The next-gen Tesla Roadster will be unveiled in a few hours, and speculation is already rampant. The online chatter shows what people are expecting from the new Roadster, which might finally go into production after a delay of 9 years.
But before that, here’s what Tesla had promised back in 2017, when it first showcased the Roadster.
The Tesla Roadster was supposed to feature a tri-motor setup generating over 7300 lb-ft of torque. It was estimated that the car would accelerate from 0-60 mph in just 1.9 seconds and have a top speed of over 250 mph. The initial version was powered by a 200 kWh battery pack, offering a claimed range of around 620 miles.
These figures seem plausible by modern electric hypercar standards. We’ve already seen hypercars such as the Rimac Nevera, Lotus Evija, Pininfarina Battista, and the Yangwang U9 achieve similar figures.
The word on the street is that the new Tesla Roadster may come in two variants: Standard and SpaceX. It could be powered by four electric motors featuring Tesla’s Carbon-Wrapped Rotor tech that enables higher rotational speeds and reduced energy losses.
Recent patent filings suggest that the Roadster will be equipped with a retractable rear wing similar to the McLaren W1. Tesla is also rumored to have developed its own system similar to the McMurtry Spéirling that essentially sucks the car to the ground to achieve insane cornering speeds.
It would be interesting to see if Tesla can offer all that performance and modern tech for around $250,000, as it had initially promised. It looks highly unlikely, though.
