Tesla flies a Roadster in Waco, but the invite-only Rocket edition cannot use public roads

The demonstration car carried 600 liters of compressed air, 10 directional cold-gas thruster nozzles and a 2G suction-fan system that The Verge said was directly inspired by SpaceX hardware. Tesla says the run reached 60 mph in under a second, a figure the publication described as pushing the outer limits of physics rather than a specification likely to appear in a showroom. Reaction on X, a platform The Verge described as already inclined to absolve Musk, was enthusiastic.

The version used in the stunt, which Tesla calls the "Rocket" configuration, will be offered by invitation only. It removes the passenger seat to make room for ultra-high-pressure gas tanks and trades road practicality for short bursts of thruster-powered levitation. Tesla acknowledges the configuration will not be approved for public road use, leaving unresolved where an owner could actually drive it.

Tesla did not disclose pricing or battery specifications at the event. The Roadster's range estimate has been lowered from 600 miles to 300 miles, and Musk pushed the production window to 2028, more than a decade after early adopters paid $50,000 deposits.

Musk has described the Roadster as a "small potato" project that will not move Tesla's finances the way mass-market models such as the Model Y do. He also called it "the last best driver's car," a phrase The Verge read as a nod to his expectation that autonomous driving will define the company's future.

Some analysts have theorized that the re-release is intended to set the stage for a rumored merger between Tesla and SpaceX. Musk's supporters on X have openly asked for such a combination, which would most likely dilute their own equity, The Verge reported.

Tesla has fallen behind rivals in the electric hypercar segment. BYD's Yangwang U9 Extreme uses four electric motors, one more than the Roadster, to produce 3,000 horsepower and reach 308 mph in testing, beating the 268 mph record held by Rimac's Nevera. The McMurtry Speirling single-seater holds the 0-to-60 mph record at 1.35 seconds. The Roadster may be able to beat that time, but independent testing has not confirmed it.

The Verge concluded that the demonstration worked as publicity and as a display of engineering, while competitors including Rimac, Porsche and BYD continue to sell track-ready hypercars. It described the Roadster run as useless as a viable product and, as a half-hour exhibition of engineering muscle, a sight to behold.