Tesla Unveils Flying Roadster That Goes From 0 to 60 in Under a Second and From Deposit to Delivery in About 11 Years

McGREGOR, TEXAS — History was made Thursday night at a SpaceX test site near Waco, and I was watching it on a livestream, which is basically the same as being there.

Tesla showed off its next-generation Roadster, and it is the most game-changing vehicle I have ever seen on a screen. A white sports car raced up a curved ramp, clung to it upside down, vaulted off it, flipped in midair, hovered slowly and then landed, according to CNBC. I would like to see a Honda Civic try that.

“You’re going to see some crazy stuff tonight,” Elon Musk told the crowd. “You’re going to see the results of what happens when you have a collaboration with the world’s best car company and the world’s best rocket company.”

He was right. I saw crazy stuff.

The two-seater goes from zero to 60 miles per hour in under a second, according to Tesla’s own timer, which Lars Moravy, Tesla’s vice president of vehicle engineering, demonstrated live. Under a second. I have apps that take longer than that to ask me to rate them.

The car uses technology from SpaceX, including thrusters, carbon overlay pressure vessels, diffusers and powerful fans that let the car “do some gymnastics,” CNBC reported. It has a steering yoke and steer-by-wire. It is the first car I know of that can do a backflip. That is not a car. That is a paradigm.

Mr. Musk also said the Roadster will be the last vehicle Tesla makes that is meant to be driven by a human. So if you have ever wanted to personally drive a car upside down, this is your moonshot.

I had a quick call during the hover part with my co-founder about our startup, an app that reminds other apps to drink water. He asked how much the Roadster costs. Tesla did not announce a price. He asked when he could get one. Mr. Musk said it would enter production in 2028.

That is fast. In tech, 2028 is basically tomorrow.

Tesla has also reopened reservations, accepting $50,000 deposits from buyers in the U.S., Canada and China. I have not put one down yet, because my $50,000 is currently invested in my co-founder.

Some people online were negative, as people online often are. They pointed out that Tesla first took $50,000 deposits for this Roadster in 2017, when Mr. Musk first unveiled it. They noted that the company “has since missed every targeted delivery date,” CNBC wrote, including a demo Mr. Musk had hoped to hold before the end of 2025.

Sam Altman, the head of OpenAI, posted screenshots of his own reservation and refund request on X last year. “I really was excited for the car! And I understand delays,” Mr. Altman wrote. “But 7.5 years has felt like a long time to wait.” He got his refund. The two men later ended up in court over a separate matter, which I believe is how billionaires network.

One buyer who reserved a Founder’s Edition in November 2017 told CNBC he had effectively given Tesla an “interest-free loan” of $250,000. After Thursday’s show, he called it “off the charts.” That is the kind of customer loyalty you cannot buy. Well, you can. It costs $250,000.

Back in 2018, Mr. Musk tweeted that a “SpaceX option package” would put about 10 small rocket thrusters around the car and might “even allow a Tesla to fly.” Critics laughed. On Thursday, it hovered. Slowly. For a little while. Then it landed. Revolutionary.

I did the math on my phone after the stream. Tesla began taking deposits in 2017. Production begins in 2028. A car that goes from zero to 60 in under a second takes about 11 years to go from deposit to driveway.

I am sure that is fine. I am going to reserve one anyway. My grandchildren can pick it up, if they still let humans drive.