After nearly a decade of anticipation, Tesla is officially pulling the cover off its redesigned next-generation Roadster. The reveal, set for 8:55 p.m. ET this Thursday at a SpaceX site in McGregor, Texas, ends one of the longest "will they, won't they" sagas in the auto industry.
The Numbers
If you want in, the price tag sits at a cool $200,000, with a $50,000 reservation fee required to secure your spot. Despite the hefty cost, CEO Elon Musk has kept it 100 regarding the car's financial impact. He previously dismissed the project as a "small potato situation," noting it won't really move the needle for Tesla’s total revenue. Analysts expect sales of roughly 2,000 units annually—a drop in the bucket compared to the 1.6 million vehicles Tesla moved last year.
Why It Matters
Even if the Roadster won't pay the bills, it’s serving a different purpose: the "halo car" flex. Morningstar analyst Seth Goldstein notes that Tesla has been lacking a high-performance vehicle to flex its peak engineering and tech stack.
This isn't just another EV. Musk confirmed the design has been updated since the 2017 prototype, boasting that the new model features tech collaborations with SpaceX and can hit 0-60 mph in under a second. The timing is also a major vibe shift. While Tesla has been pivoting hard into AI, robotics, and its Cybercab project—even throttling production of the Model S and X to make room for Optimus robots—the Roadster reminds us that the brand still wants to lead in pure performance. It’s giving legacy energy, but with a modern, tech-heavy twist.
