All About Cars / Tesla Roadster

NEWS · EXPLAINED · 17 October 2026 · About 9 min read

The new Tesla Roadster explained

What Tesla showed on 15 October

The event was livestreamed from a SpaceX test site in McGregor, Texas (Fox Business). In the main demonstration, the car drove up a curved ramp, stayed attached to it while upside down using fan-based suction, then was launched off the end by cold-gas thrusters. It rolled in mid-air and landed on its wheels. In a second stunt it jumped over a row of cars and a semi-truck and landed on the far side (Fox Business, CBS News).

Two details matter. First, the demo car had no one inside it; Edmunds, which attended, says it was remotely controlled. Second, "flying" is generous. A fact check by Yahoo Autos found the videos authentic but described short launches and controlled falls, with no sustained flight over any distance. Musk told the audience that flying cars are real, and also acknowledged success was not guaranteed (CBS News).

Tesla also showed a straight-line run to 60 mph and says it measured 0.81 seconds. No independent timing has been published.

CNBC and Electrek both noted that the SpaceX link has fuelled speculation about a Tesla and SpaceX merger. That is speculation, not something either company announced in the coverage we read.

The three versions

Tesla treats Thrust and Rocket as add-ons to the Performance car (Electrek). Here is how the three compare, using the trim details Tesla published after the event.

The design is a big change from the 2017 prototype. Tesla says it draws on the SR-71 and F-35 and follows the same angular "Cyber" style as the Cybertruck. Electrek reports hidden headlights, a full-length rear light, and a body and structure made with magnesium, titanium and carbon fibre. Inside there is a yoke instead of a steering wheel, with steer-by-wire, a central touchscreen and a fixed seating position (Electrek, Edmunds).

The numbers: claimed, shown and unknown

What those 0-60 times mean in g

A time to 60 mph tells you the average acceleration. 60 mph is about 26.8 metres per second, so dividing that by the time gives the average, and dividing again by 9.81 turns it into g (one g is the pull of gravity). This is our own arithmetic on Tesla's claims, and it ignores launch details.

That is why Tesla added thrusters. Tyres can only push on the road up to the limit of their grip. Tesla says its thruster system produces four to five times the force the tyres can (Fox Business), which is how it explains numbers this high.

How the "flying" works

The car does not have wings or rotors. It uses cold-gas thrusters: tanks of compressed gas with nozzles. Opening a nozzle releases the gas, and the reaction pushes the car the other way, like a balloon letting go. Nothing burns. Musk described it as high-pressure air (CBS News), and InsideEVs reports ten nozzles using about 250 kg of compressed gas, with the car able to refill its tanks from compressed air.

Electrek reports that the gas is stored in carbon-fibre wrapped pressure vessels packed into spare space in the car, and that the amount stored sets the "flight time". So the stunts are short by design.

The upside-down ramp stunt used suction fans. Fans of this kind pull air out from under the car, so the higher pressure of the air around it presses the car onto the surface. InsideEVs reports that the system can create up to 2 g of downforce, which Musk says could help set track records.

Will any of it be road legal?

Tesla's website says the flying Rocket version is not approved for public roads (CBS News, Yahoo Autos). Musk said some features may not be legal in every jurisdiction (InsideEVs). CBS reports that the US Federal Aviation Administration said the vehicle does not meet its definition of an aircraft, and that the safety regulator NHTSA did not respond to a request for comment. Electrek notes it is unclear whether the thrusters and fans could pass US vehicle safety rules, and that using them could affect warranty cover.

For the UK: none of the coverage we found says how any version would be approved for UK roads, whether a right-hand-drive car is planned, or what UK pricing might be. Treat UK availability as unknown.

Price, reservations and release date

• Price: none announced for any version. In 2017 Tesla quoted $200,000 for the base car and $250,000 for a limited Founders Series, then later removed the price from its site (Wikipedia).
• Performance reservation: $50,000 in total, with $5,000 due straight away, which Tesla calls fully refundable, and the remaining $45,000 within 10 days or the reservation is cancelled (Electrek, Edmunds).
• Thrust and Rocket: reports differ. Edmunds and Fox Business put a Thrust reservation at $250,000 in total, InsideEVs says all three versions need a refundable $50,000, and CBS says Thrust cannot be reserved yet. Check Tesla's own page for the current terms.
• Release date: Musk said production starts in 2028 (Electrek, Fox Business, CBS News, Edmunds).

Nine years of delays

The dates above come from Electrek's timeline and Wikipedia. Given that record, it is sensible to treat 2028 as a target, not a promise.

2017 promise versus 2026 reveal

The headline change is the range. On the figures reported, the new car is promising about half the distance the 2017 car did, while claiming far quicker acceleration. We will update this once Tesla publishes battery and range details, because the two are linked: a bigger battery adds weight and cost. If you want to understand what battery size and kW figures mean, see our guide to EV batteries, range and charging.

The first Roadster, and a UK connection

This is Tesla's second Roadster. The first was built from 2008 to 2012 on a chassis based on the Lotus Elise. It used a 53 kWh lithium-ion battery with an official EPA range of 244 miles and took about 3.7 to 3.9 seconds to reach 60 mph. About 2,450 were sold. Wikipedia describes it as the first highway-legal, series-production all-electric car to use lithium-ion cells.

The UK link: Lotus built the unpowered cars, known as gliders, in England, and Tesla fitted the electric powertrain either in California or near Hethel in Norfolk, England (Wikipedia).

What we still do not know

• The price of any version, in dollars or pounds.
• Battery size, motor layout, charging speed, weight and real-world range.
• Whether the Performance car, and any thruster option, can be sold for UK roads, and whether a right-hand-drive version will exist.
• How the claimed acceleration holds up in independent testing.
• The exact reservation terms for Thrust and Rocket.

What it means if you are interested

You cannot buy, test drive or see delivery dates for this car yet. CBS quotes analyst Dan Ives saying the Roadster is unlikely to move Tesla's sales volumes or revenue in a meaningful way, though it could help the brand's image at the high end. He expects production to be limited.

If you are thinking about paying a reservation, read the terms on Tesla's site first, because they have changed over the years and reports of the current terms differ. This is general information, not financial advice.

If you want a quick electric car you can buy now, compare options with our car comparison tool, work out running costs with the EV vs petrol calculator, and check charging near you with the EV charging finder.

Last updated 17 October 2026. We will add to this post when Tesla publishes more details. DS Auto Labs is not affiliated with Tesla.