First Official Batmobile Up For Auction

We know why you're here. The moment you read a headline offering the chance to buy a Batmobile - the very first Batmobile - we knew you'd click. Not because you're easily manipulated, but because you recognise the deal of a lifetime. 

Predating the flamboyant film models and William M. Schmidt's camp open top design of the 1960's TV series, the car up for auction is the "63 Batmobile". Based on the Batmobile of the DC Batman comics of the 1940's and 1950's, this sleek curving ride was customised by 23-year-old Forrest Robinson in 1963. Built with a friend in his family's barn, Robinson's car is the earliest known model to be officially licenced as a Batmobile by DC. 

Built around a 1956 Oldsmobile 88 chassis and a 324 Rocket engine, Robinson added a dorsal fin, bat-nose front end and pocket sliding doors - extending the car to a head-turning 5 metres in length. Having initially been used for promoting a DC ice cream label, the arrival of multiple replicas of the better-known Batmobile from ABC's TV series saw Robinson's model fade into obscurity. He eventually sold it for $200, and the car soon ended up rusting in a field.

Rediscovered in 2008, the carefully refurbished model is set to be auctioned by Heritage Auctions on 6 December. Expected to fetch £115,000, only real-life Bruce Waynes will be able to drive this one away. 

(Images: Heritage Auctions)

[Via: High Snobiety]