Tesla unveiled its long-delayed second-generation Roadster on Thursday night, nearly nine years after Elon Musk first showed a prototype.
The event was held at SpaceX’s McGregor test site and streamed live.
"Flying cars are real," Elon Musk said during the launch.
What happened
During the unveiling event held in Waco, Texas, the car pulled off a stunt quite unlike any other.
It raced up a steep ramp, flipped over, and kept driving upside down, then flew off the track, righted itself with rockets and landed.
Telsa said the demo car was operated remotely with no one inside, and the stunt version will not be street legal.
OMG the Tesla Roadster just flew in the air! pic.twitter.com/vdIabzyyPx
— Sawyer Merritt (@SawyerMerritt) October 16, 2026
Specs: These are still company claims, not verified production figures.
Claimed 0-60 mph: 1.9 seconds (base). Musk has claimed under 1 second with the "SpaceX package"
Top speed: Over 250 mph
Range: 620 miles | 997 km (not an EPA-certified rating)
Battery: 200 kWh
Seating: Four, with a removable glass roof
Layout: All-wheel drive, with reports of three motors
Price: Not confirmed. The 2017 targets were $200,000 base and $250,000 Founders Series: Production Guided for 2027 or 2028
Roadster transforms in Track Mode
— Tesla (@Tesla) October 16, 2026
These aero features aren't just for looks: they provide the best passive downforce package of any road car (approaching F1 levels!) with wing actuation driven by the @Tesla_Optimus actuator system pic.twitter.com/AqrC4qUga9
The sub-one-second figure applies to a variant with the “SpaceX option package,” widely expected to use "cold gas thrusters".
Tesla had not confirmed that this hardware will ship on production cars.
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Any takers?
Yes, though no one outside Tesla knows how many.
Tesla reopened reservations in September at $50,000, with $5,000 due on a credit card and $45,000 by wire.
Reservations are open in the US, Canada and China, as per CNBC
Tesla has not published a reservation count.
Morningstar projects about 2,000 Roadster sales a year, against 1.6 million vehicles Tesla sold last year.
The original 2017 deposit holders are still waiting
Sam Altman publicly mocked the delay by posting his refund request.
What it means
The Tesla Roadster is a "halo" car, is not seen as a profit driver. Musk himself once called it a “small potato situation” that would not move the needle financially.
The upside is attention and a link between Tesla and SpaceX.
The risk is stock reaction.
Tesla shares fell 6% after the 2019 Cybertruck reveal and 8.3% after the 2024 Cybercab unveiling.
Friday is the first trading session after the reveal. Analysts say a dazzling stunt with no price or date could repeat that pattern.
For other carmakers: Probably little direct pressure. Rivals like Rimac, Porsche and Lucid sell actual cars today, and one outlet notes that the Rimac Nevera, which you can actually buy and powered by four independent permanent-magnet AC synchronous electric motors that drive each wheel individually, beats the Roadster’s original numbers.
A thruster hover doesn’t help on a road. The lasting effect may be marketing: rivals now have to compete with spectacle as well as lap times.
For consumers:
At $200,000 or more with a 2027 or 2028 target, it is a collector’s bet.
A $50,000 deposit means lending Tesla money, possibly for years.
The thruster features are a stunt, not an everyday benefit. A critic quoted by Electrek says they add weight and cost and do nothing on a normal drive.
Watch for the three numbers still missing: final price, production date and a plan for the 2017 deposits.
The demo reportedly delivered the spectacle.
What buyers care: whether a car exists that they can drive.