Autoblog

Click above for gallery of the Batmobile

The Michael Keaton/Jack Nicholson Batman is and probably always will be my all-time favorite movie, and the ostentatious Batmobile was one of my most cherished Hot Wheels. Owning the flat-black exotic has always been a less than realistic goal, but thanks to eBay, someone will have that chance. If you like the Batmobile as much as I do, and unlike me have at least $500,000, you can actually purchase the Dark Knight's superhero-mobile on eBay.

The Batmobile on auction is number five of five, and with only 54 miles on the odometer, it is one rare bird indeed. It has no doors, and the only way to get behind the wheel is to jump in through the roof. The 20-foot long Batmobile hides a 5.7L Chevy small-block under-hood that hasn't been driven in five years, and judging from the pics on eBay, it's an automatic, too. It does make sense for Batman to fore-go manual shifts, since he needed to use his free hand to fire 50-caliber machine guns. Somehow we have the feeling that heavy artillery isn't included in the auction, but at least you can look like your car can blow things up. Nobody has bid on the item yet, and at 500-large we're guessing this auction has a chance of reappearing soon at a lower starting price. Thanks for the tip, Steve!


[Source: eBay]

Click on image above for his-res gallery of the SRT8

As expected, the entire first-year production run of 6,400 Dodge Challenger SRT8 models has sold out. The purchase slots for 2008 models were in short supply two months ago when we reported that more than 10,000 orders had been placed for the 425-hp muscle car. You can still give your dealer all the coins in your piggy bank, but the money goes on the hood of 2009 model, scheduled to arrive this fall.

If the thought of missing out on one of these rare 2008-model HEMI-powered beasts is keeping you up at night and you just can't wait for next year, there's always eBay. Although Chrysler tried to dissuade dealers from gouging, more than two dozen of the $37,995 (base MSRP) cars have been put on the auction site -- mostly by speculating dealers with prices in the mid-$50,000 range. Ah, the joys of a free market...

[Source: KickingTires]

The Maserati MC12 is a rare beast. Only 25 were made in 2005 and just seven of those were federalized for use in the United States, one of which is this blue-and-white gem you see above. Similar to its brother, the Ferrari Enzo, the MC12 shares not only the Ferrari 6.0-liter V12, but the same hefty price tag, as well. The current bid for this particular example is over $1,200,000 and still under the reserve. Originally owned by a collector in Florida, it is up for sale by Lamborghini of Las Vegas and only has 521 miles clocked on the odometer. Check out the gallery below for additional photos while you figure out how to cash in that 401k that's not doing anything for you right now.

[Source: eBay Motors]

When you need to escape a pack of damn dirty apes, what could be better than a Corvette? Charlton Heston's Corvette, that's what. It's a virtually stock 1999 C5, looking sharp in black with chrome wheels. The current owner has added new taillights, the C6 style rims, and a Borla exhaust. The current bid of $20,600 is a fair price for that vintage 'Vette showing under 20,000 miles, though the reserve has yet to be met. We wonder what type of unrealistic hollywood-connection premium the seller is wishing for. C'mon, it doesn't matter who once owned it, really. Maybe if it were more rare, maybe if it were a Callaway sleeper, then it would be worth forking over more dough. Of course, we'd expect nothing less than someone trying to cash in off the back of a recently passed movie star. Despite the charming manifesto on the listing, this car is no more a collector's item than any other clean C5. Besides, we'd at least expect it to at least have a pistol-grip shifter, and it doesn't. Thanks for the tip, nevermind!

Gallery: Charlton Heston's Corvette

[Source: eBay]

Click to view more of the 1965 Lancia Flavia Zagato

Zagato's designs aren't for everyone. Just as well, because they're not available to everyone, usually costing a fair penny and produced in very limited numbers. This example, however, takes the love-it-or-hate-it approach to new (or rather, old) extremes. Lancia created just 626 examples of this Zagato-designed coupe between 1963 and 1967, of which only a few reportedly remain in good condition today. (It's not quite as rare as the Lancia Zagato we brought you a couple of weeks ago, but still a genuine collector's item.) This one was made in 1965, and after failing to sell on eBay, it has now been posted on the Seattle Craigslist, for sale in Ventura, California.

The aluminum bodywork may not be the prettiest at the ball, particularly with the stock steel wheels, but you're not likely to pull up next to another one at an intersection. Back in its day, it actually sold for double the price of a Jaguar XKE, and the seller claims it's worth twice the asking price. If you've got thirty grand and quirky taste, check it the photos in the gallery below and details on the eBay auction page.

[Source: Craigslist via CarScoop]

As a compliment to Garth's AMC Pacer, a lucky eBay bidder with some extra cash can also snag this Chicago area landmark – The Spindle – as seen in the Wayne's World movie. The eight-car kabob is a 50-foot sculpture commissioned by Berwyn, Illinois shopping center Cermak Plaza and created by artist Dustin Shuler in 1989. It is a quirky feature loved by some, but believed to be an eyesore by many. The vehicles skewered on the stake, from the bottom up, are an unknown Mercury, Ford LTD, Ford Mustang, Mercury Capri, Ford Escort, a BMW once belonging to the shopping center owner and a VW Beatle.

It seems that the landmark has generated a lot of attention recently since Cermak Plaza is due for renovation and the sculpture is not a part of the plans. Fans have initiated a movement to save The Spindle from destruction, but so far its future is up in the air. This auction must be a method to determine whether some outside party might fork over the cash for relocation. Otherwise it looks like the cars might be headed for the junkyard.

[Source: eBay]

For the automotive collector looking for something truly unique, here it is; a rolling staph infection. This car is a convergence of worst-ofs compounded by a customization apparently overseen by Huggy Bear. 1980s front-drive Cadillacs might be charitably described as bargains, though the first repair bill for the grenade masquerading as an engine called the HT4100 will change the adjective to worthless. How much would you pay for a cast-off Caddy with a hot tub in back, a beak cribbed from an '80 Grand Prix, and a bleak future in terms of appreciation? The reserve has yet to be met at $2500, and we wonder what unrealistic number the seller's decided upon. Why would you even do this? It reminds us of a Steak-Ums commercial from the late '80s or early '90s with a separated at birth premise, but we doubt this car has any showbiz history. Likely, it's just a curiosity, possibly the result of a coked-up customizer without any good cars to use. Hey, it was the '80s, what more can you say? Thanks for the tip, Josh!


[Source: eBay]

Click on the Mirthmobile to view more pictures

This eBay auction seeks to find out if there are any set of circumstances under which an AMC Pacer is worth the Buy-It-Now price of $8 grand. So far, the answer is no, but there's still a day left. For fans of the movie Wayne's World, this vehicle could offer a unique opportunity to grab a piece of movie magic, as it was built by Paramount Studios as a prop for the Paramount Kings Island theme-park ride, Hurler, based on the Wayne's World series of movies. Wondering how you could be sure that this is legit? Worry not, it comes with a signed letter of authenticity from Volo Museum and the hood is signed by none other than George Barris himself.

No word on whether or not the "SHA WING" Ohio license plate is included in the asking price. We do have it on good authority, though, that the car has never been spewed in. Thanks for the tip, Stu!


[Source: eBay]

When offering an item for sale, a fuzzy key selling point like "may be legal in some states already" might not be the deal clincher you'd hoped. On today's episode of "Fun With Centers of Gravity" we have the delightful union of the neuter-car PT Cruiser with the greasy unmentionables of a 29 year old Chevy Blazer. It may very well be legal in some states, but it'll still be unholy everywhere it goes. Build quality appears on par with a dollar store habachi – are those pop rivets on the fender liners? The battery sitting on a folded back seat is the crowning feature of the interior and there's also no heat or air conditioning, making this a fun year-round ride. The zip-ties and extra-fun spark plug wire routing in the engine bay dress up the 350, and the seller believes so much in this powertrain that there's a warranty to sweeten the pot. Let's ignore the fact that the nearly $10,000 Buy It Now price would buy a used Jeep Wrangler with a suspension lift, because the seller is being truthful when stating that this is a true one of a kind.


[Source: eBay via Winding Road]

Click above for a high-res gallery of the 1964 Pontiac Banshee

The very cool 1964 Pontiac Banshee prototype is being auctioned off, again. Back in November of last year, the super-cool and svelte vehicle was put up on eBay with a Buy-It-Now price of $1.3 million. It didn't sell, so it's back up... with a cool $2 hundred-grand tacked onto the price.

Powered by Pontiac's OHC straight-six engine, the Banshee was intended to compete with the just-introduced Ford Mustang. As an extremely unique piece of automotive history, there are surely a few people out there with very deep pockets who would like to get their hands on the car that GM thought was too close to Corvette territory. Because GM had already committed to the 'Vette as its halo-car, it squashed the Banshee program before John De Lorean, then head of Pontiac, was able to get the Banshee into production.

Look closely and you'll note that many of the design elements introduced on the Banshee prototype were stolen carried-over to the 1968 Corvette, along with the tail-end of the Banshee ending up on the new-for-1970 Pontiac Firebird and Trans Am. We're big fans of the Pontiac Banshee prototype, and current owner Len Napoli, a Connecticut car dealer, is understandably aiming to capitalize on the unbelievable deal he got when he snatched the car up for a mere $214,500 at the 2006 Barrett-Jackson auction in Scottsdale. That, as they say, was well bought, indeed. In a December 2007 conversation with Automotive News, Napoli said that he hadn't gotten any offers at his then-$1.3M asking price and that he'd like to see the car go to a museum. If you have a museum and want to add the Banshee as an exhibit, it's there for the taking. Just bring money.


[Source: eBay via Car Scoop]