Elon Musk showed off the new Tesla Roadster prototype Thursday that can briefly launch itself into the air using rocket-inspired thrusters, nearly a decade after the electric sports car was first announced.The stunt-filled demonstration offered a glimpse of Tesla’s ambitious plans for the long-delayed vehicle.
But the company has yet to announce a price or release date, and Musk, CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, said production would not begin until 2028 — eight years after the Roadster was originally expected to arrive.At a SpaceX testing facility in Texas, Musk told the live audience they were there to prove what they were about to see “was not AI or SI.”The vehicle, a collaboration between Tesla and SpaceX, then slowly drove up a curved ramp shaped like half of a rollercoaster loop before accelerating and launching itself off the ramp, hurdling over five other Tesla vehicles and bringing itself to a soft landing in a cloud of condensation using cold-gas thrusters.“Well, it worked!” Musk said after the stunt, adding that “it’s not necessarily a safety-optimized car.” TeslaTesla says a fan-based suction system creates downforce to hold the vehicle against the road’s surface, while self-refilling cold-gas thrusters power its airborne maneuvers.
He quipped, “This car really sucks.”Then the car accelerated toward the same five cars and jumped 27 feet in the air, according to Tesla, while performing a barrel roll and again brought itself down gently.For SubscribersFOR SUBSCRIBERSChina invites Katie Zacharia to visit more often after she said it lacks ‘proper toilets’FOR SUBSCRIBERSDiddy moved from NJ prison where he was living like a VIPFOR SUBSCRIBERSDemocrats eye a ‘once in a generation’ opportunity to flip state legislative chambersFOR SUBSCRIBERSAccess to water emerges as a key issue in races for governorFOR SUBSCRIBERSA quarter-billion dollars from Elon Musk leads the way as megadonors rush cash into the midtermsFOR SUBSCRIBERSRJ Mitte’...