Original 1966 Batmobile Heading to Barrett-Jackson Auction
The original 1966 Batmobile is heading to the Barrett-Jackson auction in Scottsdale, Ariz. in January.
It will mark the first time the legendary television star car will be sold, seen in the live-action TV series Batman, as well as the movie adaptation that starred Adam West. The car will hit the auction block on January 19th and will finally leave Barris’ possession since he bought it from Ford back in 1965.
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The original Batmobile was built on an original, one-off 1955 Lincoln Futura concept car that featured a 19-foot long, two-seater, bubbled-topped grand touring body. The entire vehicle was hand-built by Ghia Body Works in Turin, Italy back in 1954 and was originally unveiled at the 1955 Chicago Auto Show. It wasn’t until late 1965 that Barris was contacted to produce a Batmobile for the upcoming TV series – which is the original and most iconic one you see here.
The Batmobile is powered by a 390-in 1956 Lincoln V8 engine mated to a B&M Hydro Automatic transmission.
“There are only a few things in life that are able to capture the soul of an era and the Batmobile by George Barris did exactly that,” said Steve Davis, President of Barrett-Jackson. “There are the real fans that will strongly advocate, till this day, that coming home to watch the Batmobile soar out of the Batcave defines a lot of their first childhood memories. Whether you’re a car collector, entertainment enthusiast, or an average Joe looking to buy his dream car, you’re going to want to witness history being made in January with the sale of this car.”
GALLERY: Original 1966 Batmobile
Jason Siu began his career in automotive journalism in 2003 with Modified Magazine, a property previously held by VerticalScope. As the West Coast Editor, he played a pivotal role while also extending his expertise to Modified Luxury & Exotics and Modified Mustangs. Beyond his editorial work, Jason authored two notable Cartech books. His tenure at AutoGuide.com saw him immersed in the daily news cycle, yet his passion for hands-on evaluation led him to focus on testing and product reviews, offering well-rounded recommendations to AutoGuide readers. Currently, as the Content Director for VerticalScope, Jason spearheads the content strategy for an array of online publications, a role that has him at the helm of ensuring quality and consistency across the board.
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