In a new hour-long interview, Elon Musk has once and for all confirmed that the 2nd-generation Tesla Roadster will be able to fly. Musk says Tesla will show off the flying Roadster next year & it will be “the greatest demo of any product ever.”
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At the recent X takeover event in San Luis Obispo, California, Elon Musk gave an hour-long interview where, among other things, discussed some exciting updates about the next-generation Tesla Roadster.
Hosts John Stringer and Kelvin Gee from Tesla Owners Silicon Valley conducted an amazing interview with Elon Musk, during which they were able to get the Tesla CEO to share some new information.
Host Kelvin asked Musk, “What other future car projects are you most excited about? Is it the Roadster? Is it the Robotaxi? Can you speak about what you are most excited about?”
In response, Musk went into detail, first discussing the robotaxi and all the bigger projects going on at Tesla…
“Well, in terms of what will have the biggest impact on the world, it will be the robotaxi or dedicated robotaxi. Now, of course, all Tesla vehicles will be able to operate as a robotaxi, pretty much all, so I think the dedicated robotaxi will have the single biggest effect in the world; the semi-truck, I think, will have a great effect, too.”
Over the years, we have heard Musk reiterate the importance of solving full self-driving and the upcoming robotaxi’s potential to revolutionize the world, and we agree with Musk’s assessment of the matter; however, from a news perspective, what came next was arguably more interesting.
Musk continued, “The Roadster is one of those things that’s not necessary from a utility standpoint but is super cool. A friend of mine, Peter Thiel, was saying, “Why don’t we have flying cars?” I’m like, wait for it, it’s coming.
So, I think the Roadster will be super cool. Is it going to change the world? I don’t know, but sometimes you just have to have cool things because it’s great to have awesome things in the world, so it’s kind of the cherry on the cake.
I think the Roadster demo will be mind blowing. It might be the most mind blowing demo of anything ever.”
This is certainly exciting, and naturally, host John from Tesla Owners Silicon Valley said, “Quick follow-up: When is the Roadster demo happening? I don’t know if you could share that, but it’s okay if you have to pass on that one.”
Musk, in response, said, “I think next year, sometime next year, and that’s a joint Tesla/SpaceX effort, so it’s kind of combining rocket engineering with Tesla EV engineering to make something really special.”
And here is the kicker: Host Kelvin responded by saying, “I heard it can fly a little.” Musk directly responded, simply saying, “Yeah,” adding, “It will be something special.”
Finally, Musk added, “We’ll continue to make products we haven’t talked about at all. There are new things that will come out, but the really ultra profound thing is full self-driving. Unsupervised self-driving is a gigantic thing, and Optimus having an autonomous, useful humanoid robot is even bigger than full self-driving.”
Over the years, we’ve heard Musk hint multiple times that the second-generation Roadster could fly. However, this is the first time that Musk has definitively confirmed that the Roadster will be able to fly.
Musk has previously explained that Tesla could make the Roadster fly by using cold air thrusters. These cold air thrusters are the same ones used on the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket for attitude control in the air or in space.
Since Tesla’s mission is to accelerate the world's transition to sustainable energy, the company will obviously not add rocket engines to make the Roadster fly.
First, Tesla plans to replace the two rear seats in the Roadster with composite overwrapped pressure vessels. These pressure vessels are the same ones that SpaceX uses to store helium to pressurize the Falcon 9 rocket.
These vessels have the capacity to withstand very high pressures; in the Roadster, electricity from the battery pack will be used to power an onboard electric pump that will fill the vessels with very high-pressure air.
This stored highly pressurized air can then be let out using valves in a controlled fashion. When the valves let out the air at the back of the car, then the pressurized air will be used to aid in acceleration.
Musk has previously hinted that the Tesla Roadster's 0 to 60 mph time with the aid of the cold air thrusters will be 1.1 seconds.
The same valves installed at the front of the vehicle can be used to aid braking, and valves installed on the side could be used to aid cornering.
All this is exciting; however, the most exciting part here is that the same valves pointed downwards can use the pressurized air to lift the vehicle off the ground.
This means the vehicle will be able to hover over the ground, similar to some high-end aircraft. Musk also hinted that, in addition to hovering over the ground, the Roadster, propelled by the cold air thrusters, would be able to travel horizontally.
It’s amazing to think that the second-generation Roadster could come with this technology as soon as next year.
Overall, this is exciting, and we’ll be sure to keep you posted when we get more updates about this program. Until then, make sure to visit our site, torquenews.com/Tesla, regularly for the latest updates.
So, what do you think? Are you excited about the upcoming flying Roadster? Also, given the fact that the vehicle is over five years behind schedule, do you trust Musk’s promise for next year's unveiling event? Let us know your thoughts in the comments by clicking the red “Add new comment” button below.
Image: Courtesy of Tesla, inc.
For more information, check out: I Unfortunately Killed a Deer Going 50 Mph in My Tesla Cybertruck – I’m the 3rd Cybertruck Owner to Run Over a Deer With My Shiny, Silent, Stainless Steel Truck
Tinsae Aregay has been following Tesla and the evolution of the EV space daily for several years. He covers everything about Tesla, from the cars to Elon Musk, the energy business, and autonomy. Follow Tinsae on Twitter at @TinsaeAregay for daily Tesla news.
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