After nearly a decade of development, Tesla showed off the Roadster this week in a stunt-heavy show that made a strong case for starting an IRL Rocket League. Originally promised as the flying car of the future, the electric supercar did just that in controlled conditions, as Tesla showed off the Roadster's ability to defy gravity and pull off some impressive stunts.
One of the Roadster's incredible feats is its ability to drive up a ramp and cling upside down to the surface. Using its thrusters and a SpaceX fan-based suction system to stay upside down, the Roadster's cold-gas thrusters helped bring it back down to Earth after that demonstration.
The next stunt saw the Roadster hit its turbo-boost button to leap over a selection of Tesla vehicles. The vehicle is equipped with two ultra-high-pressure air tanks that can fire approximately 250 kilograms of air through 10 nozzles, and it can recharge its tank with compressed air.
All of this is very impressive, but will it ever see the light of day? The idea of multiple Tesla Roadsters doing acrobatics to escape rush-hour traffic is probably a pipe dream and a nightmare for motorists, so it probably won't satisfy the strict safety requirements of regulatory bodies. The car is also really fast, with Tesla CEO Elon Musk claiming the top-spec version can accelerate from 0–60 mph in under 0.59 seconds and reach a top speed of 230 mph. This version will not be approved for public use and will be available only by invitation.
Tesla originally unveiled the Roadster in 2017. The car was announced with ridiculous specs, a starting price of $200,000, and Musk promised that it would be out by 2020. That launch date quickly slipped as Tesla focused on other projects, and Musk is now promising a 2028 launch date for a car that definitely won't be road-legal if it ships with Knight Rider technology inside it.
But as a vehicle that could potentially set up a real Rocket League, complete with an oversized ball? Now that would be far more exciting than a boring F1 race.