Whomobile Whereabouts?

[Kingpin]

Easy, Kingpin; it may not be Barris making those claims, but others.

I've been poking around George Barris' business' web site, and nowhere on any page is there a claim to have made or designed ECTO-1 or the Delorean.

I assure you, this is not a simple matter of folks mistakenly attributing the car designs to him.  He received a cease and desist from Universal Studios over claiming to have been involved with the DeLorean (which is why there's no mention of the time machine on his website anymore).

http://articles.latimes.com/2007/may/04/local/me-custom4

In the below video, he clearly infers he was working with the producers and director to acquire the 1959 Cadillac Miller Meteor Ambulance which would become Ecto-1.  One of the big giveaways that he's making up what he's saying is that he refers to "four or five" cars.  Between Ghostbusters and Ghostbusters II, a total of three cars were used, Ecto-1, Ecto-1A and the black and primer car seen early in the first film (and believed to have eventually become the replica of Ecto-1 which was featured for a time at Universal Studios Florida).

In the video the other man incorrectly identifies the car as "one used in New York", the car in the video is a replica (not the USF one), not a filming vehivle. 

[barryrwuk]

I didn't realise this would be so contentious. 

I just thought that the pictures of 'Xpac 400' were interesting. Is there any doubt that 'Xpac 400' was a George Barris car?

[tony farrell]

Surely this was inspiration for The Whomobile. Who knows?








Barry 

I think you're definitely on the right lines here Barry what an (erm) interesting find. Move over the Jetsons!
T

[galacticprobe]

I assure you, this is not a simple matter of folks mistakenly attributing the car designs to him...

Wow, Kingpin: informative as usual. I stand corrected.

And does anyone have any other info on the Xpac 400, such as its whereabouts now, or who actually made it?

Dino.

[Kingpin]

I didn't realise this would be so contentious. 

I just thought that the pictures of 'Xpac 400' were interesting. Is there any doubt that 'Xpac 400' was a George Barris car?

As I noted earlier, there's nothing I've encountered (not that I've read up on the subject of the Xpac 400) that cast doubt on the belief Barris built it... And I believe the 1960s Batmobile is correctly attributed to him, so it's possible he did build the Xpac, but just has the terrible habit of inflating his C.V.


As for the car's location... Given the absence of contemporary photographs, and a reference to "it was", I have a sad suspicion the car doesn't exist anymore.

[danielc]

The Whomobile is now at The National Motor Museum in Beaulieu in Hampshire
 https://twitter.com/ChrisBalcombeUK/status/1730658492921352328

[elkad]

[WonderWheeler]

 I also found a detailed video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=acAS8ZrISoo

[/quote]
youtube video has been removed due to BBC copyright strike.

[danielc]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?app=desktop&v=7rkHUYIYWIc