USA
Tesla unveiled the second-generation Roadster on 15 October 2026 at SpaceX’s test facility in McGregor, Texas, and used the event to show what the car can do rather than what it is. A prototype drove up a looping ramp, held to the surface by a fan system under the car that Tesla says creates enough suction to hold it upside down, then left the ramp on thrusters supplied by SpaceX, barrel-rolled and landed. Production is planned for 2028, according to Elon Musk.
What was shown
Two prototypes appeared. The one that did the stunts had plain hubcap-style wheels, and a second car with more intricately styled wheels was driven on stage, Car and Driver reported. The thrusters are fed by ultra-high-pressure air tanks that the car can refill itself, not by fuel.
Tesla’s site lists three versions. The Performance has the active aerodynamics and suction system, the Thrust adds cold-gas thrusters at the rear, and the single-seat Rocket adds thrusters around the body that Tesla says allow it to fly. The page states 0-60 mph “in under 1 second” for the Thrust version. At the event the first prototype run was timed at a claimed one second and the second at a claimed 0.8 seconds. Musk said the team expects to beat that. All of these are claims from a prototype running on thrusters, and Tesla has not given a 0-100 km/h time.
Top speed, legality and what is missing
Musk said the Roadster will do “over 230 mph”, about 370 km/h, and said Tesla wants to reach half the speed of sound. Tesla has not published a battery size, power output, range or price. Reservations are open on its site.
On legality, Tesla’s page says the car is “not approved for public road use”. Musk told the audience he is not sure it is legal in all jurisdictions, but that there will be a car someone can own. Which of the three versions that car will be is not stated.
A car that was due in 2020
Tesla showed the first concept of this Roadster on 16 November 2017, at the end of its Semi event, with production originally set for 2020, according to Wikipedia. The start date was delayed multiple times before this reveal set 2028.
