The Batmobile depicted in the Christopher Nolan directed films Batman Begins (2005) and The Dark Knight (2008) owes more to the tank-like vehicle from Frank Miller's Batman: The Dark Knight Returns and has a much more 'workhorse' appearance than the sleek automobiles seen in previous incarnations. The vehicle does not have a front axle, a design that was influenced by the spinners featured in Director Ridley Scott's Blade Runner. The film's production designer described the machine as a cross between a Lamborghini and a Tank on the Batman Begins special features DVD. It is said to resemble a crouching bat, but in some ways resembles the F-117 Nighthawk.
In the 2005 movie, Bruce Wayne modifies a prototype military vehicle called "the Tumbler" that was designed as a bridging vehicle for the military. In the Nolan films the vehicle is never referred to as the "Batmobile". Six vehicles were built for the production of the film. Two full-sized, driving versions were used in exterior shots. One full-sized model with hydraulic enhancements was used in jump sequences. One full-sized, functional version carried propane tanks to fuel the rocket blast out of the rear nozzle. A radio-controlled, 1/3-scale electric model also performed stunts in the film (e.g., the roof-top chase sequence). These scenes were filmed over 9 weeks, on a massive set built on a stage at Shepperton Studios.[citation needed]
The Batmobile returns in The Dark Knight, and appears twice in the movie: when Batman captures the Scarecrow and the fake Batmen in the car park, and in the chase where it is damaged beyond repair by a chain 'tumbling' reaction, initiated by a rocket-propelled grenade fired by The Joker; Batman ejects from the Batmobile in the Batpod (a motorcycle formed by the front wheels and struts of the Batmobile). Once ejected, Batman programs the Batmobile to self-destruct. The Batmobile is also seen in the trailers in a deleted scene, getting out of the improvised Batcave.
Technical specifications
- Length: 15 feet (4.57 m)
- Width: 9 feet 4 inches (2.84 m)
- Weight: 2.5 short tons (2.3 t)
- Acceleration: 0-60 in 5.6 seconds. Under full acceleration, the car could actually rise up on its front "legs" while the back wheels stayed planted on the ground creating an effect like a giant spider.
- Engine[47]: 5.0 litre Vauxhall/GM engine capable of 500 horsepower (370 kW).
- Fuel: The "jet engine" on the back of the car was fed by propane tanks.
- Tires: 4 "Super swamper" tires standing 44 inches (1,100 mm) tall (via titanium axles) in the rear and 2 Hoosier dirt tires on the front.
[edit] Features
The Batman Begins Batmobile has a pair of autocannons mounted in the nose of the car between the front wheels. In "Attack" mode,[48] the driver's seat moves to the center of the car, and the driver is repositioned to lay face-down with his head in the center section between the front wheels. This serves two main purposes: first, it provides more substantial protection with the driver shielded by multiple layers of armor plating. Second, the prone position reduces the risk of injury a driver faces when making extreme driving maneuvers.[49] Other devices included:
- Rear flaps for brake
- Front autocannons
- Rocket launcher
- Landing hook to Sprung landing stabilization
- Integrated fire-extinguishing system
- Integrated safety connection to gasoline control
- Jet engine on back of car for quick boosts/rampless jumps
- Stealth mode, which turns off the car's lights and cuts off the main engine, the vehicle is powered by an electric motor making the car very hard to find in dark places
- Caltrops are deployed from the rear of the vehicle. Batman uses this to immobilize a police vehicle following him.
- Front of car is heavily armored, so the car can crash into and destroy objects, and also protects the driver (Batman) while in the prone driving position/"Attack" mode
- Both front wheels can eject when the vehicle is damaged to form the Batpod, a bat-cycle like vehicle (the rest self-destructs).
Production process
Nathan Crowley, one of the production designers for Batman Begins, started the process of designing the Tumbler for the film by model bashing. One of the parts that Crowley used to create the vehicle was the nose cone of a P-38 Lightning model to serve as the chassis for the car's jet engine. Six models of the Tumbler were built to 1:12 scale in the course of four months. Following the scale model creation, a crew of over 30 people, including Crowley and engineers Chris Culvert and Annie Smith, carved a full-size replica of the vehicle out of a large block of Styrofoam, which was a process that lasted two months.[50]
The Styrofoam model was used to create a steel "test frame", which had to stand up to several standards: have a speed of over 100 mph, go from 0 to 60 mph (97 km/h) in 5 seconds, possess a steering system to make sharp turns at city corners, and to withstand a self-propelled launch of up to 30 feet (9.1 m). On the very first jump test, the Tumbler's front end collapsed and had to be completely rebuilt. The basic configuration of the newly designed vehicle included a 5.7-liter Chevy V8 engine, a truck axle for the rear axle, front racing tires by Hoosier, rear 4x4 mud tires by Interco., and the suspension system of Baja racing trucks. The design and development process took nine months and cost several million dollars.[50]
With the design process completed, four street-ready cars were constructed, with each vehicle possessing 65 carbon fiber panels and costing $250,000 to build. Two of the four cars were specialized versions. One version was the flap version, which had hydraulics and flaps to detail the close-up shots where the vehicle propelled itself through the air. The other version was the jet version, in which an actual jet engine was mounted onto the vehicle, fueled by six propane tanks. Due to the poor visibility inside the vehicle by the driver, monitors were connected to cameras on the vehicle body. The professional drivers for the Tumblers practiced driving the vehicles for six months before they drove on the streets of Chicago for the film's scenes.[50]
The interior was an immobile studio set and not actually the interior of a street-capable version. The cockpit was over-sized to fit cameras for scenes filmed in the Tumbler interior. In addition, another version of the car was a miniature model that was 1:5 scale of the full-sized one. This miniature model had an electric motor and was used to show it flying across ravines and between buildings. However, a full-size car was used for the waterfall sequence.[50] The scale model scenes were filmed on a massive set built on a stage at Shepperton Studios in England over the course of nine weeks. The full-sized vehicles were driven and filmed on the streets of Chicago. In The Dark Knight, the Batpod ejects from the Tumbler, with the Tumbler's front wheels as the Batpod's wheels; this was rendered using computer-generated imagery.
