Overview
- Tesla staged a driverless public demo at SpaceX’s McGregor, Texas test site on Thursday that showed a Roadster climb a ramp, invert, perform short airborne maneuvers and land under propulsor control.
- The prototype uses multiple compressed‑air cold‑gas propulsors fed from very high‑pressure tanks plus a multimode suction system to add downforce; Tesla displayed a 0–60 mph time of 0.81 seconds and cited top speeds above 370 km/h and roughly 480 km range.
- Tesla announced three configurations called Performance, Thrust and Rocket, opened reservations with deposits listed at $50,000 and $250,000 for some trims, and said production is targeted to begin in 2028 while Rocket remains invitation‑only.
- Key limits remain because the demo ran without a human occupant in a controlled test setting, the performance and flight claims lack independent verification, and regulators, safety standards and cost and scaling challenges must be resolved before road‑legal sale.
- The Roadster follows a project first promised in 2017 that was repeatedly delayed, and observers say the demo may boost interest in high‑end EVs and space‑grade engineering but will also prompt close regulatory and safety scrutiny if Tesla presses toward production.