FORT LAUDERDALE, FL.- Collector cars featuring celebrity provenance, including a 1957 Chrysler Imperial Convertible (estimate: $120,000 - $140,000) once owned by Howard Hughes, and the Batmobile (estimate: $200,000 - $275,000) from the 1995 film ‘Batman Forever’, are among the over 400 quality motor cars on offer at the Auctions America by RM Collector Cars of Fort Lauderdale sale being held at the Greater Fort Lauderdale / Broward County Convention Center March 4 – 6, 2011.

“This year’s Fort Lauderdale event is shaping up to be one of the best offerings in my 30 years of hosting collector car auctions in Florida ,” said Donnie Gould, President, Auctions America. “Over 100 of these high-quality cars are being offered without reserve and there truly is something for every collector’s taste and budget.”

A 1957 Chrysler Imperial Convertible is a rare find yet few, if any, have the celebrity status of the fine example on offer in Fort Lauderdale next month. This pastel blue example was purchased new by the late Howard Hughes in July 1957, driven for a short period of time and then stored until 1976 when it was purchased by the second owner from Hughes' holding company.

The Batmobile featured in Auctions America’s sale was built as a promotional vehicle for Warner Brothers’ 1995 epic ‘Batman Forever’, starring Val Kilmer. It is a running and driving example with a fiberglass body and a custom tubular chassis. It was used on various promotional tours around the world and was eventually acquired in 2006 by a well-known private collector.

The Collector Cars of Fort Lauderdale auction has built a reputation for its comprehensive offerings spanning Brass Era motor cars, American classics, Detroit muscle, European sports cars, late model exotics, and automobilia.

Additional early auction highlights, and exhibiting the sale’s variety, include: a 1953 Cadillac Eldorado Convertible (estimate: $300,000 - $350,000); a 1996 Ferrari 355 Challenge Car (estimate: $40,000 - $60,000); a 1939 Lincoln Model K Sport Sedan by Willoughby (estimate: $80,000 - $100,000); a 1969 Chevrolet Camaro COPO (estimate: $160,000 - $200,000); and, a 2004 Rolls-Royce Phantom ($115,000 - $130,000).