Batmobiles from Movies and TV
written by: daveAbout this Guide
A pictoral guide to the various batmobiles from the TV show and movies.
Step 1: The TV Show
The TV Show Batmobile was based on a concept car called the Lincoln Futura (pictured bottom right) that never saw full scale production. Supposedly it cost over $250k.
According to myth, George Barris, the man who was commissioned to build a batmobile for the new ABC show, only had 3 weeks to put it together and is the reason his car is virtually unchanged from the Futura.
Step 2: Keaton Era Movies
The Keaton era batmobile went into a different direction trading the bubble top for a jet propulsion system that was more fantastic then pratical. Several scenes had the new batmobile featuring an armor plated protection system because hey... chicks dig the car. It supposedly had a 0-60 time of 3.7 secs with an amazing 1,500 pounds of thrust.
Step 3: Batman Forever
With Batman leaving the moody darkness of Tim Burton and into the bright Gotham of Jerry Bruckheimer, the Batman Forever batmobile also got a dash of color. Featuring illuminated hubcaps and a weblike frame, the new batmobile was more strange then scary. Then again, this car was partnering with a new batman suit that I believe had nipples, though that may have been the later Clooney disaster.
Step 4: Batman and Robin
Bruckheimer chose to change the batmobile again with his new lead, George Clooney. The Batman and Robin batmobile featured a razorlike, sharp styling as opposed to the round nature of the previous cars. It was powered by a Chevy 350 ZZ3 motor and had a top speed of 350 mph when the afterburners were spouting out their 6-foot flame.
Step 5: Batman Begins
My personal favorite batmobile is the most recent. Dubbed the Tumbler it was likely inspired by Frank Miller's tank like batmobiles in his Dark Knight Returns series of comic books. A welcome twist was the ability for the driver to shift in between casual driving and jump mode.
