Tesla plans to unveil its next-generation Roadster at a Texas facility on Thursday, nearly nine years after announcing the electric sports car and beginning to take deposits. The event will be closely watched for firm pricing, production targets and delivery timing after repeated delays. The car is expected to be a high-end, limited-volume model, and Tesla has previously said it could use SpaceX-related technology. It is unlikely to make a material difference to Tesla’s near-term financial results.
Texas event set for SpaceX test facility
The presentation is scheduled to begin at 7:55 p.m. local time on Thursday and is expected to be livestreamed. It will take place at SpaceX’s test facility in McGregor, Texas, near Waco. Federal Aviation Administration filings show that Tesla established a temporary flight restriction around the venue. The company had planned a demonstration for Oct. 1 but canceled it because of weather.
Tesla has recently reopened reservations for the new Roadster, accepting $50,000 deposits from prospective buyers in the United States, Canada and China. Management is expected to provide more detail at the event on pricing, the vehicle and production targets. Those specifics have not yet been made public, leaving reservation holders awaiting an updated delivery schedule.
Roadster timeline stretches back to 2017
Chief Executive Elon Musk first presented the redesigned Roadster concept in November 2017 and discussed a SpaceX option package the following June. He said the package would include about 10 small rocket thrusters positioned around the car, which he said could improve acceleration and braking and might even “make a Tesla fly.” The new model is expected to use SpaceX technologies such as cold-gas thrusters, but Tesla has yet to confirm the final configuration or explain how the features will work.
Tesla began accepting $50,000 deposits in 2017, but the car has missed successive delivery targets. Musk said last October that he hoped to hold a Roadster demonstration by the end of 2025; that plan did not materialize. Thursday’s event is therefore relevant not just for the vehicle specifications, but also for whether Tesla can provide a more credible production timeline.
The first-generation Roadster was designed and developed by a team led by Tesla founding CEO Martin Eberhard. Based on the Lotus Elise chassis, it began deliveries in 2008, sold for about $100,000 and remained in production in limited numbers through 2012. The new model is also expected to serve a relatively small, high-end customer base, rather than Tesla’s mass-market business.
Reservation holders weigh the long wait
OpenAI co-founder Sam Altman has spoken publicly about his reservation. He said he was genuinely looking forward to the car and understood that products can be delayed, but that waiting seven and a half years was a long time. He later requested and received a refund. Altman and Musk are also involved in a lawsuit this year over OpenAI’s governance and ownership structure, a matter unrelated to the Roadster project.
Other reservation holders have kept their deposits. Lawrence O’Connor, founder and CEO of Austin-based Other World Computing, said he reserved a Founders Series Roadster in November 2017 and paid $250,000. He described the payment as an “interest-free loan” to the company and plans to attend Thursday’s event, saying he is eager to see a car that has been nearly nine years in the making.
For now, the Roadster’s significance lies mainly in whether Tesla can turn years of promotion into clear product and delivery information, rather than in any near-term revenue contribution. Tesla is scheduled to report third-quarter results after Wednesday’s market close, ahead of the Roadster presentation. The earnings report will address recent operating performance; the event will focus on a high-end model that has been delayed for years.