LEGO’s 1989 Batmobile set is for advanced detectives

If we can agree that Tim Burton’s followup to Beetlejuice, 1989’s Batman, is the best live-action representation of a comic strip coming alive, perhaps you’ll also nod when I say that Burton’s Batmobile is the most iconic superhero ride ever made. And so before taking a closer look at all the details of Lego’s latest highly desirable set, let’s talk 1989 Batmobile!

Inspired by 1930s Salt Flat racers and various war machines, the Batmobile was created by Julian Caldow, Tim Burton and Anton Furst. What the crew called the “Keaton-mobile” was built by Keith Short on a Chevrolet Impala chassis, with a heavily modified 1970 Corvette body. Previous attempts using a Mustang and a Jaguar chassis have failed, and the second running Batmobile was based on an Oldsmobile Cutlass.

A lot further behind that Chevy V-8, the Batmobile also had a fuel-hungry afterburner that could only run for about fifteen seconds between fill ups. All other gadgets were equally functional, including the hooks and the machine gun turrets. No wonder why the 1989 version became the most often replicated Batmobile of them all.

Because 2019 marks the movie’s 30th and the Batman character’s 80th anniversary, Lego came up with an advanced 1989 Batmobile kit just in time for everybody’s holiday shopping. Containing 3306 pieces, this set is recommended for all above the age of 16 by the Dannish company, which means smart 14-years-olds should also have a go.

Retailing for $250, Lego’s most advanced and largest Batmobile set to date is certainly not on the cheap side, yet once it hits the shelves on 29 November, Vicki Vales’s Nikon F3 better be loaded with film.