Tesla's new Roadster can actually fly
Tesla has finally unveiled its long-delayed Roadster — a two-seat sports car with SpaceX thrusters that drove upside down, flipped through the air and jumped a row of cars at its Texas launch.
Tesla unveiled the long-delayed second-generation Roadster at a SpaceX test facility in Texas on Thursday, with chief executive Elon Musk presenting the two-seat sports car as a flying car fitted with rocket-style thrusters.
During a driverless demonstration, the car drove upside down on a curved ramp using a suction system, launched into the air, flipped and landed on its wheels using compressed-air thrusters. It later jumped clean over a row of parked Tesla vehicles.
The Roadster carries 10 nozzles and ultra-high-pressure air tanks developed with SpaceX. Tesla says it can accelerate from 0 to 60 mph in under one second and reach a top speed of 230 mph, which would make it the quickest production car ever built.
Musk admitted that success is not guaranteed and questioned whether the car will be legal on public roads in every jurisdiction. Production is planned for 2028, nearly a decade after the Roadster prototype was first shown in 2017.
Reporting based on coverage from Reuters.
