The new Batmobile - Tilted Forum Project Discussion Community

todd · 07-03-2005, 09:40 PM

Have you guys seen the new Batman mobie, Batman Begins? The new (old?) Batmobile is incredible. The best part is, this thing is a real working vehicle. Theres 4 of them, actually.

In the movie, there is a part where Christian Bale (Batman) tests the thing out in a very large warehouse. It was the best part of the movie, in my opinion. The sound the thing makes is unbelievable, especially in that warehouse.

I thought it looked like a tank with the handling of a Lamborghini...which is funny, because the CNN article below explains how it started as a cross between a Hummer and Lamborghini Countach. I see a lot more Countach than I see Hummer, though. Looks sort of like a Countach on sterioids.

CNN has an article about it:
http://money.cnn.com/2005/06/24/Auto...ex.htm?cnn=yes

Quote:

NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - If the crouching, jagged Batmobile from the movie "Batman Begins" looks to you like the offspring of a Lamborghini Countach and a Hummer, congratulations. You hit the nail on the head.

When production designer Nathan Crowley was trying to conceive the car's look, he went to a hobby shop and bought 1:12 scale models of a Lamborghini Countach and a Hummer.

Crowley cut those two models apart and combined them, dropping in the cockpit from a model of a P-38 Lightning.

"It looked awful," Crowley said. But it was a start, and it was headed in the right direction.

The concept went through several revisions before Crowley and his colleagues were satisfied that they had found the new Batmobile.

After creating each model, Crowley would photograph it. Then he used graphics software to superimpose the Batmobile's image onto photographs of New York City street scenes. Those were the closest things he could get to Gotham City at that time.

"Batman Begins" was produced by Warner Bros., which is part of Time Warner, as is CNN.com.

When he finally had a finished model, Crowley took it to car builders at England's Shepperton Studios where Chris Cobould and Andy Smith led a team that constructed the actual cars used in the film.

"They did a fantastic job," Crowley said.

He felt strongly, he said, that there had to be no compromises on the car's appearance. The finished Batmobile had to look just like the model or it wouldn't be right.

Crowley also didn't want to use any digital effects in scenes involving the car. Even the best computerized visual effects wouldn't have the gritty, realistic look he wanted, he said. That meant the car had to be fast and be fairly maneuverable.

Initially, it was thought that the hardest part of building the real car would be the front axle. Or, rather, the lack of a front axle. But its builders were able to create a strong enough front suspension based on two huge articulated arms, just like the model.

Under full acceleration, the car would actually rise up on its front "legs" while the front wheels stayed planted on the ground creating an effect like a giant spider -- a "bonus," according to Crowley.

The hardest things to get right were the tires. It took the filmmakers three months of searching to find the off-road truck tires they used for the rear wheels and the wide racing tires used on the front.

The four fully driveable Batmobiles the crew built are powered by a 340-horsepower General Motors V8 engine. Despite its tank-like appearance, the car is capable of going from zero to sixty miles an hour in 5.3 seconds, said Crowley.

The "jet engine" on the back of the car was fed by propane tanks.

There were four other Batmobiles created for the movie, as well. Two, used for scenes in which someone got into or out of the car, were powered only by electric motors. The space normally occupied by the engine was taken up, instead, by the hydraulic machinery used for the complex opening roof.

Two more Batmobiles, empty rolling shells, were shot out of huge air cannons to create leaping shots like those in which the car jumps through a waterfall into the Bat Cave.

A miniature car was used for a few scenes that couldn't be safely filmed using a full-sized vehicle.

Chase scenes through the streets and highways of Gotham City were filmed in Chicago. Although Gotham was modeled on New York -- Crowley called Bruce Wayne's hometown "New York City on steroids" -- Chicago agreed to shut off 12 blocks of the city for "Batman Begins" chase scenes.

Stunt driver George Cottle trained for months, Crowley said, taking the Batmobile for laps on a closed race track. Visibility from inside the cockpit was extremely poor, said Crowley, limited to a small area directly in front of the car. Video cameras wired to screens inside the cockpit provided views to the sides and back of the car.

For all of its capabilities, one thing the real-life Batmobile did not have was air conditioning.

"You lose a lot of weight driving that car," Crowley said.

Haha I found this too...thought it was pretty funny:
http://entertainment.channels.netsca...17095209990001

Quote:

(BANG) - Christian Bale has been banned from driving the Batmobile - after a drunk driver ploughed into him as he was driving the custom-built super car to the 'Batman Begins' Canadian premiere.

The 31-year-old actor, who plays the Caped Crusader in the movie, says the drunk motorist was so "freaked out" at seeing the mean machine cruising down a Toronto street, he crashed his car.

The star said: "One of the best parts of the job was being allowed to drive the Batmobile in public. But it was obviously very bemusing for people. This one guy saw the Batmobile and completely freaked out. He must have thought aliens were landing or something and smacked into the side of me.

"That was the last time I was allowed to drive it on a public highway."

What do you guys think about this thing? A lot of my friends said they didn't like it. They said it looked to military-like and not like something a super hero like batman would drive. I like it a lot better than the old (or I guess in the context of the movies, the new) Batmobile though.

I think it's totally awesome that this thing is 100% functional. I wonder what happens to it now?

feelgood · 07-03-2005, 10:00 PM

Probably would be auctioned off or sold to a private buyer to add to collection of rare car or rare movie collectables.

Seriously, the car looks shitty, I fail to see how it would actually evolve into the current batmobile.

todd · 07-03-2005, 10:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by feelgood

I fail to see how it would actually evolve into the current batmobile.

Maybe Batman decides he needs something smaller, quicker, and/or more stealth like. Driving a huge loud tank around isn't exactly practical, and really it's all he had available to him at the time. I could see him wanting something just more practical, so he had a new one designed specially for him. I forget how the original Batmobile came about...Did they talk much about it in the old movies? I don't remember too much from the movies period.

feelgood · 07-03-2005, 10:22 PM

Perhaps, I'd be more curious as to what the comic actually said about the first batmobile than what the old movie said.

Edit: I did some quick search, it seems that the batmobile as we know, was originally developed by the first batman tv series back in the 60's before it entered the comic book version

Link

Quote:

Originally in the comic books, Batman simply drove a simple red automobile with nothing special in its functions. The car's design gradually evolved, beginning with a bat hood ornament which became much larger while the car's paint job became black.

wikipedia on batmobile

Deuce66 · 07-23-2005, 01:11 AM

Quote:

The four fully driveable Batmobiles the crew built are powered by a 340-horsepower General Motors V8 engine. Despite its tank-like appearance, the car is capable of going from zero to sixty miles an hour in 5.3 seconds, said Crowley.

AHAHAHAHAHAHA, wow. Thats a load of crap. Even if the car itself is a lot lighter than it looks, the size/weight of the tires and the insane amount of force needed to get them spinning would put 0-60 in 5.3 seconds completely out of the realm of possibility, with 340hp. Thats possibly the stupidest thing I've heard all week.

The car WAS pretty damn cool in the movie though, however, the engine noise bothered me. Sometimes it sounded like a jet engine, and others, it sounded like a piston engine, and sometimes a combination of both. Thats silly, it would use one or the other, most likely a jet engine which could provide both torque and thrust from the same powerplant. But I guess thats hollywood for you. Bunch of hacks if you ask me.

Asuka{eve} · 07-23-2005, 11:04 AM

What about gearing?

pattycakes · 07-25-2005, 01:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by feelgood

Seriously, the car looks shitty, I fail to see how it would actually evolve into the current batmobile.

maybe they remake the bman movies witht his one

Confederate · 07-25-2005, 02:02 PM

I started this thread over a year ago
http://www.tfproject.org/tfp/showthr...ight=batmobile

Johnny Pyro · 07-25-2005, 02:03 PM

The car in Batman Begins is cool, but its not the Batmobile. I don't remember that from the comics. I just couldn't get into it. I heard though its just a prototype and the Batmobile we all love a know will surface in the sequels.

todd · 07-25-2005, 06:34 PM

They had this on Top Gear a few weeks ago. They liked it a lot. If they like it, it must be cool

They just sat it in the studio and talked about it. It would have been awesome if Clarkson had driven it.

silent_jay · 07-25-2005, 06:56 PM

I was hoping they'd let the Stig get his hands on it and do a hot lap around the Top Gear track. Would have been funny to see it go through the hammerhead turn.

reconmike · 07-28-2005, 06:35 AM

When I hear batmobile I will always think, this IS the batmobile.

Charlatan · 07-28-2005, 06:46 AM

Me too Mike...

The new one was one of the few things that bothered me about Batman Begins. The car looked a little too top heavy, like it would roll if it took a corner too fast.

07-03-2005, 10:00 PM	#2 (permalink)
feelgood Free Mars! Location: I dunno, there's white people around me saying "eh" all the time	Probably would be auctioned off or sold to a private buyer to add to collection of rare car or rare movie collectables. Seriously, the car looks shitty, I fail to see how it would actually evolve into the current batmobile. __________________ Looking out the window, that's an act of war. Staring at my shoes, that's an act of war. Committing an act of war? Oh you better believe that's an act of war

07-25-2005, 02:03 PM	#9 (permalink)
Johnny Pyro Hey Now! Location: Massachusetts (Redneck, white boy town. I hate it here.)	The car in Batman Begins is cool, but its not the Batmobile. I don't remember that from the comics. I just couldn't get into it. I heard though its just a prototype and the Batmobile we all love a know will surface in the sequels. __________________ "From delusion lead me to truth, from darkness lead me to light, from death lead me to eternal life. - Sheriff John Wydell

07-25-2005, 06:56 PM	#11 (permalink)
silent_jay Her Jay Location: Ontario for now....	I was hoping they'd let the Stig get his hands on it and do a hot lap around the Top Gear track. Would have been funny to see it go through the hammerhead turn. __________________ Absence makes the heart grow fonder

07-28-2005, 06:35 AM	#12 (permalink)
reconmike Thank You Jesus Location: Twilight Zone	When I hear batmobile I will always think, this IS the batmobile. __________________ Where is Darwin when ya need him?

07-28-2005, 06:46 AM	#13 (permalink)
Charlatan Getting it. Super Moderator Location: Lion City	Me too Mike... The new one was one of the few things that bothered me about Batman Begins. The car looked a little too top heavy, like it would roll if it took a corner too fast. __________________ "My hands are on fire. Hands are on fire. Ain't got no more time for all you charlatans and liars." - Old Man Luedecke

07-23-2005, 11:04 AM	#6 (permalink)
Asuka{eve} Addict Location: Oh God, the rain!	What about gearing?

07-25-2005, 02:02 PM	#8 (permalink)
Confederate Death Leprechaun Location: College Station, TX	I started this thread over a year ago http://www.tfproject.org/tfp/showthr...ight=batmobile

07-25-2005, 06:34 PM	#10 (permalink)
todd Addict Location: Chicago	They had this on Top Gear a few weeks ago. They liked it a lot. If they like it, it must be cool They just sat it in the studio and talked about it. It would have been awesome if Clarkson had driven it.