Full Breakdown
Tesla Unveils Second-Generation Roadster with Rocket-Thruster “Fly” Feature
By Drooid · · How we work
Core Event: Roadster 2 Reveal and “Rocket” Package
Tesla introduced the second-generation Roadster at a Thursday event held at SpaceX’s test site in McGregor, Texas. The two-seat sports car demonstrated a suction-system-assisted ramp jump, upside-down driving, and brief airborne maneuvers powered by cold-gas thrusters. Production is slated for 2028, and reservations opened immediately after the show.
Background & Context
The Roadster concept first appeared in 2017, with Tesla then promising deliveries in 2020. The original Roadster (2008-2012) used a Lotus Elise chassis and helped establish electric-vehicle credibility. Repeated delays have pushed the next-generation model a decade beyond its initial timeline.
Data & Statistics
- Acceleration: 0–97 km/h in under one second.
- Top speed: over 370 km/h.
- Range: about 480 km per charge.
- Reservation deposits (per Tesla’s page): Performance – US $50,000; Thrust – US $250,000; Rocket – invite-only.
- Morningstar analyst Seth Goldstein projects annual sales of roughly 2,000 units, a fraction of Tesla’s 1.6 million vehicles sold the prior year.
- Pre-market trading showed Tesla shares up more than five percent after the reveal.
Official Statements & Responses
Elon Musk told the audience, “This is the culmination of incredible work by Tesla and SpaceX engineers working closely together to make something that you haven’t seen in any movie.”
Conflicting Reports & Gaps
Reservation cost details differ between sources. Globalnews specifies a CA $7,000 initial deposit followed by CA $63,000 (Performance) or CA $343,000 (Thrust) within ten days, while CBC reports a flat US $50,000 deposit for the Performance version and US $250,000 for the Thrust version. Neither outlet provides a unified figure for the invite-only Rocket variant beyond noting it is “single-seat” and not publicly reservable.
Verbatim Quotes
- “Air ready with seating for one. Features a multi-mode suction system paired with cold-gas thrusters positioned around the perimeter of the vehicle that support forward and upward acceleration as well as lateral rotational movement. So yes, it can fly,” — Tesla
- “It was an engineering flex with no commercial value beyond embarrassing traditional car makers,” — Gene Munster, Deepwater Asset Management
What’s Next
Tesla plans to begin Roadster 2 production in 2028, with the Rocket variant remaining invite-only. The company will report its third-quarter earnings later in October, a filing that analysts expect to weigh more heavily on investor sentiment than the unveiling itself.