Batmobile gets a Very Un-Hollywood Makeover from the World’s Aspiring Car Designers

In the annals of superhero-dom, one of the most beloved and theatrically successful is Batman. Born in the late 1930’s, this iconic figure has survived many a war, the advent of television, VHS and DVD and even Joel Schumacher. Whether your allegiances lie with Adam West, Michael Keaton or Christian Bale, you have to admit the caped crusader has done incredibly well for himself.

So ask yourself: where would the dark knight be without his car? Unlike Superman (who can fly) or Spiderman (who can shoot webs from his wrists), Batman relies on a good ol’ fashioned automobile to get him from A to B. From the Barris-ified Ford Futura of the ‘60s (read about our drive here) to the nigh-indestructible Tumbler of the Chris Nolan Batman films, the Batmobile is as much a part of the series as the hood and the cape.

Read more »

Holy Bat Race! To the Batmobile, Carscoop!

Since the beginnings of hot-rodding and customization, the world of modifying cars has been a realm in which car fans could express themselves in an almost uncountable number of ways. It plays host to a broad spectrum of possibilities; ranging from minor appearance items like headlight eyelashes and spoilers to fully coach-built supercars like James Glickenhaus's Ferrari P4/5 and Michael Stoschek's recent tribute to Lancia's Stratos, it's a vast space filled with five-dollar accessories, million dollar showboats, and everything in between.

Residing in that enormous region of "in-between" is a small company called Fiberglass Freaks in Logansport, Indiana, but they're not your average car shop. In fact, you could say they're one-of-a-kind.

Owned and operated by Mark Racop (the "what guy") and Jeff Sandberg (the "how guy"), and staffed by six full-time and eight part-time employees, Fiberglass Freaks is much like Harley Davidson; they sell dreams. In the case of this unassuming small-town Indiana garage, however, they're giving people the opportunity to own a real 1966 Batmobile.

Read more »

Nanananannanana...Preview of our 1966 Batmobile Trip in Indiana

Initially we were going to bring you a teaser of our trip up to Logansport, Indiana on Thanksgiving (in case you weren't following the trip live) to check out the first ever officially licensed replicas of the 1966 Batmobile. However, as tends to happen with family holidays, everything went s(l)ideways. Now that the time is available, we've got a little something for you while we wrap up the full shebang.

Check back later in the week for the full story of how one man went from collegiate filmmaker to official Batmobile builder. Until then, enjoy a few pics below.

Read more »

To the Batmobile! Follow our trip up to Hoosier country as we attempt to get all Adam West on your Thanksgiving

[Updated] A few weeks ago, John - the head honcho here at Carscoop and the one who administratively appears once in a while in the comments - sent me an email about a company building officially licensed replicas of the 1966 Batmobile up in Indiana. Naturally, we decided that there'd be some sort of story in there, and naturally, I had to find someone who was doing even less than I was to come along (for this trip, that'll be my friend...let's call him Mike).

Now, after weeks of back and forth and figuring out the timing, we're on our way to go get some sit-down time with the people of Fiberglass Freaks. You see, they're the people behind these DC-licensed replicas, and word is they've just completed another example. That means it's time to hit the road with us as we head up to Indy and beyond to see what it's like to build these (potentially) big-block Batmobiles.

Read more »

Canadian 1966 Batmobile Replica Commands Audi R8 Money

Last week, Carscoop asked you what your favorite TV or movie car was. Many of you expressed a fondness for the Lincoln Futura-based Batmobile used in the Adam West TV series of the late 1960s.

One of our readers tipped us off to this sweet, '66 Batmobile replica in Saint-Eustache, Quebec. You'll no longer be the "uncool dad" when you drop your kids off at school in this baby, old chum.

Read more »

The French Tumbler: Peugeot's EX1 340HP EV Concept Revealed Ahead of Paris Show

As a celebration of the marque's 200th anniversary, Peugeot has created a new concept car called the EX1 that will have its world premiere at the Mondial de l'automobile 2010 in Paris later this month.

Our first though upon seeing the all-electric prototype was that of a futuristic and nifty-looking successor to Batman's Tumbler from the Christopher Nolan films. Peugeot's thoughts are that of an "extreme dream car" which demonstrates the "exciting possibilities for electric power".

Read more »

Carscoop Asks: What’s Your Favourite TV or Movie Car?

Whether you're a fan of Adam West or Roger Moore, you have to admit: cars and television go together well.

The Saint had the Volvo P1800. The Dukes wreaked havoc with the General Lee. The Caped Crusader and his sidekick did the "vra-vra-vroom" in the Batmobile. The Hoff had the Knight Industries Two Thousand (a personal favorite, if only for Will Daniels' quips).

Heck, some of these cars are more loved and remembered than the stars that drove them. Except maybe for David Hasslehoff. I hear he's big in Germany.

Read more »

Street Legal Batmobile Replica from Tim Burton Films found for Sale [with Videos]

Perhaps the second best-known Batmobile after George Barris' iconic 1966 Lincoln Futura conversion from the Batman TV series is the Anton Furst Batmobile from Tim Burton's 1989 Batman and 1992 Batman Returns films. We found a rather convincing replica of that car for sale on eBay.

Not only is this example of the 1990s Batmobile nice-looking, it's also street legal - at least in the State of Ohio where the seller is based. The Bat-winged replica was built by a company named "Putsch Racing" and it makes use of a tube frame chassis with a Corvette drive-train and an independent suspension.

It comes equipped with a canopy that opens and is fitted with various gizmos including retractable machine guns that fire blanks. Hit the jump for more photos and videos of the car in motion.

Read more »

If Batman Drove a Bimmer... BMW Concept X9 Concept by Khalfi Oussama

If the Dark Knight ever wanted to ditch the Tumbler for something a bit more snazzy, Khalfi Oussama's BMW-badged X9 Concept would be a prime candidate for the job - preferably in a matter black finish. The 18-year old designer from Tunisia did not attach any information about the X9 Concept, but feel free to check out the rest of the pictures and have you say in the comments section after the jump.

Read more »

Holy Yaris! Dark Knight Downsizes to Toyota Batmobile

Blame the sluggish economy or the public's increasing environmental conscience, but lately we're seeing a lot of Batman-wannabes trending towards drastically downsized rides like this barely recognizable [...] after its transformation, Toyota Yaris Batmobile. Check out the rest of the photos of this caped crusader's disturbingly wacky ride in the gallery after the jump.

Read more »

1966 Batmobile Replica Comes Under the Hammer at Auction

Yet another wannabe replica of the most iconic and distinctive film cars of all time, the 1960s era Batmobile, is going up for sale at the inaugural Historics at Brooklands auction in Surrey on June 2.

This particular example is based on a 1973 Lincoln Continental chassis and was completed in 1988, following input from well-known custom coachbuilder, Bill Chaplin.

But even though the 1966 Batmobile replica incorporates all the styling cues and Batman paraphernalia including an in-dashboard television, rear parachute pod, boot mounted exhaust pipes and Batphone, it's obvious that the car isn't a faithful replica of the original George Barris car that stared in the 1960s Batman and Robin TV series.

Read more »

Holy Rover! 1980's Metro Ad Featuring Batman and Robin

The Rover, MG Rover, Austin and whatever other brand the Metro was sold under, was a forgettable mini that wasn't taken very seriously, even by the company that made it. This may explain this late 1980s-early 1990s advertisement spoofing the 1966 Adam West-era Batman and Robin TV series.

The one-minute long commercial shows the dynamic duo swapping their funky 1960s Batmobile for the British mini because "it's rush hour in Gotham city and the Batmobile is big"...

The ad ends with the message, "When you got to.... pick up a penguin, Metro gets you going." Holy priceless collection of Etruscan snoods.... Enjoy the video after the break.

Alfred, to the Bat...Limo: Bruce Wayne's Alternative Ride

We never knew that the Batmobile also came in limousine form - obviously neither does Batman or the creators of the fictional character but that's beside the point. The limo is inspired from the Batmobile that was featured in the 1989 and 1992 Batman films directed by Tim Burton. You can see more pictures of the BatLimo as well as a video that we discovered on Youtube after the jump.

Via: Autogespot and Chickslovethecar

_______________________________________________________________

eBay Find: Worst Batmobile Replica Ever?

There are replicas and there are replicas. Some of the custom-made Batmobiles that we've shown you here on Carscoop such as this example from Sweden are awesome, others like this one, not so much, and then there is this replica that we found on eBay Motors. If not the worst (don't forget, there's always room for improvement...), this has to be one of the most nastiest and tasteless attempts to recreate a Batmobile that we've ever had the misfortune to lay our eyes on.

The Batmobile was crafted by a Greek designer in Germany who goes by the name 'Koon'. It based upon a 1984 Ford Granada while worthy points of notice include the electric circular saw blade up front and the... miniature Batcycle of some type located on the trunk.

Link: eBay

Swede Creates Amazing Batmobile Replica, Cost Over $1 Million and Took 20,000 Man-Hours to Build!

A diligent Swede with more money to spend than Bruce Wayne himself and more free time to spare than a death row inmate has reportedly invested around $1 million US (we've no idea how this number came up) and about 20,000 man-hours to create this amazing real-life replica of the Batmobile that was featured in the 1989 and 1992 Batman films directed by Tim Burton.

The matte black Batmobile is said to be based on a 1973 Lincoln Continental chassis and is equipped with numerous gadgets and features including rear-view video cameras, a plasma screen TV, voice recognition controls, a height-adjustable suspension, satellite navigation system and a DVD player.

To be completely honest, a million dollars even for a working replica sounds a wee too much. But if true, we reckon that the Joke(er) is on the Swede as original Batmobiles such as an example from the 1989 Batman Movie, the 1995 Batman Forever film and even the most sought after Batmobile from the 1960s TV series (click the respective links for details) have changed hands over the past few years for a fraction of that price...

Via: Jalopnik & Bilfeber