Tesla didn’t just unveil another electric sports car. It unveiled something that looks like it escaped from a sci-fi movie.
At its October 15 Roadster event in Texas, Tesla finally showed the radically redesigned next-generation Tesla Roadster. And after nearly nine years of waiting, Elon Musk made sure the reveal was unforgettable.
The Roadster drove upside down, launched into the air, rotated mid-flight and landed back on its wheels.
Yes. A Tesla just flew.
The demonstration combined an active suction system with high-pressure cold-gas thrusters developed using SpaceX technology. Tesla says the most extreme Roadster will use 10 thrusters, allowing the car to perform maneuvers that simply aren’t possible with tires alone.
0–60 MPH Is Getting Ridiculous
Tesla is planning multiple versions of the new Roadster.
The road-focused Performance model targets 0–60 mph in under 1.6 seconds. The Thrust version adds rocket-style assistance and targets under 0.9 seconds.
Then there’s the completely absurd Rocket version.
Tesla is targeting under 0.59 seconds from 0–60 mph for the single-seat Rocket, while a prototype run shown during the event recorded around 0.81 seconds. These remain Tesla targets rather than independently verified production-car figures.
For perspective, we’ve reached the point where describing a car as “sub-one-second” is somehow not the craziest part of the story.
SpaceX Technology. In a Car.
The Rocket Roadster packs up to 600 liters of high-pressure gas storage feeding thrusters positioned around the vehicle. Tesla engineering VP Lars Moravy says the system can generate enormous instantaneous thrust for acceleration and airborne control.
Meanwhile, active aerodynamics and four powerful underbody fans can effectively suck the car toward the road, generating extreme grip even at speeds where traditional wings produce little downforce.
Tesla also gave the new Roadster a much sharper, more futuristic design. The company says its inspiration came from aircraft including the SR-71 Blackbird and F-35.
The result looks less like the original 2017 Roadster concept and more like a road-going spacecraft.
Performance, Thrust and Rocket
Tesla showed three headline configurations: Performance, Thrust and Rocket.
Performance is intended as the road-ready version. Thrust turns things up dramatically with rear cold-gas thrusters. Rocket goes all-in with the full flight system and becomes a single-seater.
The Rocket version is expected to be extremely limited and invitation-only. Production of the new Roadster is currently targeted for 2028.
After years of delays, Tesla needed the Roadster reveal to be spectacular.
It delivered.
At iPhoneApplicationList.com, we normally live and breathe Apple, apps and consumer tech, but this is one of those launches that’s simply impossible to ignore. Whether every Roadster claim survives the journey from prototype to production remains to be seen.
But watching an electric supercar climb upside down, launch through the air and land using SpaceX-inspired thrusters?
That’s the kind of technology demo people remember.