Tesla Reveals New Roadster with 0‑60 in 0.81 s and Flight Capability

Tesla held a live reveal outside SpaceX’s McGregor, Texas site on Thursday night. The concept car climbed a curved ramp, inverted, hovered with a fan‑powered suction system, and then used cold‑gas thrusters to right itself and land. Elon Musk said the vehicle could go 0‑60 mph in 0.81 s.

Technical Details

The car’s aerodynamics center on a multi‑mode fan that pulls air from beneath it, giving it more than 2 g of downforce when inverted. Ten high‑pressure air thrusters sit in the rear diffuser and on the fenders; they can push the car up, sideways or forward, allowing it to perform mid‑air flips and short hops. Tesla says the compressed‑air tanks can be refilled by the car’s own systems, so the thrusters need no fuel.

Tesla has announced three trim levels. The Performance trim is road‑ready, seats two and has a 0‑60 time under 1.6 s. The Thrust trim adds rear thrusters and can reach 0‑60 in under 0.9 s, while the Rocket trim is a single‑seat, all‑flight version that Tesla calls invite‑only and could hit 0‑60 in under 0.59 s. Production is slated to start at Giga Texas in 2027 or 2028, but the company has not yet released a range, motor layout or battery capacity, and it remains unclear how many people with earlier reservations can receive the new model.