Elon Musk promises a next-generation roadster six years later

Six years ago, Elon Musk advertised a next-generation roadster, the name of of Tesla debut car from 2008. A facelifted version was never produced, but Musk again promises that a new roadster is on the way.

“Tonight we radically increased the design goals for the new Tesla Roadster,” Musk wrote to X as part of a series of Tuesday night posts. “There will never be another car like this, if it can even be called a car.”

“I think it has a chance to be the most mind-blowing product demo of all time,” he wrote, adding that it will hit 60 mph in less than a second, “and that’s the least interesting part.”

Musk first promoted the next-generation Roadster concept in June 2018 in a series of tweets. At the time, he said, “SpaceX’s option package for the new Tesla Roadster will include ~10 small rocket thrusters arranged seamlessly around the car.” The engines will improve speed and braking and may “even allow the Tesla to fly,” he wrote on this time.

On Tuesday, he responded to his old tweets saying “You’ll love the new Roadster more than your house.”

Tesla did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Musk’s renewed remarks followed news that Chinese rival BYD unveiled a new electric supercar called the U9, which can reach speeds similar to high-end models from companies such as Ferrari.

BYD’s electric supercar, which is said to be able to reach a top speed of around 192 mph, is scheduled for delivery to customers this summer. Although BYD has no plans to sell its cars in the US, Tesla competes with BYD in mainland China and other markets.

Tesla’s market share in China fell in January to 6.1 percent, while BYD’s share stood at 29.2 percent, according to data from the China Automobile Association, cited by Morgan Stanley China Autos researchers in a note on Wednesday.

Musk’s grandiose promises are nothing new. His frequent failures to fulfill them are the subject of an online pledge-tracking website called Elon Musk. Today. The site noted Wednesday that it has been “1,876 days since Elon Musk said the new Roadster would use rocket technology that would allow it to fly.”

In Tesla’s latest quarterly shareholder update, the company said the new Roadster is still “under development” with no pilot production line built and no production location selected.

“Musk is a master of selective disclosure,” said Warren Anner, an automotive technology expert and former competitive driving instructor.

Anner said it was unclear how a supercar would benefit Tesla’s business, adding that it was “mostly about ego.”

“If you have the right credit rating, you can walk into a Tesla showroom and buy a Model S Plaid today,” Ahner said. This “already has far more power than 99% of drivers on the road are capable of handling”.

Ross Gerber, a longtime Tesla fan and recent critic of Musk, agreed that it would be difficult to “move the needle” for Tesla with a refreshed Roadster.

“If they make a great car that people will talk about, there can be a halo effect,” said Gerber, chief executive of wealth management firm Gerber Kawasaki. He compared it to the recently launched Cybertruck. “Everybody wants to watch it and stuff,” Gerber said. “But does that mean it will help Tesla sell other cars?”

Gerber said Tesla should focus more on its affordable EV, which it calls its “next-generation” platform. He added that Musk’s outspokenness on political issues “has been really detrimental” to the company and shareholders.

“I don’t think he’s focused,” Gerber said. “And I don’t think he’s trying to sell cars at all. That put Tesla in a really tough position where we had to reduce our investment in Tesla because we don’t think the opportunity is as good now that Elon is out, so a lot of the company’s core customers.”

On Musk’s X account, which claims 174.1 million followers, Musk has recently condemned immigrants and disparaged diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives in medicine and other fields.

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