Tesla unveils delayed Roadster prototype, hints at SpaceX tie‑up

Tesla unveiled its long‑delayed next‑generation Roadster on Thursday at a SpaceX test site in McGregor, Texas. The livestream began at 7:55 p.m. local time (8:55 p.m. ET) and featured Elon Musk, design chief Franz von Holzhausen and vehicle‑engineering VP Lars Moravy. Musk said the show would reveal “crazy stuff” born from a partnership between the world’s best car maker and the world’s best rocket maker. The white two‑seater raced up a curved ramp, stuck upside‑down, vaulted off and hovered before landing. Moravy demonstrated a 0‑60 mph time of under one second, according to Tesla’s timer. The prototype uses steer‑by‑wire steering, a yoke, and SpaceX‑derived thrusters, carbon‑overlay pressure vessels, diffusers and powerful fans to achieve the hover effect. Production is slated for 2028, but a price and full specifications were not disclosed, and Musk warned the car is not necessarily safety‑optimized or street‑legal. The model will be the last Tesla built without the Full‑Self‑Driving system. The reveal reignited talk of a Tesla‑SpaceX merger. Both firms have shared staff and payments for years, and speculation grew after SpaceX’s June 2026 IPO. COO Gwynne Shotwell hinted a merger could ease Musk’s workload, and Barclays analyst Dan Levy projected a deal could close before the end of 2026. Reservations reopened this year with $50,000 deposits from buyers in the United States, Canada and China. Early backers like Lawrence O’Connor, who placed a $250,000 Founders Edition deposit in 2017, called the demo “off the charts.” Tesla is due to report third‑quarter earnings on Wednesday.

Context

The Roadster project began in 2017, and repeated delays have made each new update a major media moment. The potential merger would combine automotive and aerospace capabilities, a move that could reshape both industries.