20 Weird Facts About The Batmobile from Batman (1989)

What if the most iconic superhero vehicle in cinema history was actually built on a stretched family car and required Batman to wear special "driving ears" just to fit inside?

In this video, we're diving deep into the absolutely mind-blowing secrets behind Tim Burton's 1989 Batmobile - from its Chevy Impala skeleton to its place in the Smithsonian Museum. Discover how real Harrier jump jet parts, Rolls-Royce turbine components, and even London bus fuel caps came together to create this three-ton Gothic masterpiece that could barely make a turn. We'll explore the functional gadgets that actually shot flames and oil, the $50,000 armor panels that kept breaking, and why Michael Keaton needed a cheat sheet just to operate the 70+ cockpit switches. These twenty bizarre facts reveal how Hollywood engineering, British aerospace technology, and pure creative madness combined to build the ultimate crime-fighting machine that's now considered an official piece of American cultural heritage.

#batman #movies #cars #superheroes #filmmaking



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00:00 Intro
00:50 The Batmobile was built on a stretched nineteen fifty-nine Chevrolet Impala chassis
02:00 Michael Keaton's Batman cowl had to be redesigned with shorter ears specifically because of the Batmobile
03:09 The Batmobile's jet engine intake used actual parts from a Rolls-Royce jet engine
04:19 The turbine blades visible in the nose cone came from a British Harrier jump jet
05:32 The sliding canopy operated like a fighter jet cockpit instead of using regular doors
06:39 Many of the Batmobile's on-screen gadgets were actually functional. The oil slick dispensers? Real
07:46 The afterburner actually shot real flames out the back
08:54 The Batmobile could transform into \"cocoon mode\" with armor plating
10:00 The grappling hook system could actually fire and retract. The hook itself was a custom-machined piece of steel weighing about fifteen pounds
11:02 The \"Batmissile\" mode would shed entire body panels to fit through tight spaces
12:06 Hidden Browning machine guns were mounted under the front fenders
13:11 The Batmobile could fire \"Bat-discs\" from side-mounted launchers
14:22 Chassis-mounted \"shinbreakers\" were designed to damage anyone trying to carjack the vehicle
15:26 The cockpit interior was styled like a fighter jet with advanced nineteen eighties technology
16:39 The gas turbine consumed fuel so rapidly it could only run for fifteen seconds at a time
17:53 The design was heavily influenced by Art Deco architecture. Burton wanted the car to look like it could park next to his Gothic Gotham buildings and fit right in
19:02 The Batmobile used incredibly eclectic parts from various vehicles.
20:09 The car's finish changed from matte to gloss between Batman and Batman Returns
21:23 Multiple Batmobiles were built for production. Two fully functional driving versions for filming
22:38 The Batmobile from Batman eighty-nine is actually displayed in the Smithsonian
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