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Monday, June 20, 2011

Kapow! New Batmobile unveiled

Jez Spink
From http://theage.drive.com.au/

The new Batmobile.

“Breathable” carbonfibre body, levitating wheels and environmentally friendly hydrogen power for Batman’s latest wheels.

It seems the Caped Crusader is now fighting pollution as well as crime.

The latest version of the Batmobile has been unveiled for a new theatrical production based on the famous comic-book hero – and it swaps traditional jet power for electric propulsion generated by a hydrogen fuel cell and lithium-ion battery pack.

The new Batmobile, which will star as a prop in the Batman Live World Arena Tour that starts in Manchester, England, next month, was designed by renowned car designer Gordon Murray.

The Batmobile - with Batman.

Murray penned the McLaren F1 in the early ’90s that for a decade was the world’s fastest production car, while he’s currently producing a tiny city car called the T25.

“It was a clean sheet of paper from a design point of view,” says Murray. “I drew on my early experience as a child reading comics and watching the Batmobile grow as a character in the comics.

“I wanted to have a bit of fun with the wheels, so [the car] includes what I call ‘virtual wheels’, which interact with gravity to lift the car off the ground.”

The new Batmobile.

In addition to the LED-illuminated wheels, the Batman Live levitating Batmobile features laser-beam generators in the nose, a carbonfibre body that “breathes” and a carbon-ceramic afterburner – which presumably produces zero emissions.

The jetfighter-meets-F1-car creation has more in common with Batmobiles from the 1990s Batman films, starring Michael Keaton as the Dark Knight, rather than the 1960s TV series version, which was based on a 1950s Ford concept car called the Lincoln Futura.

Murray’s Batmobile includes room for both members of the Dynamic Duo, Batman and Robin, with the cockpit accessed via a sliding split canopy.

The new Batmobile.

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