Tesla’s next-generation Roadster briefly flew, clung to a steep ramp and reportedly accelerated from zero to 60 mph in 0.81 seconds during a demonstration in Waco, Texas. Elon Musk promised a flying car, and Tesla delivered the flying part. Whether it delivers a production car on schedule—or one that can legally drive on public roads—is a different question.
The event lasted less than 30 minutes and played more like a stunt show than a conventional product reveal. Tesla demonstrated the Roadster climbing a tall ramp, using suction to cling to the vertical surface, then flipping around with cold-gas thrusters. The car also flew over Tesla’s other vehicles, including the Model 3, Model Y, Cybertruck, Semi and Cybercab, in a maneuver Tesla VP of Engineering Lars Moravy called “a kick flip.”
According to Tesla, a fan-based suction system supplied by SpaceX can generate up to two Gs of suction force. The Roadster also has two ultra-high-pressure air tanks, with a combined volume of 600 liters and approximately 250 kilograms of air, feeding 10 nozzles. The compressed air supplies thrust for lifting and maneuvering the car; Musk said it can recharge its own tank without a specialized chemical propellant.
That is a remarkable bit of engineering theater, and potentially an even more remarkable set of engineering constraints. Musk described the Roadster as able to “fly like a rocket” and perform rolls and other maneuvers, while also acknowledging it was “not necessarily a safety-optimized car.” After saying it would be “an actual car that’s on the roads,” the company later admitted it would not be road legal. The airborne demonstration, impressive as it was, does not make the regulatory questions disappear. It makes them rather harder to ignore.
Tesla also claimed the Roadster reached 60 mph in 0.81 seconds. Musk attributed the acceleration to applying more force while reducing the vehicle’s mass, and said the production version should improve on the demonstration. He also recognized the human problem buried in that boast: extreme acceleration means extreme forces on occupants. His suggestion that the car might approach Mach 0.5 was a tease, not a verified production specification.
The two-seat car draws design inspiration from aerospace, including the SR-71 reconnaissance aircraft, Moravy said. Tesla describes molded-in seats and steer-by-wire controls, including a yoke, brakes and throttle. Thrusters and fans sit around the rear diffuser, alongside a retractable rear wing. After the event, Tesla updated its website with three performance tiers, but the reveal offered no price or release date.
Musk said production could begin in 2028. That promise arrives after nearly nine years of waiting for the next Roadster, so sensible buyers may want more than a spectacular flight before treating a date as a plan. Tesla has demonstrated that this car can do extraordinary things onstage. The less theatrical test is still ahead: building it, certifying it, and getting it to customers.
Sources: Glitch Please! and The Verge — https://www.theverge.com/transportation/1012552/tesla-roadster-next-gen-reveal-elon-musk — Reporting by Andrew J. Hawkins
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