The timeline for the next-generation Tesla Roadster keeps stretching further and further into the future. A fresh report indicates that the American electric vehicle manufacturer shifted its planned public demonstration from the spring to August or even later. The decision is yet another adjustment to a schedule that has repeatedly changed since the company first displayed the vehicle concept nearly a decade ago.

According to individuals familiar with the situation, the upcoming exhibition will eventually take place in Texas. The main objective of this event is to highlight the specialized technology that Tesla is developing alongside SpaceX. The company claims this system will use cold gas thrusters to give the high-performance car unprecedented acceleration and the unique ability to briefly leave the ground… That’s apparently not a joke.

Skepticism surrounding these production timelines is not new for the brand. CEO Elon Musk introduced the prototype back in November 2017 and promised that manufacturing would officially begin in 2020. Since that announcement, the executive adjusted the official launch window at least eight separate times. The planned event in Texas is the first major presentation focused on this specific product since the manufacturer revealed its Cybercab concept back in October 2024.

The delays piled up quickly over the past few months. During a shareholder presentation in late 2025, the company promised April 1, 2026, as the reveal date, but pushed volume production out to 2027 or 2028. When April passed without an event, statements on social media suggested late May or early June. Eventually, during the first-quarter earnings call for 2026, the guidance changed once again to a vague estimate of “a month or so.”

Internal data reveals that engineering teams completed a private demonstration of the rocket-derived hardware for management in late April. The internal trial helps clarify why the company felt compelled to postpone the public showcase, as the complex systems needed more testing. The project has an internal designation “A71” and is a collaborative effort between engineers from both the automotive firm and the aerospace company.

The plans apparently involve two distinct variants of the sports car. The premium version will sport the SpaceX package, which replaces the rear passenger seats with approximately 10 cold-air rocket thrusters. This is supposed to improve cornering agility, braking efficiency, and acceleration. Company documentation asserts the setup will achieve a 0 to 60 mph sprint time of just 1.1 seconds. A standard, scaled-down version without the rocket components will be the entry-level model.

The ongoing development brought serious financial tension for early buyers who funded the project years ago. Customers paid big deposits to secure their positions in line, with standard reservations costing $50,000 and exclusive Founders Series slots requiring an upfront payment of $250,000. The reservation holders have yet to see a finalized production vehicle despite committing serious capital to the manufacturer nearly nine years ago.

The prolonged waiting shows how much the competitive landscape for electric cars has transformed. Tesla Roadster might be stuck in the prototype phase, but global competitors successfully launched and delivered high-performance EVs to customers worldwide. Brands like Rimac, Lotus, Yangwang, and Xiaomi ship advanced electric cars that compete in the high-end performance sector, reducing the technical uniqueness that the American automaker originally promised.

Industry analysts suggest that the heavy push for experimental aerospace features reveals an important strategic shift. Integrating rocket thrusters into Tesla Roadster creates a lot of media attention, but it does very little to solve the practical manufacturing or battery engineering challenges facing modern EVs. Some market observers view the reliance on these complex mechanical additions as an admission that Tesla’s battery-electric powertrains alone no longer guarantee a distinct performance advantage over rapidly advancing international competitors.

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Nio is getting ready for a big party this week – on Thursday April 9, the company will host an event to show off its newest creation: the Nio ES9. This is a very large vehicle that Nio calls a “smart electric executive flagship.” That name might sound like a lot of marketing talk, but it basically means this is a giant, high-tech car built for people who want the best features available in electric cars. Nio shared new videos and photos to get people excited before the official reveal – and there is a lot to unpack.

The ES9 is definitely not your average family car. It will be the biggest pure electric SUV sold in China. According to official papers, it measures 211.2 inches in length. It is also 79.9 inches wide and 73.6 inches tall. With a wheelbase of 128 inches, the ES9 is as long as two newest Smart #2 EVs parked bumper to bumper. It is even larger than Nio’s current big SUV, the ES8. If you have a small garage, you might want to bring a tape measure before you order one.

The new Nio ES9 – source: Nio/Weibo

The front of the vehicle has a bold look that Nio calls the “Shark Nose” design. It gets very thin, sharp lights called “Ultra Pure Crystal Diamond” daytime running lights. These are helping the driver see at night, and they have a neat trick – they can actually project videos onto a wall about 10 meters in front of the car. If you ever feel like watching a movie on your neighbor’s fence while you are parked, this car can do it. These smart headlights can also cover six lanes of traffic to help you see pedestrians or obstacles more easily.

Some people worry that big EVs are hard to drive on narrow streets, but Nio claims it has solved this problem. The company released a video showing the ES9 driving through tight roads – it apparently turns as easily as a much smaller car. The car’s safety was tested by popping a tire at 93 mph and the SUV stayed steady even after the tire blew out.

Interior of the new Nio ES9 – source: Nio/Weibo

Inside the cabin, the ES9 looks more like a luxury lounge than a car. It has a six-seat layout with two seats in each of the three rows. The middle row has “zero-gravity” seats which can lean back very far to make you feel like you are floating. The seats also come with heaters, cooling fans, and massage tools. The windows use electrochromic glass, allowing you to turn them from clear to dark with the push of a button.

There are screens everywhere in this SUV. The driver gets a huge 15.6-inch screen in the middle of the dashboard. There is also a long display that stretches across the front for the passenger to use. People sitting in the back have two 14.5-inch screens to watch shows or play games. There is even a small 8-inch screen in the center of the back seats. To keep your snacks cold, Nio included a small refrigerator. The company used a lot of real wood and soft Nappa leather to make the interior feel upmarket.

Interior of the new Nio ES9 – source: Nio/Weibo

This car has plenty of power – it uses two electric motors to move its heavy body. The front motor provides 180 kW (241 hp), and the rear motor adds another 340 kW (456 hp). All that power comes from a 102 kWh battery pack. Depending on which version you buy, the car can travel between 360 miles and 385 miles on a full charge. It also uses a 900V system, so the battery should charge very quickly – we will have more details on that this Thursday.

The ES9 is also very smart. It uses two Shenji NX 9031 chips designed by Nio. To see the world around it, the SUV has a LiDAR sensor on the roof and more sensors on the sides. It also uses radar and cameras to watch for other cars. This is the same high-tech hardware found in Nio’s most expensive sedan, the ET9.

We do not know exactly how much the ES9 will cost yet. Nio says they will announce the pre-sale prices during the event on Thursday at 7 pm Beijing time. We can guess it will be expensive, though. Nio’s current top-of-the-line sedan starts at RMB 768,000, which is about £81,400. After the big reveal this week, the ES9 will go to the Beijing Auto Show on April 24, with deliveries expected to start on June 1.

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