The specs on Tesla’s next-gen Roadster are already jaw-dropping. As the company revealed a few months ago, the forthcoming Roadster — which is set to be released in 2020 — can go from 0-60 MPH in just 1.9 seconds flat and boasts a top speed in excess of 250 MPH. What’s more, Tesla claims that the car will have a range of 620 miles.
As impressive as those specs are, Elon Musk over the weekend hinted that the next-gen Roadster may have a few more tricks up its sleeve. Taking to Twitter, Musk said that the next-gen Roadster may include a SpaceX package that will feature approximately “10 small rocket thrusters arranged seamlessly around car.” That’s right, Musk is talking about outfitting the Roadster with rocket thrusters — and he’s not even kidding around.
As to the benefits, Musk noted that “these rocket engines dramatically improve acceleration, top speed, braking & cornering. Maybe they will even allow a Tesla to fly…” Okay, so perhaps Musk’s hyperbolic nature is shining through when he’s talking about a Tesla flying, but subsequent tweets reveal that the Tesla CEO isn’t kidding around when it comes to outfitting a Tesla Roadster with rocket technology.
“Not saying the next gen Roadster special upgrade package *will* definitely enable it to fly short hops, but maybe…,” Musk later added. “Certainly possible. Just a question of safety. Rocket tech applied to a car opens up revolutionary possibilities.”
Shortly thereafter, Musk noted that the “next gen Roadster will be absolutely out of this world” and that “for those who love to drive, there is no finer car in history and we don’t think there will be another.”
Using the config you describe, plus an electric pump to replenish air in COPV, when car power draw drops below max pack power output, makes sense. But we are going to go a lot further.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 9, 2018
Note, gas contained would be ultra high pressure air in a SpaceX rocket COPV bottle. The air exiting the thrusters would immediately be replenished whenever vehicle pack power draw allowed operation of the air pump, which is most of the time.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 10, 2018
As to how the admittedly intriguing SpaceX package would impact the Roadster design, Musk noted that the only trade-off would be that the car would become a 2-seater
