Tesla unveiled a new Roadster it calls a flying car: compressed-air thrusters let it jump over vehicles and land, with production planned for 2028.

What Tesla showed

On Thursday, 15 Oct 2026, Tesla livestreamed the unveiling of its redesigned, second-generation Roadster from a SpaceX test site in McGregor, Texas. Tesla first showed a second-generation Roadster in 2017 and said then that deliveries would start in 2020.

In the main demo, the car sped up a large curved ramp and used a fan-based suction system to stay stuck to it while fully upside down. Thrusters then pushed it off the ramp; it flipped in mid-air and landed. In a second run it jumped over a Cybercab, a Cybertruck, a Tesla Semi, a Model Y and a Model 3, and Dezeen reports it also lifted off from a standstill. Dezeen says each flight lasted a few seconds and that the car ran a pre-programmed sequence with no driver. "Turns out the future does have flying cars," Elon Musk said.

How the flying works

Lars Moravy, Tesla's vice-president of vehicle engineering, said the car uses 10 thrusters connected to 600 litres of compressed air, and that the air tank can be recharged without fuel. Tesla describes them as cold-gas thrusters developed with SpaceX, and says it fills every usable space in the car with carbon-fibre pressure tanks of the kind SpaceX uses on its rockets.

The same thrusters can fire backwards to add acceleration. On X, Tesla said the system produces four to five times the force the tyres can. Other details from the event: a deployable spoiler, scissor doors, seats moulded into the chassis and wire steering, where electronics replace the mechanical link between steering wheel and wheels.

Three versions, building from 2028

Tesla listed three versions. Performance is a road car with two seats, active aerodynamics and the suction system. Thrust adds rear thrusters and, Tesla says, goes from 0 to 60 mph in under one second. Rocket has one seat, 10 thrusters around the car and what Tesla calls a full flight system, and is by invitation only. TechCrunch reports Tesla's figures for all three as 300 miles of range and a top speed above 230 mph.

Tesla gave no price. Reservations open at USD 50,000 for Performance and USD 250,000 for Thrust. Tesla says production starts in 2028.

What is still unclear

No report gives the height or distance of the jumps, how long the compressed air lasts, or any approval from a road or aviation regulator. Musk has said street legality for the flying feature is uncertain. He also said safety is not the Roadster's main goal and told buyers who put safety first not to buy it. The 2017 version slipped from a 2020 delivery date, so the 2028 start is a plan, not a delivery date.