Hulleye Comes By!

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.

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.

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

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.

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