general public, there were barely any modifications or gadgets included.
(There are even more detailed in published accounts, dating back to 1939 when Batman made his first comic book appearance.) But for purists, there is only one true Batmobile. The rest are just imitations of the original. What we have come to recognize in popular culture as the Batmobile was built in 1966.
The original Batmobile, custom made for the 1960s television show staring Adam West, sold at auction for $4.2 million on Saturday. The red-trimmed vehicle, created and sold by 'King of Kustomizers' George Barris, went after a bidding war at a Scottsdale, Ariz., auction held by car collector auctioneers Barrett-Jackson.
The Batmobile weighed an incredible 5,500 lbs., due to its all-steel body. It was powered by a 390 cu. in. V8 engine with a three-speed automatic transmission.
Created by George Barris – learn more. Weighing 5500 pounds and powered by a 429 Ford Race engine, the front of the car has been fabricated to resemble the face of a bat with the hood scoop extending down to accentuate the nose and the headlights become the eyes and extend to the ears.
The Batmobile's boost thrusters can push its speed to 350 miles per hour for a short duration. A new Batmobile model, the Bat-Bolt, is introduced in the story, surpassing the speed capabilities of the regular Batmobile.
Special effects supervisor Dominic Tuohy outfitted the Batmobile with a 627-horsepower Chevy V-8 engine. In the spirit of his DIY Batman, Pattinson did much of the stunt driving himself; according to Chinlund, he pushed it to “top speeds” of up to 100 mph.
The book states that the Batmobile's five-cylinder engine is more powerful than turbine jet engines, and capable of achieving up to 10,000 horsepower (7,500 kW). In the 2009 series Batman and Robin, a new Batmobile is unveiled. This model is capable of flight, although is not as maneuverable as the Batwing.
This morning, I was forwarded an email from a reader who had broken down nearly every aspect of the new Batmobile from The Batman. In his incredibly nerdy and detailed YouTube video, Josh White worked to identify everything from the body to the (two) engines to the make and model of the seats.
It doesn't look like there are any gas pumps inside the Batcave. And it would be pretty ridiculous if Batman just pulled the Batmobile up to a gas station and started filling up. But the fact Batman identifies the 14th gas tank explains a lot. This means that the Batmobile doesn't need to fill up like a regular car.
In modern times, standard Batmobile equipment includes bulletproof wind-shields, ejector seats, automatic/voice-controlled pilot systems, radio links to the Batcave and Oracle, a customized GPS system, anti-theft devices, and infrared vision to allow stealth driving.
What was the highest price paid for the Batmobile?
Hosted at the Barrett-Jackson classic car auction in Scottsdale, Arizona, on 19 January 2013, businessman Rick Champagne's winning bid of $4.6 million (more than R84 million by today's money) secured his ownership of the original Batmobile.
The Batmobile used by actor Adam West in the original TV series of Batman has sold for $4.2m (£2.6m) at a US auction. The car was bought by Rick Champagne, a logistics company owner from Phoenix, Arizona. The 56-year-old, who was just 10 when the high-camp TV series began in 1966, said it "was a dream come true".
The Batmobiles built for the series were never bought by ABC but became the possession of their creator, George Barris who rented them out around the country. The first and second car are still owned by George Barris. The third car is on exhibit in a Gatlinburg, Tennessee museum (along with the Batcycle).
What did the Batmobile sell for on Barrett-Jackson?
The original 1955 Lincoln Futura concept—that George Barris turned into the Batmobile for the TV show—sold at the Barrett-Jackson auction in Scottdale, Ariz., on Jan. 19 for a final price of $4.62 million, not including fees.
Subsequently four replica cars were made for filming so five in total, the original always remaining the property of George Barris. The original car cost around thirty thousand dollars to make and couldn't reach speeds faster than 45mph therefore, the footage of the car driving was sped up in production.
