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Tesla is hoping a flight demonstration can give its ground-bound auto business a lift.<\/p>\n
The electric vehicle maker unveiled its long-delayed new Roadster sports car Thursday in Texas, reviving and refreshing a model that Tesla stopped producing more than a decade ago. When it goes on sale, the high-end vehicle will give the company another offering in a slimmed-down line-up revolving primarily around a pair of mid-priced consumer models.<\/p>\n
The showcase wasn\u2019t a typical pull-the-sheet-off-the-car reveal, though. Tesla made the Roadster fly. Sort of.<\/p>\n
Powered by air thrusters developed in partnership with SpaceX engineers, the prototype vehicle drove up a ramp and did a controlled flip before descending to the ground. It then used the system to jump and flip over Tesla\u2019s vehicle line-up, including the Tesla Semi, and performed other stunts including \u201cjumping\u201d and flipping over in mid-air using the thrusters.<\/p>\n
Roadster transforms in Track Mode<\/p>\n
These aero features aren\u2019t 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<\/p>\n
\u2014 Tesla (@Tesla) October 16, 2026<\/p>\n
The demonstration, held at a SpaceX rocket testing facility near Waco and livestreamed online, came after years of promises to bring back the Roadster model. Elon Musk, the chief executive officer of both Tesla and SpaceX, has been hyping up the return, saying it \u201cmight be one of the most spectacular demos ever.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe need an audience to prove that it\u2019s not AI or SI,\u201d Musk said on stage Thursday. \u201cYou\u2019re going to see the results of what happens when you have a collaboration with the world\u2019s best car company and the world\u2019s best rocket company.\u201d<\/p>\n
The vehicle, which is designed to lean into aerospace aesthetics, features two seats and Cybertruck style steer-by wire-system. Tesla showed a video of the vehicle accelerating from zero to 60 miles per hour in under 1 second.<\/p>\n
Invite only<\/p>\n
Still, the long-overdue vehicle isn\u2019t expected to start production until 2028, and frustrated commuters won\u2019t be able to fly over traffic jams just yet.<\/p>\n
The Roadster website allows reservations for the performance road-ready version of the vehicle, and a limited-release \u201cthrust\u201d race-ready package that adds the acceleration thrusters and multi-mode suction system.<\/p>\n
The flying version is reserved for the invite-only \u201cRocket\u201d package, and that single-seat isn\u2019t approved for public roads.<\/p>\n
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Tesla\u2019s auto business could use a boost, after consecutive annual sales declines and criticism over a stagnant product lineup. While Musk is working to reorient the company around futuristic business lines such as artificial intelligence and robots, EV sales still account for the majority of the company\u2019s revenue and profit.<\/p>\n
Prior to the event, Andrew Rocco, a stock strategist at Zacks Investment Research, said the demonstration could generate enthusiasm for Tesla, but ultimately a high price tag and small total addressable market mean the Roadster will likely do little to change Tesla\u2019s sales or earnings prospects.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s going to be an exciting product. Likely, it\u2019s going to build a lot of hype, but I don\u2019t think that it\u2019s going to be a needle mover,\u201d Rocco said. \u201cMusk loves to build hype around the brand.\u201d<\/p>\n
The flashy stunt brings attention to the company and underscores Tesla\u2019s efforts to be seen as a boundary-pushing, tech-forward company. Executives have also emphasised that the Roadster is an ode to manual driving, even as the company increasingly focuses on autonomy.<\/p>\n
The vehicle has been subject to numerous delays since it was first announced in 2017. The original Roadster, Tesla\u2019s first product, was launched in 2008 and discontinued in 2012.<\/p>\n
Garrett Nelson, a senior equity research analyst at CFRA, said the revived Roadster is \u201clong overdue\u201d and the Tesla brand could use a buzzy new model.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019ve had this lull in their product pipeline for years now,\u201d Nelson said.<\/p>\n
Two takeaways from tonight\u2019s Roadster event.<\/p>\n
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1. It was an engineering flex with no commercial value beyond embarrassing traditional car makers.<\/p>\n
2. Elon can\u2019t wait to bring $TSLA and $SPCX together.<\/p>\n
Sent via Twitter for iPhone.<\/p>\n
View original tweet.<\/p>\n
The new version adds to Tesla\u2019s limited consumer vehicle line-up, which currently consists of the Model 3 and Model Y, as well as the slow-selling Cybertruck. Tesla, which discontinued two consumer models earlier this year, also makes the commercial Semi truck and is producing a two-person robotaxi known as the Cybercab, which isn\u2019t yet for sale to outside customers.<\/p>\n
Tesla has suggested for years that the next Roadster could include a SpaceX option package. Some investors and analysts have cited overlap between the companies as justification for a merger.<\/p>\n
Musk has talked recently about the ways that his two largest companies interact, including on a recent earnings call when he said Tesla overlaps \u201con so many fronts with SpaceX.\u201d He pointed in particular to Terafab, a joint effort by the companies to build a semiconductor plant.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve seen the companies grow closer and closer,\u201d Nelson said. \u201cIt\u2019s approaching the point where Musk can make the argument that the companies collaborate so closely that it just makes sense to merge.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a9 2026 Bloomberg<\/p>\n