Tesla on Thursday unveiled a redesigned, thruster-equipped next-generation Roadster at an outdoor event near Waco, Texas, delivering the long-promised demonstration of a car that can briefly leave the ground. The reveal had been pushed back twice from an original October 1 date, with Tesla citing severe-weather concerns since the demonstration could only be staged outside.
In the show itself, the Roadster drove up a multi-story vertical ramp, clinging to the surface with downforce from a SpaceX-supplied fan system before flipping over using its cold-gas thrusters to settle back onto the pavement. It then used attitude-control thrusters to jump over a line of parked Tesla vehicles — a Cybercab, Cybertruck, Tesla Semi, Model Y and Model 3 — in what engineering VP Lars Moravy called a "kick flip."
So it can basically fly like a rocket. And it could do rolls. It could do, like, crazy gymnastics. Whatever you want, really. Now, I should say that this is not necessarily a safety-optimized car. But it takes the fun meter to 11 out of 10.
Elon Musk, Tesla CEO
Tesla's website was updated after the event with specifications for three trims. The entry "Performance" tier seats two and is claimed to reach 60 mph in under 1.6 seconds; the mid-tier "Thrust" trim adds rear-mounted cold-gas thrusters and is claimed at under 0.9 seconds; and a single-seat "Rocket" flagship, ringed with ten thrusters for in-air maneuvering, is claimed at under 0.59 seconds. Those published figures sit awkwardly next to the number Tesla touted live on stage — 0.81 seconds — and outlets covering the event have not reconciled which configuration produced which claim, so the figures should be treated as Tesla's own marketing numbers rather than independently verified results.
A decade of promises
The second-generation Roadster was first teased as a surprise at Tesla's 2017 Semi event, when Musk promised 1.9-second 0-60 acceleration, a 620-mile range and delivery starting in 2020. Customers who put down $50,000 deposits — or $250,000 for a limited "Founders Series" — have waited through delays in 2020, 2021, 2023 and 2024 as Tesla prioritized the Model Y and struggled with the Cybertruck. Musk periodically revived interest by adding ever-more-dramatic claims, including the "SpaceX package" of cold-gas thrusters he first floated in 2018.
Even this year's reveal slipped repeatedly: Musk said in late 2025 that a demonstration would happen by year's end, then moved the date to April 1, 2026 at a shareholder meeting — joking the April Fools' timing gave him "some deniability" — before the event was pushed again and finally landed, after October's weather delay, on Thursday.
Reaction and what comes next
The nearly decade-long wait let rivals close in on territory Tesla once claimed for itself: Rimac's Nevera, Porsche's Taycan and track-focused models from Chinese automakers such as BYD have all shipped high-performance electric cars in the interim. Musk has downplayed the Roadster's business significance, calling it a "small potato situation" that will not "move the needle in a major way financially," and has acknowledged the car is not road-legal in its demonstrated form — it would need sign-off from the FAA and NHTSA that Tesla has not sought. Some analysts have speculated the reveal is also meant to showcase engineering ties ahead of a rumored Tesla-SpaceX merger.
No price was announced for the Performance or Thrust trims beyond Tesla's existing $50,000 and $250,000 reservation tiers, and the Rocket trim remains invite-only and barred from public roads. Musk said production would begin in 2028 — a target that, given the Roadster's history of missed deadlines dating back to that original 2020 promise, outlets covering the event noted should be treated with caution until cars actually reach customers.
