Tesla Roadster Will Have An Option That Makes It Even Faster, May Include ‘Rocket Tech,’ Elon Musk Says
Tesla surprised a lot of people when they revealed the next generation Roadster at an event that was supposed to be about the unveiling of the Tesla semi-truck. The Roadster got a lot of Tesla fans excited, mostly because of its speed. As the Inquisitr previously reported, the electric “halo” car can go from 0 to 60 mph in 1.9 seconds and can travel one-fourth mile in 8.9 seconds. That’s really fast. Supercars from other companies like the Bugatti Veyron, Porsche 918 Spyder, and McLaren 720s can drive that distance in just under 10 seconds.
But just when you thought that the new Roadster couldn’t get any faster, Tesla CEO Elon Musk has announced that the acceleration time we just mentioned (0 to 60 mph in 1.9 seconds) is a feature of the Roadster’s base version. There will be another version that can go even faster.
Musk made the announcement on Twitter.
“0 to 100 km/h in 1.9 sec,” he tweeted at first. Then he dropped the bombshell. “Should clarify that this is the base model performance. There will be a special option package that takes it to the next level.”
He also implied that rocket technology might be applied to the car in a later tweet.
Should clarify that this is the base model performance. There will be a special option package that takes it to the next level.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 19, 2017
Not saying the next gen Roadster special upgrade package *will* definitely enable it to fly short hops, but maybe …
Certainly possible. Just a question of safety. Rocket tech applied to a car opens up revolutionary possibilities.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 19, 2017
As Fortune reports, Tesla hasn’t revealed any new details about the “special option package” that will be faster than the base version. But it’s clear that Tesla knows how to make fast cars.
Elon Musk shocks with new Tesla Roadster https://t.co/ByO08ggQKv pic.twitter.com/K4GOihCXw8
— Mashable (@mashable) November 17, 2017
In 2014, they released the Model S P85D with an “Insane” speed mode that allowed it to go from 0-60 in 3.2 seconds. The following year, they introduced the Model S P90D, with the “Ludicrous” mode which shaved that time down to 2.8 seconds. The Model SP100D can achieve the same feat in 2.3 seconds. Now the base version of the next generation Roadster can accelerate from a standstill to 60 MpH in 1.9 seconds.
How much faster will the “special version” of the Tesla Roadster be? Fortune notes that based on the trend of their acceleration upgrades, it could be 0 to 60 in 1.4 seconds! That is extremely fast. At the Tesla Semi unveiling, Musk said that his goal is to blow traditional gas vehicles out of the water. If Tesla produces a car that goes this fast, it’s very likely that he will accomplish this goal.
Until version 2 of the new Roadster is revealed, we’ll have to be content with the base version.
The price of the Tesla Next Gen Roadster is $200,000 and it costs $50,000 to reserve. But the Founder’s Series costs $250,000 and the cost to reserve is $250,000.
[Featured Image by Tesla]
