The Original 1966 Batmobile Sold For How Much at Barret Jackson?

Around here, we certainly love anything car related, but we have an affinity for all things Batmobile. When we heard the original Batmobile was going up for sale, we immediately thought about pooling all of our pennies and making a run at it, but when we realized we actually only have pennies, we figured our $18.23 would struggle to get us in the door at the auction, much less any actual action on the one-off car itself.

As it just so happens, we were right. We would have needed to multiply our change pile by some 250,000 times to be in the bidding war for this iconic piece of Caped Crusader memorabilia, when ended up selling for the handsome sum of $4.2 million. So why exactly would what some see as little more than a glorified prop bring such a lofty price? Well that’s not a simple answer.

The main factor for the value would arguably be the cars origin. Originally built by Ford as a 1955 Lincoln Futura concept, the car was bought by renowned automobile customizer George Barris, who saw something in the design that would later fit perfectly within his vision for the Batmobile, a project he was tasked with designing in 1966 for the upcoming launch of show starring the late Adam West.

Burris’ completed design would lay the groundwork for all future iterations of the Batmobile, and many of the influences can still be found in the latest versions. From the trademark dark color scheme to the winged bat logo’s strategic placement, the car would become an immediate part of television lore. Barris bought the car himself after production of the show ended and it remained in his personal collection for decades, only recently coming up for auction at Barrett-Jackson. Hit the play button on the video below and watch the sale as it happened live on the auction floor!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TNIpjHy7500