Are Those Who Forget Tesla History Doomed to Repeat It?
Let’s turn back the clock to 2017, when Tesla unveiled the 2nd generation Roadster, a successor to the original Lotus-based model. It was a 2+2 targa claiming a 620-mile range, 0-60 mph in 1.9 seconds, all for a starting price of $200,000 (requiring a $50,000 deposit). A “SpaceX” option (which added “cold gas thrusters” to the car) was announced in 2018, and production was promised to start in 2020.
Now, nine years later—with exactly zero Roadsters built—history appears to be repeating itself, with some notable changes. The new Roadster looks different—a bit less curvy, a bit more angular, and reportedly inspired by the SR-71 Blackbird, among others—and no longer has a rear seat. It now features Lamborghini-style scissor doors and gold-tinted windows intended to evoke astronaut space suits. Oh, and the roof panels are removable—which is nice for some fresh air, but sorry, that’s no “roadster.”
But, of course, that’s not the whole story. The more interesting/controversial/potentially imaginary news includes the high-suction fans that provide unprecedented grip, and a cold thruster system that compresses air and sends it through ten exhaust ports to literally fly (or, more accurately, hop). There are three variants: Performance (no thrusters), Limited (four thrusters), and “invite-only” Rocket (ten thrusters, one-seat only, a “full flight system” and questionable legality). The thrusters also allow an alleged 0-60 time of 0.81 seconds.
Price? Range? Battery size? Construction? Volumes?
Those all remained undisclosed, despite a planned launch in 2028, “for real” (says Musk). Tesla has already banked quite a few $50,000 deposits since 2017 that continue to gather interest; I’m sure there are people out there still willing to cough up that sum for something that, once again, may never happen. One only needs to look at Tesla’s recent track record of broken promises and missed goals to reach a conclusion about the likelihood of the Roadster ever being built.
That being said, if you haven’t seen the video, it is certainly an impressive demonstration of something that may or may not be repeatable. But we’ll likely have to wait a couple of years to see what the next story in this crazy saga turns out to be...
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