Tesla Roadster 2026: 6 Things You Didn't Know About It.

On 15 October 2026, Tesla finally revealed its second-generation Roadster at a SpaceX test site in Texas, and it did something no production car has done on a livestream: it flew. The car drove up a curved ramp until it was upside down, launched off the end, flipped in mid-air and landed on its wheels. It then used thrusters to hop over a line of Tesla vehicles.

Tesla claims it can reach 60 mph in under a second and top 230 mph. But the most interesting details were easy to miss. Here are six of them.

1. It's 8 years late

Tesla first showed the Roadster as a prototype in 2017 and said deliveries would begin in 2020. Production is now planned for 2028, more than a decade after that first reveal.

2. There are three versions

Tesla's reservation page lists three variants: Performance, built for the road; Thrust, which adds acceleration thrusters; and Rocket, an invite-only, single-seat model with a full flight system.

3. No rocket fuel, just air

The “rocket” thrusters are cold-gas thrusters developed with SpaceX engineers. They run on compressed air stored in high-pressure tanks packed into the car, and Tesla says the system can generate four to five times the force the tyres can. TechCrunch notes the tanks are carbon-fibre pressure vessels, the same type that has been linked to past SpaceX rocket failures.

4. It can drive upside down

Before the thrusters fire, a fan-based suction system holds the car against the ramp until it is fully inverted. That combination of suction and thrust is what made the flip possible.

5. Nobody knows who regulates it

The Federal Aviation Administration told CBS News the Roadster doesn't meet its definition of an aircraft, and Tesla's own website says the planned flying model isn't approved for public roads. It's unclear which agency would oversee a car that can leave the ground.

6. The price is still a secret

Tesla didn't announce a price at the event. Back in 2017, the company quoted $200,000 for the base Roadster.

Why build it at all?

Even Musk hedged, saying the car's success “is not guaranteed” but that it “will probably work.” Analysts don't expect the Roadster to move Tesla's revenue much, and production will likely be limited. Its real value may be the attention: it put Tesla's engineering, and its close ties to SpaceX, at the centre of the conversation a week before the company's quarterly earnings.

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For the full story of the reveal, read: Tesla Unveils Flying Roadster: Everything You Need to Know.