Holy Car Auction Batman!

[Hum]

The Batmobile used in the 1960s Batman TV series is expected to go up for auction in January, the Barrett Jackson auto auction house said Thursday.

The car could sell for millions, said Craig Jackson, chief executive of the auction firm.

But Hollywood cars don't always command such high prices. Often there are multiple versions created for different types of shots and for promotional use, making it hard to to say that one car is definitively "the car."

Unlike most TV show cars, the Batmobile really is a singular creation. While there have been many imitations, this really is the only original.

The Batmobile started life as the Ford Motor Co.'s 1955 Lincoln Futura concept car which, itself, was based on a Lincoln Mark II. Besides its pearl white paint job, the Futura actually looked very much like the Batmobile it would become over a decade later.

Famed car customizer George Barris -- also known for creating the Munster Koach for the The Munsters and the Beverly Hillbillies' car -- was tasked with creating the Batmobile in 1966. With a tight deadline, he decided that modifying the Futura, rather than starting from scratch, was the way to go.

On television the Batmobile's technology allowed it to shoot flames, squirt oil and shoot tire slashers, but the car is not actually designed to do any of that.

Barris has been the sole owner of the Batmobile since he created it for the TV show.

Unlike the Aston Martin's multi-million dollar price tag, Jonathan Klinger, with the collector car insurance firm Hagerty Insurance, thinks the Batmobile will probably sell for a few hundred thousand dollars. The trouble, he said, is that there are so many very good Batmobile replicas around.

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[Growled Member]

If I had a few million dollars lying around, I would buy this. It would be so cool to own the real Batmobile.

[IICODECll]

That's awesome! Just the other week I was walking to through the center of town where I saw a replica 1960s Batmobile. I could only imagine the level of craftsmanship the real one has.

[_neutrino Veteran]

where is a nigerian scammer when i need them. I could take their monies and buy the batmobile.