Elon Musk’s flying Tesla is gloriously absurd

Elon Musk finally unveiled his long-promised next-generation Tesla Roadster, and it’s every bit as outrageous as you’d expect from a man who launches rockets into space.

• The car flies, does backflips and even drives upside down.

Why it matters: Musk’s latest creation — a collaboration between Tesla and SpaceX engineers — pushes the boundaries of automotive technology, even if it’s hard to imagine what practical purpose a flying sports car might serve.

Driving the news: At a theatrical unveiling Thursday, Musk showed off a two-seat electric supercar equipped with rocket thrusters and a powerful suction system.

• The Roadster uses high-pressure compressed air, rather than rocket fuel, for added thrust and to propel itself into the air and perform aerial gymnastics.

• A system of underbody fans sucks the car toward the pavement, creating extraordinary grip for acceleration and cornering.

• Tesla claims the car can accelerate from zero to 60 mph in just 0.8 seconds — faster than any production car — and will exceed 230 mph, although Musk said the goal is to achieve “half the speed of sound.”

“This car could suck the chrome off a trailer hitch,” Musk joked about its powerful fans.

• He also acknowledged that the Roadster is “not necessarily a safety optimized car.”

• And before the demonstrations began, he warned: “Success is not guaranteed … But if it doesn’t work, we’re at a safe distance.”

Elon Musk onstage at Tesla’s Roadster event Thursday. Images: @Tesla via X

Between the lines: The Roadster is a reminder of what makes Musk such a polarizing figure: his willingness to pursue ideas that other engineers — or corporate lawyers — might dismiss as insane.

• Tesla and SpaceX have already transformed the auto and aerospace industries by challenging conventional engineering assumptions.

• The Roadster takes that boundary-pushing philosophy to an almost comical extreme.

• But the underlying technologies, particularly its active aerodynamics and extraordinary traction system, could have applications beyond a so-called flying car.

My thought bubble: There’s an irony here. Musk envisions a future where humans won’t need to drive, yet he’s building what he says will be Tesla’s last manually driven car.

• While Tesla’s robotaxis promise to make transportation safer and more mundane, the Roadster is designed to make driving thrilling — and perhaps a little terrifying.

• It’s a throwback to the era when cars were objects of desire, not just appliances that move people around.

Reality check: Tesla lists three models of the Roadster, and the flying version it acknowledges is not approved for public roads.

• It hasn’t disclosed a price, driving range or how long the Rocket version can stay airborne.

• And Musk has a long history of promising revolutionary products years before they arrive.

What we’re watching: Musk says the Roadster will enter production in 2028. There are still so many unanswered questions, not the least being whether a flying car — legal or not — is even practical.

• But for one crazy evening, he made the future look like a science-fiction movie.

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