Tesla Roadster Flies in Texas Reveal, Nine Years After Its First Unveiling
Tesla unveiled the second-generation Roadster at a SpaceX test site in McGregor, Texas. Using cold-gas thrusters and a fan suction system, the car flew during the livestream. Production is now set for 2028.
Tesla revealed the second-generation Roadster on Thursday night. The livestream started at 8:55 p.m. ET from a SpaceX rocket test facility in McGregor, Texas, near Waco. During the show, the car flew.
The Roadster launched up a towering halfpipe-style ramp and flew through the air on cold-gas thrusters from SpaceX. The livestream showed a 0-60 mph run in 0.8 seconds. A fan suction system underneath the car increases grip and downforce, Tesla vehicle engineering vice president Lars Moravy said.
Elon Musk hosted the reveal with design leader Franz von Holzhausen and Moravy. “You’re going to see some crazy stuff tonight,” Musk said. He called the night “the results of what happens when you have a collaboration with the world’s best car company and the world’s best rocket company.”
The event was pushed back two weeks from Oct. 1 because of predicted severe weather.
The car looks different from the 2017 concept. It is stark white and angular, with Cybertruck-inspired styling and a massive rear wing. Tesla said the design was inspired by the SR-71 and the F-35. Musk has described the company’s evolved design language as “from S3XY to Cybertruck, Cybercab & Optimus.”
Nine years of delays
The Roadster was first shown in November 2017, alongside the Tesla Semi. Tesla promised production for 2020. The original claims were a 1.9-second 0-60, a top speed above 250 mph and 620 miles of range. It never shipped.
Reservations have reopened with $50,000 deposits. The 2017 Founders Series required $250,000 and was capped at 1,000 cars.
Tesla now says production will begin in 2028. That is another delay.
The Wall Street Journal and TechCrunch reported on the reveal.
