Batmobile Sold: Original Batman Car Auctioned

The Batmobile created by Hollywood car customiser George Barris for the 1960s Batman TV series has been sold for $4.2 (£2.6m).

The original 19ft black, bubble-topped car was auctioned in Scottsdale, Arizona.

Barris, from Los Angeles transformed a one-of-a-kind 1955 Lincoln Futura concept car into the sleek crime-fighting machine.

The car, which has remained in his personal collection, boasted lasers and a Batphone and could lay down smoke screens and oil slicks.

The iconic car was used by Adam West who starred as the Caped Crusader and by Burt Ward, his sidekick Robin known for exclamations beginning with "Holy".

Barris' publicist says his client is pleased with the auction result.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Barris constructed the Batmobile in just 15 days in 1966 for $15,000 (£9,455) from a car bought for $1.

It reported that the winning bidder was Rick Champagne, a businessman and car collector from the Phoenix area who has been attending Barrett-Jackson auctions for 15 years.

Asked by The Hollywood Reporter where he planned to store the car, the new owner joked: "In the living room. I'm going to tear down a wall and put in my living room."

The Batmobile comes close to the highest price fetched for a movie car at auction.

In 2010, the Aston Martin DB5 driven by Sean Connery in Goldfinger set the record when it went for $4.6m (£2.9m).