Tesla officially unveiled the second generation of its Roadster, now equipped with SpaceX thruster motors; a car that Elon Musk, Tesla's CEO, described as "the best and final example of human-driven cars."
According to ITNA, Musk showcased the car at an event near the city of Waco in Texas. In the demonstration, the Roadster used a combination of powerful fans and thruster motors to climb an inverted ramp, spin in the air, and land back on the ground.
The car also jumped off Cybercabs, the Cybertruck, the Tesla Semi truck, the Model Y and the Model 3 using its thruster motors.
Musk said of this car, which accelerates from 0 to 100 kilometers per hour in just one second, that this is exactly the car that will be seen on roads and can perform such maneuvers whenever the user wants.
Three versions, three price levels
According to Musk, mass production of this long-delayed car will finally begin in 2028, although its final price has not been announced. Tesla will offer the car in three trims:
- Performance: two-seater, active aerodynamics and multi-mode suction system for better performance on and off the track
- Thrust: two-seater, equipped with rear cold-gas thruster motors for sub-one-second 0–100 km/h acceleration
- Rocket: single-seater, with 10 cold-gas thruster motors mounted around the body, purchasable by invitation only
All three versions have a range of 480 kilometers (300 miles) and can reach speeds over 370 kilometers per hour (230 miles). According to Tesla's website, reservations for the Performance version have begun with a $50,000 payment and the Thrust version with $250,000.
The technology behind the flight
Lars Morovy, Tesla's Vice President of Engineering, explained at the event that the Roadster uses 10 thruster motors connected to 600 liters of compressed air to lift and rotate the car in the air, and the air tank is rechargeable.
Tesla said in a post that every usable empty space in the car's body is filled with carbon-fiber overwrapped pressure vessels (COPV); the same type of tanks that have previously been the source of several explosions in SpaceX rockets.
Musk also mentioned the possibility of Tesla attempting to jump the Snake River canyon; the same location where Evel Knievel, the famous American stuntman, made an unsuccessful attempt years ago with a steam-powered vehicle.
Safety as a secondary priority
Musk had previously said on a podcast that safety is not the primary goal of this car and that if someone prioritizes safety first, they should not buy the Roadster; although he added that Tesla will try to ensure no one is killed in this car.
Nine years of delay
The event took place almost nine years after the first unveiling of the second-generation Roadster in 2017; a car that was supposed to be delivered within a few years but was postponed repeatedly in 2020, 2021, 2023 and 2024.
These repeated delays prompted reactions from well-known figures including Marques Brownlee, the technology YouTuber, and Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI.
Brownlee, after the recent event, posted sarcastically questioning the reality of the claim that such a car will be produced by 2028.