10 Things You Didn’t Know About The Batmobile

In the Golden Age of Comics, many of the things that we take as common tropes of the superhero genre were just getting their start. This, of course, was the case with the vehicles that have been identified as the Batmobile. In Batman’s first appearance in Detective Comics #27, he drives a red Sedan with no alterations or adaptations. A later version of the car was a 1936 Cord with a bat-shaped hood ornament and darker color.

The first car to be called the Batmobile premiered in Detective Comics #48, but the car that was best remembered from the Golden Age was the one that was first seen in Batman # 5. Designed by Jerry Robinson, the car was not a specific copy of any model of the time. However, its huge frame did bring to mind powerful cars like the Edsel or Sedan. It had armor plating, skirted fenders to protect the tires, and a swept-back, aerodynamic design.

It was the “Bat adaptations” that really made this design special. A huge Bat-head adorned the front of the car. Not only did it protect the engine from frontal attacks but it also served as a battering ram, when necessary. The headlights were hidden and shined through the eyes of the mask. The swoop of the canopy culminated in a rear fin that mimicked the wing of a bat.