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Movies

It’s the Ford F-150 Bat-Truck!

Published: 19 Jul 2013

Earlier this year, the original 1965 Batmobile used in the famous Batman television series was auctioned off for a whopping £2.6m; a sacred automotive cow sacrificed by its creator and owner for a big pile of money.

That creator was of course, George Barris. He famously bought a Lincoln Futura concept car from Ford for just $1, was given a budget of $15k by the Batman telly producers and told to come up with a ‘Batmobile'.

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What he cooked up became one of TV's most iconic - if not the most iconic - cars ever. Why are we telling you this when there's a big truck in the picture above? In light of the January auction, Barris's grandson Jared wanted to pay tribute and design something in his honour. That big truck is the result.

Welcome Internet, to ‘The Crimefighter'. It's a modified Ford F-150 pick-up.

Now, TG hasn't had the easiest relationship with the Ford F-150 - not least because many moons ago when Clarkson's hair was a touch more voluminous, he tested the ‘Lightning' version, complete with the same supercharged 5.4-litre V8 you got in the old Ford GT. It terrified him. It was a bad car.

This one is based on an XLT Supercab, and is thus powered by a 5.0-litre V8 producing 360 horsepowers and 515lb ft of torque, powering the rear wheels. Yes, it's a two-wheel-drive truck. The actual build comes courtesy of Galpin Auto Sports, who gave the Ford a ‘tuxedo' black paint job, red accents that mirror the ‘60s icon, and a set of fins adorning the rear flatbed. That's about it.

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This is a one off - and is up for grabs should you want one - but don't worry if it's already gone by the time you get your Bat-suit on: GAS will build you one just like it.

It's certainly... distinctive. Reckon it deserves a place in the fine canon of Batmobiles? Or should The Tumbler do the world a favour and just run it over? Have your say below...

Top Gear rides shotgun in the Tumbler from 'The Dark Knight Rises'

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