Tesla debuted a new Roadster EV yesterday. Elon Musk being Elon Musk, there was plenty of wackiness involved. To experience said wackiness, you’ll have to hand over a bunch of money. In the most extreme example, you’ll also have to know the right people.
Three versions of the Roadster exist — the Performance, Thrust, and Rocket versions. The latter is the most bonkers option, capable of 0-100km/h in a mere 0.59 seconds. It also includes SpaceX-facilitated thrust vectoring and actual flight. That means it’s not allowed on public roads, which is fine. It’s also only available by invitation. Tesla has to offer you the chance to buy one. Spoiler: They won’t. Not you, anyway.
Roadster leaves the road
Roadster event livestream https://t.co/G0jU4mWfid
— Tesla (@Tesla) October 15, 2026
Y0u owe it to yourself to sit through the whole Tesla Roadster presentation above. All of Tesla’s new cars use something called a multi-mode fan to remove air from beneath the vehicle, increasing downforce. There’s enough suction — nearly five tons of it — to leave the vehicle parked almost horizontally while upside down. That’s not a practical application, unless you’re really struggling for parking at Bob Burnquist’s house.
Instead, the fan tech allows for faster acceleration and increased stability while cornering. The Performance model Roadster reaches 100km/h in 1.6 seconds. The Thrust version does it in 0.9 seconds, while including SpaceX cold gas thrusters pointing to the rear. The Rocket version has those thrusters all over the vehicle, enabling ‘flight’. All three models also have active surfaces on the rear and side for managing downforce and acceleration.
The thrusters are Carbon Fiber Overwrapped Pressure Vessels (CFOPV) that, in the case of the Thrust’s four rear-facing units, generate more than 80 kN of force. The Rocket version has a further six of these underneath the vehicle for altitude and rotational adjustment. The compressed air canisters can refill themselves, but we’ve got no idea what the reload time might be after an actual barrel roll.
Add that to a SpaceX flight control and landing system (in the case of the Rocket) and electronic steer-by-wire, and you’ve got perhaps the most advanced car on the planet. Even the ‘lesser’ models will take some getting used to, since they’ll generate more g-force than most other vehicles.
Not that you’ll ever see a Tesla Roadster EV in your driveway. The Performance version needs a $5,000 deposit, followed by a further $45,000 ten days later. That’s at least R800,000. The Thrust requires the same deposit, followed by another $245,000 payment (R4.1 million). After that, Tesla will get around to telling everyone what these vehicles actually cost when production starts in 2028.
