Tesla’s next Roadster will be one of the quickest cars in the world

By Ronan Glon Published December 11, 2017

Tesla Motors co-founder and CEO Elon Musk has quietly announced new details about the long-awaited, second-generation Roadster.

What the upcoming Roadster — assuming the name is retained — will be powered by is up in the air at this point. However, Tesla has hinted the all-electric convertible will be even quicker than the top-of-the-line Model S, which is currently the fastest member of the company’s lineup.

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“There is of course one speed faster than Ludicrous, but that is reserved for the next-generation Roadster: maximum plaid,” affirmed the automaker in a press release.

With Ludicrous mode engaged, the Model S is capable of hitting 60 mph from a standstill in just 2.5 seconds, a figure that makes it the fastest regular-production four-door sedan on the planet. If Tesla keeps its promise, the next Roadster will be able to sprint from zero to 60 mph faster than the sold-out McLaren P1. That’s no small feat, but Tesla has consistently impressed with its ability to outgun the industry’s biggest and best-established names.

While the original Roadster was built on a platform borrowed from England-based Lotus, Musk has all but confirmed its successor will be developed and built entirely in-house. Some sources claim it will borrow quite a few bits and pieces from the upcoming Model 3, but the California-based carmaker has opted not to comment on the matter.

What’s all but certain is the convertible will not use any components stamped with a Lotus part number.

“[When we designed the Roadster] we ended up changing most of the damn car so we thought later, why did we do that?” revealed the executive in an earlier interview.

Tesla is busily putting the final touches on the Model 3, its 3 Series-fighting model, and it has strongly hinted its fourth model will be a crossover positioned below the X. Replacing the Roadster isn’t a top priority, and Musk affirmed on Twitter that a replacement is still “some years away” from debuting.

Former Contributor

Ronan Glon is an American automotive and tech journalist based in southern France. As a long-time contributor to Digital…

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Cars

EVs top gas cars in German reliability report — but one weak spot won’t quit

future electric cars 2021 volkswagen id4 official 32

Electric vehicles are quietly crushing old stereotypes about being delicate or unreliable, and the data now backs it up in a big way. According to Germany’s ADAC — Europe’s largest roadside assistance provider — EVs are actually more reliable than their internal combustion engine (ICE) counterparts. And this isn’t just a small study — it’s based on a staggering 3.6 million breakdowns in 2024 alone.
For cars registered between 2020 and 2022, EVs averaged just 4.2 breakdowns per 1,000 vehicles, while ICE cars saw more than double that, at 10.4 per 1,000. Even with more EVs hitting the road, they only accounted for 1.2% of total breakdowns — a big win for the battery-powered crowd.
Among standout performers, some cars delivered exceptionally low breakdown rates. The Audi A4 clocked in at just 0.4 breakdowns per 1,000 vehicles for 2022 models, with Tesla’s Model 3 right behind at 0.5. The Volkswagen ID.4, another popular EV, also impressed with a rate of 1.0 – as did the Mitsubishi Eclipse Cross at 1.3. On the flip side, there were some major outliers: the Hyundai Ioniq 5 showed a surprisingly high 22.4 breakdowns per 1,000 vehicles for its 2022 models, while the hybrid Toyota RAV4 posted 18.4.
Interestingly, the most common issue for both EVs and ICE vehicles was exactly the same: the humble 12-volt battery. Despite all the futuristic tech in EVs, it’s this old-school component that causes 50% of all EV breakdowns, and 45% for gas-powered cars. Meanwhile, EVs shine in categories like engine management and electrical systems — areas where traditional engines are more complex and failure-prone.
But EVs aren’t completely flawless. They had a slightly higher rate of tire-related issues — 1.3 breakdowns per 1,000 vehicles compared to 0.9 for ICE cars. That could be due to their heavier weight and high torque, which can accelerate tire wear. Still, this trend is fading in newer EVs as tire tech and vehicle calibration improve.
Now, zooming out beyond Germany: a 2024 Consumer Reports study in the U.S. painted a different picture. It found that EVs, especially newer models, had more reliability issues than gas cars, citing tech glitches and inconsistent build quality. But it’s worth noting that the American data focused more on owner-reported problems, not just roadside breakdowns.
So, while the long-term story is still developing, especially for older EVs, Germany’s data suggests that when it comes to simply keeping you on the road, EVs are pulling ahead — quietly, efficiently, and with far fewer breakdowns than you might expect.

Cars

Tesla’s new Cybertruck trim goes low on price, high on range

Tesla Cybertruck

Tesla has just introduced the most affordable variant of its Cybertruck in the US market. Carrying a sticker price worth $69,990, and dipping down to $62,490 with the federal tax credit applied, the new “Long Range” rear-wheel drive (RWD) model is quite an interesting package, in both good and odd ways.

For starters, despite being the most affordable trim, it offers the highest per-charge mileage at 350 miles. The pricier All-Wheel Drive version delivers a range of 325 miles, while the top-of-the-line $99,990 Cyberbeast model can only muster 301 miles.

Cars

Tesla, Warner Bros. dodge some claims in ‘Blade Runner 2049’ lawsuit, copyright battle continues

Tesla Cybercab at night

Tesla and Warner Bros. scored a partial legal victory as a federal judge dismissed several claims in a lawsuit filed by Alcon Entertainment, a production company behind the 2017 sci-fi movie Blade Runner 2049, Reuters reports.
The lawsuit accused the two companies of using imagery from the film to promote Tesla’s autonomous Cybercab vehicle at an event hosted by Tesla CEO Elon Musk at Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) Studios in Hollywood in October of last year.
U.S. District Judge George Wu indicated he was inclined to dismiss Alcon’s allegations that Tesla and Warner Bros. violated trademark law, according to Reuters. Specifically, the judge said Musk only referenced the original Blade Runner movie at the event, and noted that Tesla and Alcon are not competitors.
"Tesla and Musk are looking to sell cars," Reuters quoted Wu as saying. "Plaintiff is plainly not in that line of business."
Wu also dismissed most of Alcon's claims against Warner Bros., the distributor of the Blade Runner franchise.
However, the judge allowed Alcon to continue its copyright infringement claims against Tesla for its alleged use of AI-generated images mimicking scenes from Blade Runner 2049 without permission.
Alcan says that just hours before the Cybercab event, it had turned down a request from Tesla and WBD to use “an icononic still image” from the movie.
In the lawsuit, Alcon explained its decision by saying that “any prudent brand considering any Tesla partnership has to take Musk’s massively amplified, highly politicized, capricious and arbitrary behavior, which sometimes veers into hate speech, into account.”
Alcon further said it did not want Blade Runner 2049 “to be affiliated with Musk, Tesla, or any Musk company, for all of these reasons.”
But according to Alcon, Tesla went ahead with feeding images from Blade Runner 2049 into an AI image generator to yield a still image that appeared on screen for 10 seconds during the Cybercab event. With the image featured in the background, Musk directly referenced Blade Runner.
Alcon also said that Musk’s reference to Blade Runner 2049 was not a coincidence as the movie features a “strikingly designed, artificially intelligent, fully autonomous car.”