85 years ago, in 1939, a publisher named DC Comics invented a superhero character called Batman. Lacking any real superpowers, but instead relying on immense wealth and technology, the Dark Knight, as he has become known, has fought crime in the fictional city of Gotham and beyond ever since. A perfect time, then, to celebrate Batman, but also his unmasked self, Bruce Wayne, through traditional and less traditional means.
Italian automaker Automobili Pininfarina has no real connection to Batman. Yet somehow it managed to convince Warner Bros. Discovery Global Consumer Products (WBDGCP, the group that manages the licensing of Warner-owned brands) and Relevance International, a public relations agency, to join in the festivities.
The Italians did it at the end of April, when they unveiled four special and unique versions based on the B95 and the Battista. The four are called B95 Gotham, Battista Gotham, B95 Dark Knight and Battista Dark Knight.
The cars aren’t exactly meant to honor Batman, but his public self, Bruce Wayne. Each of the four cars is mechanically identical to the production version, but they add a touch of uniqueness through a series of design features and special appointments.
The two Gotham cars, for example, feature tan leather interiors, Wayne Enterprises logos on the body, chassis and door plates, and special wheels. The Dark Knights, on the other hand, offer black Alcantara and black leather upholstery, a special paint job, and, once again, special wheels.
Since being unveiled three months ago, some of these special cars have benefited from public display. In June, for example, two of these one-of-a-kind models, a B95 and a Battista, were on display inside a seven-story townhouse in Manhattan, New York. The place had been converted into Wayne Manor by WBDGCP as part of this year’s Batman celebrations.
Photo: Pininfarina
Monterey Car Week kicks off this weekend, and Pininfarina isn’t going to miss out. The automaker will bring two vehicles to The Quail, A Motorsports Gathering next Friday. The nature of one of them hasn’t been revealed, but the second will be the B95 Gotham, which will make its world debut in front of a live audience.
Although this is the first physical car of the series to be shown to the public, it is not actually one of the four exclusive models to be produced, but a show car. It shares practically everything with the one currently being assembled for its customer in Cambiano, Italy.
The B95 Gotham is powered by an electric transmission consisting of a 120 kWh lithium-ion battery and four electric motors. Together, the four deliver a staggering 1,900 horsepower, making the B95 the most powerful road car ever made in Italy.
In its Gotham configuration, the vehicle is finished in a glossy black paint called Argento Vittorio. In addition to the special features mentioned above, it also offers a Batman-inspired display, with a Wayne Enterprises design and the voice of Alfred Pennyworth as a virtual assistant – it is unclear who the voice is, as the character has been played by many actors over the years.
Adding a fresh touch to the entire design is the laser-engraved phrase on the driver's door plate. It reads “All men have limits…I ignore mine,” and that's something Bruce Wayne said in the original comics.
To celebrate the car’s public debut at Monterey Car Week, Pininfarina managed to get the B95 Gotham into the same room (the Los Angeles studio where the Dark Knight trilogy was filmed) with the mighty Tumbler. You can check out the results of the meeting in the attached photo gallery.
Photo: Pininfarina
The Tumbler is one of the many vehicles Batman uses to fight crime. Unlike many others introduced over the years, which have been crazy but largely civilian vehicles, this thing is a military prototype put together by Wayne Enterprises' Applied Sciences Division.
Originally conceived as a bridge vehicle, the craft was packed with armor (enough to allow it to shatter concrete barriers) and weapons. One of the vehicle's capabilities, the one that inspired its name, was that it could jump without using a ramp.
For the filming of the three films (Batman Begins, The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises) several Tumblers were built. Pininfarina does not specify which one is present next to the B95 Gotham.
It’s unclear how long it will take the Italian automaker to assemble the four unique Bruce Wayne-themed vehicles, or who they’re for. Pricing is also not public, but we do know how much the standard versions cost: $2.2 million for the Battista and double that for the B95.