What happened in this Energy story?

Tesla re-unveiled its next-generation Roadster nearly 9 years after its 2017 debut with a demo featuring upside-down driving, mid-air flips, and sub-second 0-60 acceleration, but a technical breakdown questions the 4,700kg downforce claim and labels the jumping a 'party trick.'

What is a key fact in this story? (1)

**Tesla** re-unveiled the next-gen Roadster roughly 9 years after its original 2017 debut, showing a car that flew, did a kickflip, drove upside down, and claimed a 0-60 mph time of under 1 second (live demo: 0.81s; top-spec claim: under 0.59s).

What is a key fact in this story? (2)

**Tesla's** "multi-mode suction system" generated claimed downforce of 4,700kg on what the author estimates is a sub-2,000kg car - a ratio the analysis calls surprisingly high compared to the McMurtry Spierling's roughly 2,000kg of downforce on a 1,000kg car.

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Tesla's flying Roadster: real claims or cold gas hype? — SkimNews

By Electrek · Summarized & edited by Kapil Samant · 2026-10-16

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Tesla re-unveiled the next-gen Roadster roughly 9 years after its original 2017 debut, showing a car that flew, did a kickflip, drove upside down, and claimed a 0-60 mph time of under 1 second (live demo: 0.81s; top-spec claim: under 0.59s).
Tesla's "multi-mode suction system" generated claimed downforce of 4,700kg on what the author estimates is a sub-2,000kg car - a ratio the analysis calls surprisingly high compared to the McMurtry Spierling's roughly 2,000kg of downforce on a 1,000kg car.
Tesla announced three Roadster trims (Performance, Thrust, Rocket), with only the Rocket trim "air ready" with cold gas thrusters; the Rocket variant is a single-seater, with the second-seat space repurposed for larger gas tanks.
The jumping and kickflip demo is dismissed by the author as 'just a party trick,' since upward thrust reduces tire grip rather than aiding performance - though side thrusters could aid cornering and 80 kN rear thrusters enable the sub-second 0-60 claim.
Tesla's sub-1-second 0-60 test appears to have started the thrusters before the car moved, raising questions about "one foot rollout" timing and whether the thrusters face a turbo-lag-style wind-up delay that would undercut real-world acceleration.
The Roadster enters a crowded field: Rimac Nevera R hit 268 mph, Porsche and Xiaomi SU7 Ultra set Nürburgring records, and the McMurtry Spierling already drives upside down, leaving Tesla no longer the first to forge this path.

Why it matters: Tesla's claims hinge on a stated 4,700kg of downforce on a sub-2,000kg car and 80 kN of rear thruster force - ratios the analysis treats as likely inflated versus the McMurtry Spierling benchmark. With Rimac, Xiaomi, and Porsche already owning the electric sportscar records Tesla targeted in 2017, the Roadster's hype has to translate into verified specs, not party tricks, for Tesla to reclaim any first-mover reputation in the segment.